Destination
Bogota
The story
Cayeye (also called mote de guineo in some parts of the Magdalena department) is the Caribbean Colombian breakfast: green plantain (guineo) boiled until tender, mashed roughly with butter, topped with a slick of hogao (Colombian sofrito), a crumble of white cheese and a fried egg. Cheap, filling, deeply local, and served in every kitchen from Santa Marta to Barranquilla. Coffee mandatory on the side; a small glass of fresh orange juice a common addition.
Method
Place the plantain chunks in a large pot of salted water. Bring to a boil and cook 20 to 25 minutes, until a knife slides in with no resistance. Drain and return to the hot pot to dry out for 1 minute.
While the plantains boil, warm the oil in a wide pan over medium heat. Sweat the red onion and spring onions 5 minutes. Add the tomato, cumin, achiote and salt. Cook 8 to 10 minutes until soft and jammy. Off the heat, stir in the coriander.
Add the butter and a good grind of pepper to the hot plantains. Mash roughly with a fork or potato masher — cayeye should be rustic and slightly chunky, not a smooth puree.
Fry the eggs in a hot pan with a little oil, sunny side up, until the whites are set and the yolks are still runny.
Divide the mashed plantain between 4 plates. Spoon a generous ladle of hogao over each. Scatter with crumbled cheese. Slide a fried egg on top.
Serve immediately with strong coffee. Ají picante at the table for those who want it.
Tips
- Green plantains, not yellow. Green plantains have the correct starchy texture for a savoury mash. Ripe (yellow-black) plantains are for plátanos en tentación, not cayeye.
- Rough mash, not smooth. Cayeye should have some texture. A fork or a hand masher gives the right result; a food processor turns it into gluey plantain paste.
- Homemade hogao is worth 10 minutes. The base of onion, tomato and spring onion, cooked slow, is what makes the dish taste Colombian. A jar of shop-bought sofrito is a shortcut; the real thing is better.
- Queso costeño is the right cheese. Its assertive salty tang is what balances the mild starchy plantain. Mild feta is a workable substitute; grated hard cheeses are not.
- Runny yolk is not optional. The egg is meant to break over the plantain when you cut into it, mixing with the hogao and cheese. Hard-yolk eggs don't create the same finish.
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