Gregory’s exquisite BLACK BEANS. Well I think so, my friends and family certainly enjoy them. I was born in Cuba and raised in Miami around a household that was always in the kitchen. At first I had very little interest on what was on the stove and more on what I was going to eat. But one day, as I watched my mother make her wonderful recipes, I decided to joined her. What happened next was my meals were as good as hers and some, with all due respect to Mom, were better. I rarely go out to eat a Cuban meal since it is so simple to make at home. I find most restaurants enhance the recipes with pre-mixes of spices that contain MSG and are simply terrible, will not mention brand names. Or they enhance heavily with the wrong amount of spice (mostly Cumin) and call it Cuban food – wrong! With Cuban cuisine it is not about heavy handed spices- but, how well you use them. One in particular to carefully monitor is Cumin; taste the essence of the flavor and not the spice before your recipe. This I feel even with established Chefs that cook Cuban cusine is the most common mistake.

I am extremely picky with my cooking, ingredients and protocol to serving the proper dish and the first recipe I achieved this with is my Cuban Black Beans. I do not eat meat, poultry, pork but do cook them with enjoyment. Mostly I am a fish-atarian. In my recipe I use only the basics, onions, green peppers, garlic, olive oil- the core in most Cuban dishes. But, before you venture and make them note a few things about CUBAN cuisine… It is not SPICY it is properly SEASONED, yellow rice or saffron rice does not belong on your plate with your black beans. Understand the essence of yellow rice and how to apply it- that is another recipe.

BUEN APROVECHO!