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No matter how much some officials suggest to remove rice and potatoes from the Cuban table, the fact is that these two foods are as much a part of our history as brewed coffee in a cloth strainer or a bread roll with croquette from the corner shop.
This week, a Cuban official questioned the deep-rootedness of rice and potatoes in the national diet, labeling them as "acquired habits" that are foreign to Cuban identity, while also holding these food choices responsible for the food crisis on the island.
However, the Cubans disagreed, and the discontent was evident on social media.
They recalled that it is enough to review the recipe book of Nitza Villapol and Martha Martínez, the authors of the legendary "Cocina al minuto" from 1956, to understand that rice and potatoes have ruled the kitchens throughout the Island.
In her chapter “Rice and Pasta,” Nitza provided more than a dozen recipes that sound glorious today: fried rice with bacon and eggs, gardener's rice, rice with chicken, rice with ham and okra, pilaf rice… each with that Creole touch that turned the everyday into a feast.
And in our cultural imagination, the potato is not missing: meat with potatoes, potato drum, stuffed potato, fried potatoes… dishes that have accompanied generations of Cubans through blackouts, celebrations, and family Sundays.
In today's Cuba, where sometimes finding a pound of rice is harder than getting a visa, rescuing those recipes is not just a culinary act; it is an act of resistance.
Cooking with what you have —and doing it with flavor, creativity, and a good sense of humor— has always been a way to survive and celebrate life.
Because beyond the crises, chicken and rice continues to smell like home, and golden fried potatoes are part of the flavor of many childhoods.
No one will be able to convince a Cuban that those flavors "aren't ours," because each dish holds a piece of our collective memory.
Perhaps that's why, if Nitza Villapol were alive, she would simply raise an eyebrow and respond, with the calmness of someone who knows everything about cooking: "Rice and potatoes may be imported, but in Cuba they became patriots a long time ago."
We share the essence of her recipe for "Rice with Chicken":
Sauté onion, bell pepper, and garlic in a pot. Add browned chicken pieces, tomato purée, and a cup of dry wine. Stir in the rice, hot broth, and let it cook until fluffy and fragrant. Serve with bell peppers.
"Papa rellena" translates to "stuffed potato."
Boil the potatoes, mash them, and fill them with sautéed ground meat. Shape into balls, dip them in egg and breadcrumbs, and fry until golden brown. Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside: a neighborhood gem.
Cuban Fried Rice
Use leftover rice. Sauté ham, beaten egg, and chives; add the rice and a splash of soy sauce. If you have a bit of bacon, even better: it smells like "Nitza's Saturday."
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