Porotos con rienda is a Chilean dish made of beans, squash, and winter noodles, often with smoked sausage. It originated from European settlers adapting their traditional cooking styles to local ingredients. Toppings include onion, garlic, olive oil, and oregano, and vegetarian versions are common.
Porotos con rienda is a Chilean dish, a thick soup or stew of beans, squash or squash, and winter noodles. Often, the soup is made with smoked sausage. It is a hearty dish, suited to the cold weather that occurs seasonally in much of Chile. In addition to the main ingredients, the soup usually includes other vegetables such as onion and carrot.
The ingredients are a blend of major influences in Chile’s cuisine: beans and squashes have been local foods since pre-Columbian times, while European settlers to the area have brought pasta, sausage, and a soup tradition. Porotos con rienda likely originated in the mid-1800s when a large wave of immigrants arrived from several European countries and began adapting their traditional cooking styles to locally available ingredients. The name literally means “beans with reins”, an apparent reference to long, thin spaghetti.
White beans, usually cannellini or large beans from the north, are usually used in the dish. Some recipes use pinto beans. Canned beans can be used to shorten the preparation time, but in that case care must be taken to make the broth as flavorful as that developed by boiling the beans with the flavoring ingredients.
Although porotos con rienda is often said to be made of beans, squash, and spaghetti, butternut or other winter squash is often used instead of squash. Buying pumpkin or squash chunks that have already been cut and peeled is easier than cutting and peeling an entire pumpkin. Spaghetti is important to the character of the soup, but the amount used is much smaller than that used in a pasta dish. Most recipes call for only 1/4 lb (113 g) or less of spaghetti.
The toppings in porotos con rienda are essential. Onion, garlic, olive oil and oregano are standard, while common additions include paprika, cumin and coriander. Carrots, diced tomatoes and peppers are often used. Kielbasa, or other smoked sausage, is a traditional ingredient, and some recipes include bacon, with or instead of the sausage. Vegetarian versions are quite common, probably because early immigrants didn’t always have smoked meats available.
Most recipes call for mashing some or all of the squash or squash after it’s fully cooked, which makes the broth creamy and thick. For extra flavor, the squash can be roasted rather than just boiled with the beans. Porotos con rienda goes well with rice or any type of crusty peasant bread.
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