Sofrito

In Puerto Rican cuisine it is mostly used when cooking legumes, rice dishes, sauces, soups and stews. The two main ingredients that give Puerto Rican sofrito its characteristic flavor are recao (also known as culantro) and ají dulce, but cubanelle peppers, roasted red pepper, yellow onions, garlic, plum tomatoes and cilantro (coriander), are also added. Sofrito is traditionally cooked with olive oil or annatto oil, tocino (bacon), salted pork and cured ham. A mix of stuffed olives and capers called alcaparrado are usually added with spices such as bay leaf, cumin, sazón and adobo.