{"id":2722,"date":"2015-12-01T16:08:21","date_gmt":"2015-12-01T16:08:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.diningtraveler.com\/?p=2722"},"modified":"2015-12-01T16:08:21","modified_gmt":"2015-12-01T16:08:21","slug":"el-condado-plaza-hilton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/diningtraveler.com\/2015\/12\/el-condado-plaza-hilton.html","title":{"rendered":"In the Kitchen at El Condado Plaza Hilton"},"content":{"rendered":"
Although most of us learn to cook from our mothers, there is still a void of women chefs worldwide. While researching for my book, Dining Traveler Guide to\u00a0Puerto Rico<\/a>, I had the opportunity to go behind the scenes at El Condado Plaza Hilton\u00a0<\/a>with the property\u2019s executive chef, Maria Germania Diaz. Today she is one of a few female executive chefs in Puerto Rico\u2019s hotel industry, and the second person to occupy the position in what is today the The Condado Plaza Hilton. \u00a0The hotel, with the view of El Condado Lagoon, is a hotspot for weddings, conventions, and many other events on the island.\u00a0 As the Executive Chef, Chef Maria oversees hundreds of events throughout the year.<\/p>\n As I enter the large stainless steel kitchen, I see line cooks stuffing hens with mofongo (a Puerto Rican dish of mashed fried green plantains) and a pot of simmering stew with the savory scent taking over the space.\u00a0 Orchestrating the culinary symphony, was Chef Maria, in her bright fuchsia chef coat and colorful chef\u2019s clogs to match.\u00a0 She has the contagious smile combined with a strong, command presence.<\/p>\n She begins to show me on how she makes her Puerto Rican take on ratatouille canapes, one of the most requested items on her event cocktail menu.\u00a0 As she starts to chop the onion, she talks about her passion for food.\u00a0 She began her career as a chef twenty-four years ago at what is now is known as El Conquistador Resort.\u00a0 Although she has been with El Condado Plaza for sixteen years, she has traveled throughout the Caribbean and as far as Sri Lanka, collaborating with other chefs and drawing inspiration from her travels.<\/p>\n As I see her making the ratatouille, I quickly noticed this is a very Boricua<\/em> (Puerto Rican) take on the dish.\u00a0 The eggplant is grown locally in a farm in the center of Puerto Rico.\u00a0 She also uses longaniza<\/em> (a version of chorizo) and queso del pa\u00eds <\/em>(local white cheese of Puerto Rico).\u00a0 Although she serves a diverse audience on a daily basis, the tries to inject a touch of Puerto Rico with her menu items. \u00a0This is also seen in her ceviche, on which I detect sweet Puerto Rican mangoes.<\/p>\n I enjoyed hearing Maria\u2019s stories as she chopped and saut\u00e9ed.\u00a0 Chef Maria has been working the kitchens of some of Puerto Rico\u2019s most beloved properties for over two decades.\u00a0 She says one of her favorite parts has been to cater weddings and then see other family members and siblings follow suit with the same menu at the hotel.\u00a0 As the end of the demo, we snack on our canapes as we take a walk along the turquoise blue waters which line El Condado Plaza Hilton.\u00a0 I bet there\u2019s a daily dose of culinary inspiration with that amazing view!<\/p>\n Although most of us learn to cook from our mothers, there is still a void of women chefs worldwide. While researching for my book, Dining Traveler Guide to\u00a0Puerto Rico, I had the opportunity to go behind the scenes at El Condado Plaza Hilton\u00a0with the property\u2019s executive chef, Maria Germania Diaz. Today she is one of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":2723,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,95,2,56,1],"tags":[345,288,267,227],"class_list":{"0":"post-2722","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-food","8":"category-puerto-rico","9":"category-travel","10":"category-travel-tip","11":"category-uncategorized","12":"tag-chef-recipes","13":"tag-dining-traveler-guide-to-puerto-rico","14":"tag-puerto-rico","15":"tag-travel"},"yoast_head":"\n<\/a>
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