Bocadillo (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

: ''bocadillo (de guayaba)'', "guava snack"), guava jelly, or guava paste, is a

Hispanic American Hispanic and Latino Americans are Americans who have a Spanish or Latin American background, culture, or family origin. This demographic group includes all Americans who identify as Hispanic or Latino, regardless of race. According to the ...

confection Confectionery is the art of making confections, or sweet foods. Confections are items that are rich in sugar and carbohydrates, although exact definitions are difficult. In general, however, confections are divided into two broad and somew ...

made with

guava Guava ( ), also known as the 'guava-pear', is a common tropical fruit cultivated in many tropical and subtropical regions. The common guava '' Psidium guajava'' (lemon guava, apple guava) is a small tree in the myrtle family (Myrtaceae), nativ ...

pulp and

panela Panela () or rapadura (Portuguese pronunciation: ) is an unrefined whole cane sugar, typical of Latin America. It is a solid form of sucrose derived from the boiling and evaporation of sugarcane juice. Panela is known by other names in Lati ...

, which is consumed abundantly throughout

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

and

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

. Similar confection can be produced from other fruits like

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large treelike herbaceous flowering plants in the genus '' Musa''. In some countries, cooking bananas are called plantains, distinguishing the ...

and

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...

. The town of Vélez,

Santander Department Santander () is a department of Colombia. Santander inherited the name of one of the nine original states of the United States of Colombia. It is located in the central northern part of the country, borders the Magdalena River to the east, Bo ...

, Colombia, is a major centre of production for the sweet and gives it the alternative name "bocadillo veleño". In 2006, the bocadillo veleño was nominated for the cultural symbol for Colombia in the contest organized by a magazine, ''

Semana ''Semana'' (Spanish: ''Week'') is a weekly magazine in Colombia. History ''Semana'' was founded in 1946 by Alberto Lleras Camargo (who would become president of Colombia in 1958) and that folded in 1961. It was relaunched by journalist in ...

''. In

, the form of consumption is similar to that of Colombia, where the product is sometimes called "conserva de guayaba". Bocadillo is commonly accompanied by cheese, spread upon bread, or simply eaten on its own. It most often takes the form of a small rectangular block, with a firm consistency and a deep red colour, giving it a similar appearance to the related

dessert '' dulce de membrillo''. Very similar to guava jelly dessert is the closely related

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

ian ''

goiabada Goiabada (; from ''Portuguese'' goiaba, guava) is a conserve made of red guavas and sugar, commonly found throughout the Portuguese-speaking countries of the world. It dates back to the colonial times of Brazil, where guavas were used as a su ...

'', also made from guava but with less sugar.

Preparation

Bocadillo is prepared much like other conserves, jams, and jellies. The guavas are first washed and peeled before being mashed into a pulp, which is strained to remove seeds. The pulp is then boiled in water along with

refined sugar White sugar, also called table sugar, granulated sugar, or regular sugar, is a commonly used type of sugar, made either of beet sugar or cane sugar, which has undergone a refining process. It is nearly pure sucrose. Description The refini ...

at a low temperature for several hours until the mixture has a thick consistency. The liquid is left to cool off to make it be molded into blocks. It gets its characteristic firm texture once it is fully cooled. Bocadillo de guayaba is traditionally individually wrapped in the leaves of the ''bijao'' ('' calathea lutea'') to preserve it and to enhance its flavour.

References

{{Reflist Colombian cuisine Venezuelan cuisine Spreads (food) Guava dishes

Preparation

See also

References