Latin American groceries in Poland: harina PAN, panela, achiote and more

Harina PAN is a pre-cooked maize flour from Venezuela, sold in Poland as "mąka kukurydziana PAN". It is the flour for arepas, and it does not work like ordinary corn flour. Little India stocks it next to other Latin American staples: panela, achiote, El Rey cinnamon, green plantains and palm fruit in brine.

This guide is for Venezuelans, Colombians, Peruvians and other Latin Americans in Poland, and for anyone who wants to cook from their recipes. For each item you get the Polish name, so you can find it on a shop shelf.

Harina PAN: pre-cooked maize flour for arepas

PAN is a brand, but in Venezuela and Colombia the name is used for the whole product. The maize is cooked and dried before it is milled. That is why the dough comes together with only water and salt, and why Polish "mąka kukurydziana" or polenta will not give you a proper arepa.

The basic arepa:

1. Put about 2 cups of warm water and a pinch of salt in a bowl.
2. Add the flour slowly and mix with your hand until the dough is soft and does not stick. Rest it for a few minutes.
3. Shape palm-sized discs about 1 cm thick.
4. Cook them on a dry, hot pan or a griddle for a few minutes on each side, until a crust forms and they sound hollow when you tap them.
5. Split them and fill with cheese, black beans, shredded beef or avocado.

The same flour makes empanadas, hallacas and bollos. White PAN is the most common; the shop also carries white PAN maize flour (1 kg) and a sweet corn mix for arepas de choclo, the sweeter Colombian kind.

Panela: unrefined cane sugar in a block

Panela (Polish: "cukier trzcinowy w bloku") is cane juice boiled down and set into hard blocks. It tastes of caramel and molasses. In Colombia people dissolve it in hot water with lime to make aguapanela, and they use it in desserts, coffee and sauces. Grate it or break it with a heavy knife, then melt it in a little water.

Panela is close to Indian jaggery, and you can swap one for the other in most recipes. See the panela block (500 g).

Achiote and El Rey cinnamon

Achiote (annatto, Polish "annato") seeds give a deep orange-red colour and a mild, earthy taste. Warm the seeds in oil until the oil turns red, strain it, and use the oil for rice, stews and chicken. Ground achiote is also the base of the Yucatán paste for cochinita pibil. The shop has whole achiote seeds.

"Canela Rey" is what many Colombians call cinnamon from the El Rey brand. The El Rey cinnamon sticks (Polish: "cynamon w korze") go into aguapanela, arroz con leche, hot chocolate and coffee. El Rey also makes small sachets of seasoning for ajiaco and sancocho.

Plátano verde and palm fruit

Plátano verde is a green plantain, called "plantan" or "banan warzywny" in Polish shops. It is starchy, not sweet, and you cook it before you eat it. Slice it, fry it once, flatten each piece, and fry it again to make patacones (tostones). Ripe yellow plantains are softer and sweeter, and you fry them as maduros. Little India sells green plantains in its fresh vegetables and fruit category.

"Owoce palmy" on a Polish label usually means chontaduro, the fruit of the peach palm. The jars hold chontaduro in brine. In Colombia people often eat it with salt, honey or both.

If you also cook yuca (cassava), cook it fully. Raw cassava is toxic, so never eat it raw.

Other Latin American items on the shelf

• Dulce de leche / arequipe: milk caramel for cakes, pancakes and obleas.
• Bocadillo de guayaba: firm guava paste, eaten with fresh cheese.
• Purple corn (maíz morado): boiled with pineapple peel and spices for Peruvian chicha morada.
• Ají amarillo paste and ají panca: the base peppers of Peruvian cooking.
• Black and red beans (frijoles): for bandeja paisa, frijoles negros and gallo pinto.

Where to buy Latin American groceries in Poland

Little India stocks Latin American products in its shops in Warsaw, Kraków, Wrocław and Gdańsk, and it ships across Poland from its online shop. Start at the PAN brand page and the Latin American products category. The addresses are on the local shops page.

For West African staples, read our guide to fufu and egusi. For Indian basics, see our guide to the Indian shop in Poland.