One of the new kiosks at Food & Wine this year is Florida Local, which features dishes using ingredients from the state. The two food items include a White Corn Arepa with Mangalitsa Pork Rillette and Zellwood Sweet Corn Salad and Florida Shrimp Ceviche with Fire Roasted Vegetables, Fried Plantains and Cilantro.
Beer from Florida Beer Company is also available, along with tropical fruit wines from Florida Orange Groves Winery.
Mangalitsa is a specific breed of pig known for it fleece-like coat. It tends to have a higher fat content, making it ideal for slow cooking methods. Zellwood is a town in northwest Orange county in Florida that is known for their corn, and is celebrated with a festival of its own (2012′s festival was cancelled).
The arepa is a ground corn patty that has been filled with the Mangalitsa pork. It is griddled to cook through, and a slightly crispy texture gives way to the pork filling. The flavor is simple, but works to allow the ingredients speak for themselves. The corn salad is indeed sweet and fresh. The microgreens help to mellow out the sweetness and add a green brightness to the flavor.
I have yet to try the ceviche, but based on this dish, I’m sure it was well executed. I really enjoyed the simple flavors yet complex textures that this dish provided. It’s a dish I’d order again, and if you’re looking to taste some Florida tradition, it’s a great way to do so!
Let us know which Florida Local items you’ve enjoyed this year at the festival!
I LOVED the arepa. My micro greens had seeds on them still so I had to pick those out. The ceviche was good in my opinion, but the arepa was the best part of this booth for me.
Good to hear! I’ll likely order the ceviche on my next visit.
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Haven’t had the arepa yet but we tried the ceviche yesterday. Wasn’t very impressed. Basically the portion we got was small and it was like mini shrimp in tomato juice (watered down). Maybe it’s because we have Puerto Rican and Dominican friends who make their own ceviche (cooked style as opposed to raw) and we are used to that but I was expecting more. At least some onion, fresh tomato, cilantro, etc would have made it better. Not worth the money in our opinion.
It’s very hard to try a Disney-ised version of a food item when you know how good the real deal is!