Dominican Queso Frito and Salami
Queso Frito con Salami Dominicano·(keh-soh free-toh kohn sah-lah-mee doh-mee-nee-kah-noh)
BREAKFAST
This isn't a delicate Sunday morning meal prep built on careful slicing and gentle simmering. It takes exactly ten minutes and a hot cast-iron skillet to build Los Tres Golpes—a massive plate of mashed plantains topped with fried eggs, thick-cut salchichón, slabs of queso de freír, and vinegar-wilted onions. We’re losing the heavy starch of the plantains and replacing it with fresh avocado to bring this into strict keto compliance. Once the fat renders, let the hot oil do all the heavy lifting. Fry the cheese, blister the spiced meat, fry the eggs in that exact same rendered fat, and immediately deglaze the pan with vinegar-steeped onions.
Per serving: NET CARBS: 5 g Total carbs: 7 g | Fiber: 2 g | Sugar alcohols: 0 g Fat: 48 g | Protein: 29 g Calories: ~580
Before you start
Work quickly and sequentially.
This recipe moves incredibly fast and relies on a single skillet. Have all your ingredients sliced and ready before the cheese hits the pan.
Ingredients
- red onion1/2 med
- distilled white vinegar2 tbsp
- kosher salt1/4 tsp
- avocado oil1 tbsp
- Queso de Freír6 oz
- Salami Dominicano6 oz
- eggs4 large
- Hass avocado1/2 med
Method
- 01
Macerate the onions.
In a small bowl, toss the sliced red onion with the white vinegar and kosher salt. Let them sit and pickle while you cook everything else. This brief steep tempers the raw allium bite and infuses them with the acid needed to cut through the rich fats of the dish.
- 02
Sear the cheese.
Heat the avocado oil in a large cast-iron or heavy nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the slabs of Queso de Freír. Fry undisturbed until a deep, golden-brown crust forms on the bottom, about 1 to 2 minutes. Flip and fry for 1 minute more, then transfer to a warm serving plate.
- 03
Blister the salami.
Do not wipe out the skillet. Add the thick rounds of salami to the hot oil. Fry until the edges blister, curl, and turn dark brown, about 1 to 2 minutes per side. As it cooks, the salami will release its heavily spiced, paprika-tinted fat into the pan. Transfer to the plate with the cheese.
- 04
Fry the eggs.
Crack the eggs directly into the bubbling, salami-infused oil remaining in the skillet. Fry until the whites are set and crispy at the edges but the yolks are still runny, about 2 minutes. Use a spoon to baste the hot, flavored oil over the egg whites to help them set. Transfer to the serving plate.
- 05
Deglaze with the onions.
Pour the macerated red onions—including all the vinegar from the bowl—directly into the hot skillet. It will instantly hiss and bubble. Toss the onions vigorously for 30 to 60 seconds, using the acidic vinegar to scrape up the browned bits left behind by the meat and cheese.
- 06
Assemble and serve.
Drape the warm, tangy onions over the eggs, cheese, and salami. Serve immediately alongside the fresh avocado slices.
Notes
Why this swap? Avocado for mangú.
Swapping the traditional mashed green plantains for sliced avocado saves roughly 30g of net carbs per serving while providing an infusion of heart-healthy monounsaturated fat.
Why this swap? Halloumi for Queso de Freír.
If you absolutely cannot find Caribbean frying cheese, grab a block of Halloumi. It shares the same high-melting-point characteristics and will yield that vital, squeaky-crisp golden crust.
Hidden-Ingredient Survival Skill: Salami Dominicano.
Commercial Dominican salami (like the popular Induveca brand) is authentic and delicious, but it is cured with trace amounts of corn syrup solids. The total inclusion is incredibly low (only ~2g net carbs per 2 oz serving). It fits perfectly into a keto macro budget, but you must account for it.
Macro Math.
The 5g net carbs in this dish come almost entirely from the red onions (approx. 2g) and the trace carbs in the commercial salami (approx. 3g for a generous 3 oz serving). 7g Total Carbs - 2g Fiber = 5g Net Carbs.
From Keto 10 Minute Meals.