Chef Karina Garcia turned her passion for cooking into a thriving business with her husband, Lalo. It all began with a chance encounter in NYC when Lalo invited Karina to his abuela’s house in Puebla, Mexico. Little did she know that it would change their lives forever.
Karina and Lalo’s venture, Cocina Consuelo, started small, catering to friends and family. However, with their delicious and authentic take on Mexican home cooking, it quickly grew and became a hit with the Harlem community. Karina now proudly holds the title of mother, entrepreneur, and advocate. Read below to explore her journey towards participating in Heritage Fire New York City on May 21st.
KG: My inspiration for cooking comes from abuelas in both my family and my husband’s family. Cocineras make magic in the kitchen using traditional techniques that go beyond the kitchen and transport you through the food.
KG: The very first time I cooked outdoors was back in my homeland of the Dominican Republic, growing up very humble we sometimes had to resource firewood to finish or cook our meals. I vividly remember being five or six years old, walking to the backyard and climbing a coconut tree to gather the dry husk, as this makes for a quick fire, and making white rice over mango and coconut sticks, or any other fruit sticks that were dry.
KG: What excites me about this competition is sharing a space with other cooks like myself that have a similar love and appreciation for fire.
KG: Cooking with heritage breeds means cooking with the best meat available.
KG: My favorite dish growing up is pastel de platoon madero, which essentially is a lasagna, instead of pasta sheets sub sweet plantains either mashed or fried! Scrumptious!
KG: I like them because they are local farms with good ethics:
KG: Duck! Because of how much fat it has.
KG: Jalapeños stuffed with tuna. This dish is a staple at my husband’s family table during the holidays and it’s been part of the family for over 200 years!
KG: Be sure this is what you want.
KG: My earliest memories are of me wanting to be a chef. I don’t know when it first surfaced but I always had an inclination for cooking.
KG: The way I prepare for an event like this one is by writing down lots of ideas that I may or may not use, everything that comes to mind gets written down. And at the end hopefully, my vision comes alive.
KG: Fat!
KG: I started work 6 days after my home birth.
I worked at Eleven Madison Park before the pandemic hit.
I am an advocate for family paid leave, I was recently invited to Vice President Harris’s home to give a speech about my experience as an entrepreneur with no paid leave. I will also be traveling to Congress next week to propose a bill for family paid leave.
