Vegan Pasteles
Original Recipe
Notes
- Seasoning amounts should be to your taste. Start with the amount listed and add to your liking.
- Achiote oil can be purchased store-bought or made by simmering achiote seeds in a neutral flavored oil for a few minutes, until the oil takes on a deep orange shade.
- Pasteles can be frozen, uncooked, in zip-top freezer bags for up to four months.
- Any leftover filling can be eaten as is, served over rice. It's also delicious as a vegan taco filling.
Ingredients
- For the filling:
1/2 tbsp achiote oil
1 large bell pepper (any color), finely diced
1 red onion, peeled and finely diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 large white potato, peeled and chopped
1 15-oz. can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
2 tsp adobo seasoning
2 tsp sazón seasoning
1 dried bay leaf
1 8oz. can tomato sauce
24 manzanilla olives
salt
freshly ground black pepper
- For the masa:
8 green cooking bananas (guineos), peeled
1 large green plantain, peeled
1 cup cooking pumpkin, peeled, chopped and steamed until tender
1 cup yuca, peeled and chopped
1 large potato, peeled and chopped
1 ½ cups yautia, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp achiote oil
1/2 cup reserved broth from filling
1 tsp adobo seasonng
1 ½ tsp sazón
1 ½ tsp adobo
- For shaping:
12 12 in x 6 in sheets of parchment paper
12 6 in x 3 in sections of banana leaves
Cooking twine
Scissors
Directions
- Prepare achiote oil if making homemade. Simmer two tablespoons of achiote seeds in 1/2 cup of neutral-flavored cooking oil for 15-20 minutes.
- Prepare 12 sheets each of parchment paper and banana leaves, as described above. Cut 12 18-inch sections of cooking twine.
- Peel and chop the vegetables for the filling. Drain and rinse garbanzo beans.
- Heat 1/2 tablespoon of achiote oil in a large skillet. Add onions, bell peppers, potatoes, garlic, and cilantro (this is essentially the sofrito). Sauté until potatoes are tender. Add garbanzo beans and season with adobo, sazon, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Add tomato sauce and allow to simmer for an additional five minutes. If the filling looks too dry, add a bit of water.
- Turn off the heat and allow to cool to room temperature. Remove bay leaf.
- While the filling is cooking, begin peeling the guineos, plantains, and root vegetables. To avoid browning, you can place the peeled vegetables in a bowl of cold water as you go, but this isn't strictly necessary.
- Once everything is peeled, you can either grate everything by hand using a box grater, or use a high powered, professional grade blender or food processor. The calabaza is very hard so it is best to steam that slightly in advance and then add it to the masa. Grate everything into the same bowl.
- Add one tablespoon of achiote oil, a quarter cup of the broth from the filling, adobo, and sazón. Mix well to combine. Add more broth a little bit at a time if masa seems too thick to spread easily. It should be about the texture of a thick brownie batter, as pictured above.
- Now it's time to wrap! Let the masa sit while you prepare the wrapping station. Stack your parchment paper sheets and banana leaf sections next to each other, along with your twine, bowl of masa, bowl of filling, achiote oil, and olives.
- Lay one banana leaf section in the middle of a sheet of parchment. Brush the banana leaf with achiote oil.
- Spread about a quarter cup of masa onto the banana leaf.
- Top with a couple tablespoons of filling and two olives.
- Fold the entire parcel in half so that the banana leaf and parchment envelope the pastel.
- Use hands to shape into a compact rectangle inside the parchment.
- Fold excess parchment up to meet pastel. Then fold one more time to bring the seam to the middle of the top of the pastel. Finally, fold the sides of the parchment paper underneath the pastel.
- Now, use twine to secure the paper. Tie it around the pastel lengthwise once, and horizontally either once or twice, depending on your preference. Trim any excess twine.
- Repeat until all of the masa is used.
- Now, either prepare the pasteles to eat right away or place them in a large zip-top bag and into the freezer to cook later.
- To cook from fresh or frozen, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Once the water reaches a boil, add desired number of pasteles and cook for 45 minutes to an hour (the latter if cooking from frozen).
- Use tongs to remove the cooked pasteles from the pot and place in a colander to drain some of the excess water.
- Place on a plate and use scissors to cut twine and unwrap the pasteles to enjoy!
Information
- Yield
- 12 pasteles
- Prep Time
- 3 hours
- Cook Time
- 1 hour
- Total Time
- 3 hours, 59 minutes, 59 seconds