Puerto Rican Pasteles
Unwrapping one of these is the best gift you can give yourself.
MakesMakes 22 pasteles
Prep4 hours
Cook2 hours 30 minutes
Sometime during the beginning of November in Puerto Rico and around the diaspora, families come together and make a party out of making pasteles, tender and savory masa stuffed with stewed pork and wrapped in a banana leaf. Typically the children are in charge of grating the root vegetables, while the adults assemble. According to Puerto Rican food historian Cruz Miguel Ortíz Cuadra, the origins of pasteles are not easily traced, but there are African roots in relation to wrapping them in banana leaves. In his book, Eating Puerto Rico, he states, “There is no single accepted way of making pastel.” Each family makes pasteles their own way, and what’s important is coming together and spending quality time with one another around the holidays.
If you’re looking for something different to bring to your Thanksgiving meal (or Friendsgiving gathering), give these pasteles a try and make it fun! I say the more the merrier when it comes to this recipe — and if you can, try to save some to freeze for later.
Why You’ll Love It
- The filling is the best part. It’s tender, succulent, and so good you could eat it all alone.
- One bite will make you a fan. While the recipe is a bit of an undertaking, this beloved classic is so worth it.
Key Ingredients in Pasteles
- Root vegetables. These are the stars of the recipe. You’ll need green bananas (also known as unripe bananas, which are not the same as plantains), yautia (or malanga or cocoyam), kabocha squash, and green plantain. The bananas should be green, and for the rest of the root vegetables, the less bruising the better.
- Pork butt or pork shoulder. Truly the best cut for this recipe; it’s very tender and absorbs flavor so well.
- Annatto oil. You will use this quite a bit, as it adds color as well as helps the masa not stick to the banana leaf.
- Fresh sofrito. Made with cilantro, culantro, garlic, aji peppers, and onion, this is the base for your stew. Some people will add red and green bell peppers, as well as cubanelle peppers. You can use thawed frozen sofrito in place of fresh.
How to Make Pasteles
- Prep your banana leaves and twine. Using scissors, trim your leaves and cut into rectangles. Wipe with a damp paper towel, and warm over a low gas flame (if you don’t have a gas stove, you can place them in a low oven). Cut your butcher’s twine.
- Make the annatto oil. Heat vegetable oil and annatto seeds together until almost simmering, then let sit for 10 minutes to infuse with flavor. Strain into a heatproof bowl and let cool completely.
- Stew your pork. Cook cubed pork with tomato paste, annatto oil, sofrito, minced garlic, garlic power, onion powder, kosher salt, black pepper, dried oregano, and water. After simmering for 30 minutes, add chickpeas and olives. Let cool to room temperature.
- Make the masa. Peel all of your root vegetables and place them into a food processor. Doing this saves so much time versus grating them by hand. Stir in some annatto oil, cooking liquid from the stewed pork, minced garlic cloves, and olive brine.
- Assemble your pasteles. Brush a banana leaf with annatto oil, then spread masa followed by pork filling, and finish with a sliver of a roasted red pepper on top. Fold the banana leaf around the filling to enclose, tucking the ends underneath. Wrap the pastel in parchment or pastel paper and tie with twine.
- Cook the pasteles. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and stir in kosher salt until dissolved. Add the pasteles and boil for 45 minutes. To serve, cut and remove the kitchen twine, then unwrap and remove the parchment followed by the banana leaf.
Helpful Swaps
- You can use 2 1/4 teaspoons of salt-free adobo seasoning in place of the garlic powder, onion powder, and dried oregano in the filling.
Storage and Make-Ahead Tips
- The pork filling, masa, and annatto oil can be made a day or two in advance.
- Assembled, uncooked pasteles can be frozen for up to 2 months. Boil frozen for 1 hour.
- Cooked pasteles can be refrigerated (still in the banana leaf) for up to 4 days, or frozen for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Reheat by simmering for 15 minutes.
What to Serve with Pasteles
You can top your pastel with ketchup or pique, a vinegar-based hot sauce commonly eaten in Puerto Rico. Pique usually contains peppercorns, whole garlic cloves, culantro, aji caballero, bay leaves, vinegar, and water. Although you can eat them alone, pasteles are usually served with some of the dishes below during holiday meals.
Pasteles Recipe
Unwrapping one of these is the best gift you can give yourself.
Prep time 4 hours
Cook time 2 hours 30 minutes
Makes Makes 22 pasteles
Nutritional Info
Ingredients
For the annatto oil:
- 1 cup
vegetable oil
- 3 tablespoons
annatto seeds
For the filling:
- 1
(6-ounce) can tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons
annatto oil (recipe above)
- 2 tablespoons
fresh sofrito or thawed frozen sofrito
- 2 pounds
boneless pork butt or pork shoulder, trimmed of excess fat and cut into 1-inch cubes
- 6
large cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon
garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon
onion powder
- 1 tablespoon
kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon
freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon
dried oregano
- 1 1/2 cups
water
- 1
(15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1/4 cup
stuffed Spanish manzanilla olives (no pits), halved
For the masa:
- 5 to 6 pounds
green bananas (guineos, 2 bunches), peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
- 2 to 3 pounds
yautia, malanga, or cocoyam, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
- 2 pounds
kabocha squash (calabaza, about 1/2 medium), peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
- 1
medium green plantain (6 to 10 ounces), peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
- 2 tablespoons
annatto oil (recipe above)
- 4
large cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons
olive brine (from the stuffed Spanish olives in the filling)
Kosher salt
For assembling and cooking the pasteles:
- 16 ounces
frozen banana leaves, thawed
- 22
(12x18-inch) parchment paper sheets, or pastele paper
Annatto oil (recipe above)
- 22
thin slivers jarred roasted red peppers
- 22
(16-inch) pieces kitchen twine
- 2 tablespoons
kosher salt
Instructions
Make the annatto oil:
Heat 1 cup vegetable oil and 3 tablespoons annatto seeds in a small saucepan over low heat until almost simmering, then turn off the heat. Let sit for 10 minutes to infuse with flavor. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a heatproof bowl and let cool completely. Discard the contents of the strainer.
Make the filling:
Cook 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste, 2 tablespoons annatto oil, and 2 tablespoons sofrito in a Dutch oven or large pot over low heat, stirring often, until the tomato paste darkens in color and the mixture is fragrant, about 3 minutes.
Increase the heat to medium. Stir in 2 pounds trimmed pork shoulder cubes until evenly coated with the tomato mixture. Stir in 6 minced large garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon garlic powder, 1 tablespoon onion powder, 1 tablespoon kosher salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano. Cook until the pork begins to release its juices, 10 to 15 minutes.
Stir in 1 1/2 cups water and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Return to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. (This is a good time to start the masa.)
Stir in 1 (15-ounce) can drained and rinsed chickpeas. Cover and simmer until the pork is tender, about 1 hour more. Stir in 1/4 cup halved Spanish olives. Turn off the heat. Skim off and discard the fat from the surface. Let cool until room temperature, about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, start the masa.
Start the masa:
Working in 4 batches and using a combination each time, pulse the chunks of green bananas, yautia, kabocha squash, and plantain in a food processor into small pieces, then process continually into a purée. Transfer to the same large bowl after each batch. Stir in 2 tablespoons annatto oil.
Assemble the pasteles:
Transfer about 1/2 cup of the pork cooking liquid to the masa. Add 4 minced large garlic cloves and 2 tablespoons olive brine to the masa, and stir until combined.
Prepare 16 ounces thawed frozen banana leaves: Trim the edges with kitchen shears. Wipe each leaf gently with a damp cloth or paper towel, working in the direction of the veins so as to not tear the leaf. Warm each leaf by placing it over a low gas flame, flipping often with tongs every few seconds, until the bright green color starts to dull. (If you don’t have a gas stove, place in a 250ºF oven for a few minutes.) Cut the leaves into 8x9-inch rectangles until you have 22.
Assemble the pasteles one at a time: Arrange a 12x18-inch sheet of parchment paper on a work surface with a long side closer to you. Place a banana leaf on the parchment with a long side closer to you. Spread or brush about 1 teaspoon of the annatto oil onto the banana leaf into a 4x5-inch rectangle with a long side closer to you. Scoop about 1/2 cup of the masa onto the annatto oil and spread into a 3 1/2 x 6-inch rectangle with a long side closer to you. Use a slotted spoon to scoop up 2 to 3 tablespoons of the pork filling, then place down the center of the masa. Top the filling with a thin slice of roasted red pepper.
Lift the top of the banana leaf up and over the filling with one hand, then hold a flexible spatula in the other hand and use it to nudge the masa over the filling. Place the top of the leaf back down. Repeat with lifting up the bottom of the banana leaf over the filling and nudging the masa. Use the spatula to make sure the masa covers the filling.
Lift the bottom and top of the banana leaf up at the same time to meet in the middle over the pastele, then press them together and fold vertically down to seal in the pastele. Fold the two open ends underneath the pastele. The pastele should now be neatly wrapped up in the banana leaf.
Make sure the pastele is in the center of the parchment. Repeat wrapping the pastele in parchment like you did in the banana leaf. Everything should now be neatly wrapped up in parchment.
Wrap a 16-inch long piece of kitchen twine around the pastele both the long and short way (like putting ribbon on a gift), then tie a knot to hold the twine in place. Repeat assembling the remaining pasteles.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir in 2 tablespoons kosher salt until dissolved. Add the pasteles and boil for 45 minutes. Transfer to a strainer and drain well (hot water will be in the packages). To serve, cut and remove the kitchen twine, then unwrap and remove the parchment. Unwrap by opening up the banana leaf before eating (do not eat the leaf).
Recipe Notes
Make ahead: The masa can be made up to 1 day ahead and refrigerated in an airtight container. Alternatively, the assembled, uncooked pasteles can be frozen for up to 2 months. Boil frozen for 1 hour.
Storage: Leftover annatto oil can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to a few weeks. Cooked pasteles can be refrigerated (still in the banana leaf) for up to 4 days, or frozen for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Reheat by simmering for 15 minutes.