Pastel Puertorriqueno Food

PUERTO RICAN PASTELES (PASTELES PUERTORRIQUEñOS)

Steps:

• Making the Recado
• Place all the ingredients in a blender or food processor and puree. Set aside. DO AHEAD: You can make the seasoning base (recado) the day before.
• Making the Sofrito
• Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the bacon and brown for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the pork and cook, stirring, until it begins to release its fat, about 15 minutes.
• Stir in the recado, reduce the heat to low, and cook, covered, for about 50 minutes, or until the pork is tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife. Add some chicken broth if the sauce thickens too much during cooking. When the meat is done, transfer it to a plate with a slotted spoon. Set the sauce aside. DO AHEAD: You can make the sofrito the day before.
• Making the Masa
• Working in 2 or 3 batches, puree the milk, malanga, green bananas, green plantain, and calabaza in a blender or food processor and pour into a large bowl. Add the oil and salt and mix well to color the masa evenly. Stir in the reserved sauce. Taste for seasoning and set aside.
• Wrapping the Tamales
• Place one plantain leaf square on a work surface with the veins perpendicular to you. Brush generously with achiote oil. Place 3 heaping tablespoons of masa in the center of the leaf and spread into a 6-inch square, leaving a 3-inch margin on all sides. Place 3 tablespoons of the diced pork on top, forming a rectangle. Garnish with 4 raisins, 4 chickpeas, a strip of red pepper, and 4 olive halves. Tie the tamal following the instructions for the pastel wrap (see Cooks' notes). Repeat with the remaining wrappers and ingredients. DO AHEAD: You can prepare the plantain leaves the day before.
• Cooking the Tamales
• Using two steamers (or working in batches), steam for about 1 hour (see Cooks' notes).

PASTELES

Steps:

• Make the sofrito: Place the chiles, bell peppers, onions, culantro, cilantro, garlic and pimentos in a blender and process until the mixture is fully puréed, scraping the sides of the blender as needed. Refrigerate until ready to use: This can be made up to 3 days in advance and refrigerated.
• Make the masa: Peel the bananas and plantains: Prepare a mixing bowl or large pot with water. Cut off the ends of the fruits, then use a knife to score and peel off the skin. Place the bananas in the bowl of water as you go so they don't discolor. (The skins can stain, so be careful as you handle them, or wear plastic gloves.) Remove the skin of the yautia with a vegetable peeler and add it to the water.
• Remove the bananas, plantains and yautia from the water and process until smooth: First, in a food processor fitted with the grating disc, shred each ingredient separately, dumping them into a large bowl as you go. Mix the ingredients together in the bowl, switch to the blade fitting, and process the mixture in batches until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides of the work bowl as necessary. The end result should look soft and fluffy like a purée. (Alternatively, you can grate everything by hand on the smallest holes of a box grater.) Transfer the masa to a large mixing bowl. At this point it can be refrigerated for a few hours, covered, while you prepare the pork, or frozen for up to 3 months.
• Prepare the pork: Cut the pork into small, rough chunks about 1 inch long by 1/2 inch wide, trimming away excess tough fat as you go. Place the pork pieces in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Stir in the reserved sofrito, making sure all of the pork cubes are coated. Let the pork cook, stirring almost constantly, until it starts to release some liquid, about 5 minutes. Add the olive oil and let it cook for a minute or two, then stir in the seasoning packet.
• Let the pork cook for another minute or two, then stir in the olives and their brine, the tomato sauce and the chicken stock or water, and a pinch of salt. Let the liquid come up to a simmer, then cover the pot and reduce the heat. Let the pork cook at a simmer for 30 minutes, or until the meat is cooked through, stirring occasionally. There should be plenty of liquid in the pot at all times, so the mixture looks like soup, not stew. If it looks dry, add stock or water as needed.
• While the pork cooks, make the annatto oil: In a small saucepan, heat the oil and the annatto seeds over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the oil begins to bubble. Lower the heat slightly and let the seeds cook in the oil until the liquid turns a bright pink-red. Turn off the heat and let the seeds sit in the oil until it cools. Strain the oil through a sieve or slotted spoon into a small mixing bowl, discarding the seeds. Set the bowl aside. (If the liquid does not immediately begin to turn red, your annatto seeds are too old.)
• When the pork is done, taste for seasoning, and add more salt if desired, then turn off the heat. Take 2 to 3 cups of the liquid from the pork and stir it into the masa until it is the consistency of thick oatmeal, soft but spreadable. You will still need about 2 to 3 cups of liquid to make the pasteles, so if your pot looks dry at this point, stir in a little water or stock so that you still have plenty of liquid, and taste for seasoning again.
• On a large, clean work surface, set up your pastel-making station: You will need the banana leaves, parchment paper, string, the annatto oil, the pork and its liquid, and the masa. To make each pastel, start with a piece of parchment paper in front of you, one long side closest to you. Use a soup spoon or a pastry brush to paint a very thin smear of annatto oil on the parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch border on the top and bottom and 4 inches on the sides. (This does not have to be perfect: It's just to keep the banana leaf from sticking.) Lay the banana leaf down on top of the oil, long side closest to you. Paint the banana leaf very lightly with the annatto oil. Spread 1/2 cup of masa on top of the banana leaf about 3/4 to 1/2 inch thick. The masa does not have to be a perfect shape: It can overlap the leaf in places and does not have to cover it completely.
• Spoon a scant 1/4 cup of pork pieces along the length of the masa in a straight line. Your goal is really a line of pork chunks along the center of the masa, so that each bite of pastel has a bite of pork. Add 2 olives to the masa, one near each end. Use a spoon to drizzle on a little more liquid as needed so that most of the masa is covered by a very thin layer of liquid. Don't overdo it: About a tablespoon or so of liquid per pastel is about right.
• To form the pastel, fold the parchment paper in half, from the bottom up, over the masa and filling so the 2 long edges meet. Fold those edges down to meet the edge of the pastel farthest from you. Press the paper down and crease the top edge. Fold the parchment in half again lengthwise from the top down, so it covers the pastel. You now have a long thin pastel wrapped in a tube of parchment, with multiple layers of paper on top. (This needn't be exact, as long as the paper forms a neat little package.)
• Working carefully, use the side of your hand to press and slide the masa on either side of the package into the center to give it a neat edge. Fold in 1 inch of the paper on the left and right sides to create small hems. Then fold both sides over the pastel. (If you have a few leaks, it's O.K.)
• Set this pastel aside, flaps facing downward, while you make its partner: Repeat the process above to make a second pastel.
• When you have 2 pasteles, stack them together so they line up, flaps facing inward. Use 1 piece of string to tie the pasteles together the same way you would a package, looping the string once across the long way and at least once across the short way. Make sure the string is tight and the pasteles are tightly tied together. Repeat this process with the remaining pairs of pasteles. At this point they can be frozen for several months, refrigerated for a day or two, or cooked and eaten immediately.
• To cook them, bring a large pot (or a few pots) of salted water to a boil and add the pasteles, either fresh or frozen, in a single layer. Let cook for 1 hour, or an hour and 10 minutes or so if they are frozen. Repeat with the remaining pasteles, then unwrap and serve right away.

AUTHENTIC PUERTO RICAN PASTELES

Steps:

• Use a boning knife to remove the bone from the pork shoulder. Set the bone aside to use later for making the ham stock. Next, use a chef's knife to remove the fat cap from the meat. Dice the fat and set it aside (or refrigerate it with bone). This will be rendered to create the stewed pork filling. Dice the pork shoulder into small chunks: in squares about 1/2" big.
• In a non-reactive mixing bowl, combine 1/4 cup of the sofrito, the white wine vinegar, olive oil, sazón, adobo, oregano, and black pepper. Slice the onion in half. Grate one half of the onion into the bowl with the spices and vinegar. Reserve the other half to use in cooking the pork. Add the garlic to the bowl. Mix the marinade with a whisk until smooth.
• Add the diced meat to the bowl and toss it in the marinade to coat it thoroughly.Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the meat to marinate for 4-12 hours in the refrigerator.
• To a small stock pot, add the reserved pork bone and the remaining half of the onion.Place the peppercorns, garlic, and bay leaves into the center of a cheesecloth square. Bring the four corners of the square to the center. Tie a 4" piece of butcher's twine around the top of the bundle to secure it.
• Tie one end of the string to the handle of the stock pot and put the spice bundle into the pot with the bone and the onion. Fill the pot with just enough cold water to cover the bone. Bring the water in the pot to a boil over medium-high heat. Don't stir the broth as it boils.
• Reduce the heat to medium-low and allow the broth to simmer for 15-20 minutes. The broth will develop a gray, foamy scum on its surface. Use a wide spoon to skim the scum from the surface then discard it. Continue simmering the broth until the 15 minutes. Once the broth is done, leave it to cool on the stove for ten minutes.
• Once the broth has cooled slightly, use a ladle to pour the broth through a cheesecloth-lined funnel into mason jars. Cover and store the broth in the refrigerator or use it right away.
• About an hour before you plan to assemble your pasteles, cook the pork filling. Dice the remaining onion half. Heat a caldero over medium-low heat. Add the reserved pork fat to the caldero and let it slowly heat up along with the pot to render it. Once 2 tablespoons of oil have cooked off of the fat, remove the fat pieces with a slotted spoon (you can also just leave it in the pot).
• Increase the stove's temperature to medium-high heat. Add the diced onion and the remaining sofrito to the pot with the rendered fat and sauté for 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant. Next, add the marinated pork to the pot and brown it over medium-heat heat for 8-10 minutes.
• Stir in the tomato sauce, sliced olives, capers, and bay leaves. Bring the mixture up to a boil, then reduce the temperature to low. Cover the pot and allow the meat to simmer for 20-25 minutes, or until tender.
• Once tender, the pork filling can be used right away or refrigerated for up to 2 days in a covered container.
• Fill a large bowl with 6 cups of hot tap water. Stir in 1/4 cup of salt into the water. Use a chef's knife to cut off both ends of the bananas. Take the tip of your knife and make a slit down the back and front of each banana. Place the bananas into the salted water and leave the peel to soften while you prep the remaining root vegetables.
• Remove the tough rind from the calabaza. Cut the calabaza into 2-inch chunks and throw them into the bowl of saltwater with the bananas.Use a vegetable peeler to peel the yautía. Cut it in fourths, lengthwise. Add it to the bowl with the calabaza.Peel the batata and cut it in quarters lengthwise, as well. Add it to the bowl of saltwater. The peels of the bananas should be soft enough to remove by now. Peel each and return them to the bowl of water.
• Set up your food processor with the grater blade. Turn the machine on and add the bananas and root veggies you have soaking in the saltwater to shred them.
• Remove the grating blade and replace it with the processing blade.Add 1/4 of the shredded veggie mix to the food processor bowl. Puree the mix for 1-2 minutes. Stop the machine and scrape down the bowl.
• Puree the mix for another 30 seconds to 1 minute, or until the masa resembles peanut butter. Scoop the masa out of the bowl and into a separate mixing bowl. Continue pureeing the remaining veggies in batches the same way.
• After pureeing the masa, use a large spoon to combine. The masa should be smooth- free of lumps- thick, and almost spongy. Add 1/4-1/2 cup of achiote oil to the masa in the bowl. The more oil you add, the more orange, and looser, your masa will be. Add 1/2 cup-1 cup of the ham broth to the masa to make it smoother.
• Cut the banana leaves into rectangles that measure 7 1/2-inches by 6-inches. Gather the rest of the components to make the pasteles: the pork filling, masa, any add-ins (red pepper slices and olives), and the achiote oil.You also need a pair of scissors, sheets of parchment paper, and butcher's twine cut in strings 40-inches long.
• Lay a banana leaf in the center of a parchment rectangle. Spread a tablespoon of the achiote oil onto banana leaf. Take a large spoonful, or 1/2-cup, of the masa and spread it on the leaf in an oval that leaves a 1-inch margin of banana leaf showing.
• Top the masa with a 1/4 cup of the pork filling, followed by tablespoon of the broth from the pork filling. Top the meat with two strips of red pepper and two olives.
• Bring the two long edges of the paper rectangle up to meet each other over the pastel. Once the edges are lined up, fold the paper over one inch. Now, fold the parchment over in half to form a band that's almost as wide as the pastel. Fold one-inch of paper on the short end of the bundle towards the pastel. Now, fold the "tail" or unfilled end of paper towards the center of the bundle. It should reach the center of the pastel. Repeat on the opposite side.
• Tie the pastel with a piece of twine in a cross pattern to keep the paper from opening in the pot.Next, bring a pot of heavily salted water to a rapid boil. Once the water's boiling, add your test pastel to the pot and boil it for 30-35 minutes. After cooking, remove it from the pot and unwrap it. Taste the pastel to see if it needs more adobo or salt. Adjust the seasoning in the masa to taste.Continue to assemble and wrap the pasteles.
• Once all of the pasteles have been assembled and wrapped, tie them in bundles of two. Stack two pasteles with the folded ends touching each other. Grab a length of twine. Hold the string's loop in one hand and two loose ends in the other.Slide the string under the stacked pasteles, making sure the bundle's short end sits right in the middle of the two strings.
• Bring the three fingers of the hand with the looped end up. Go through the loop with those fingers and grab the two strings in the other hand. Pull the two loose ends through the loop and towards the sides of the bundle. Flip the bundle over and bring the string's edges under the two strands on the backside (formed earlier by the loop). Tie the two loose ends in a knot. Continue tying until all of the bundles are secure.
• Refrigerate the pasteles after assembling and wrapping them. Pack them in a food gallon-size freezer storage bag in docenas (or bundles of 6) to make a dozen pasteles per bag. Freeze the pasteles for 6-8 months.
• Cook the pasteles straight from the freezer: bring a large pot of water to a rapid boil. Add a 1/4-cup of salt to the water and allow it a few seconds to dissolve. Slide the bundles of frozen pasteles into the boiling water and boil them for an hour to an hour and 15 minutes. If you're boiling fresh, unfrozen pasteles, you only need to cook them for 30-40 minutes.
• Once the pasteles are cooked, lift them from the pot using a kitchen fork or tongs and set them in a colander set inside the sink to drain a bit. Cut the strings off of the bundles. Cut both ends of the paper off before unwrapping the pastel and sliding it from the banana leaf onto a plate.
• Serve your Pasteles on their own, with Pernil, Arroz con Gandules, and potato salad, or with a side salad.

PASTEL PUERTORRIQUENO

Steps:

• Saute peppers, onion, and tomato in olive oil until soft, then add in tomato paste, cilantro, and garlic to make a sofrito. Cook until soft and caramelized, at least 10 minutes.
• In food processor, grind the malanga and bananas with the milk, and then add the sofrito. Continue to grind until very smooth. Add cornstarch and mix until fully incorporated. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
• Cut banana leaves into 4 (8 by 11-inch) pieces. Place a spoonful of this mixture into the middle of the banana leaf and then divide the olives, raisins, and ham into equal parts and place these on top of the pasteles. Wrap like an envelope and tie with a string. Boil for 45 minutes.

PASTELES DE YUCA

Steps:

• Prepare the achiote oil: In a saucepan, gently simmer the achiote seeds in the oil until the oil turns dark red. Remove from heat. Let cool. Strain the seeds from the oil and discard the seeds. Keep the cooled oil in a covered jar or other container. You can leave it out, or refrigerate it. You will use this oil in the "Masa", in the filling, and for wrapping the pasteles. (on Day 2).
• Prepare the Masa: Cut the yuca into pieces that you can comfortably handle- about the size of a stick of butter. Carefully cut each piece lengthwise to reveal a woody stalk in the center of the yuca. It's roughly the width of a toothpick, and runs the entire length. Cut it out by making a 'V' cut, and discard- we want our masa to be smooth!
• Feed the pieces a little at a time into a food processor with grating blade- any stubborn pieces that hang around will be dealt with in the next step.
• Remove the grated yuca from the processor, switch the grating blade to the regular cutting blade, add the yuca back to the machine and pulse for about 2 - 3 minutes to create a moist, finely grated mixture that is the consistency of grated parmesan cheese- just a little wetter.
• Place the masa into a strainer that is lined with a cheesecloth. (If you have a very fine strainer, you don't need the cheesecloth). Place the strainer with the masa over a bowl (to let the yuca masa to drip into), then cover with some plastic wrap, and place into the refrigerator until the next day when you are ready to finish the pasteles.
• Remove the masa from the refigerator. It will have dripped several ounces of its liquid in the bowl- discard the liquid.
• Prepare the filling: Wash the pork meat with vinegar. Cut the meat into ½ inch cubes (about the size of a small broth cube).
• In a saucepan, use 2 ounces of the achiote oil that you prepared, and simmer the 2 ounces of sofrito in it on low heat for 3 -5 minutes.
• Add the rest of the filling ingredients (except the last 3 ingredients: the olive oil, the olives and the red peppers) to the saucepan, bring to a boil, lower the flame.
• Simmer for approximately 1 - 1½ hours on low heat, covered. Take care that the water does not completely evaporate- if the sauce gets too thick, add a couple ounces of water.
• The meat should be cooked, but it should not fall apart when done, so check every 15 minutes once an hour has passed.
• When the meat is done, remove from heat and let cool. You should have some gravy left with the meat, but it shouldn't be too watery. If it looks dry, add 2 ounces of water. In either case, now add the olive oil that was part of the last 3 ingredients.
• While the meat is simmering, you can start seasoning the masa, but be sure and go back to the previous step to finish up the meat!
• Season the masa: In a medium saucepan, on medium heat, use 2 ounces of the achiote oil that you prepared, and simmer the 1 cup of sofrito in it for approximately 5 minutes. It should be sizzling slowly, not just steaming a little.
• Add the 2 ounces of water and the rest of the ingredients listed (except the masa!). Simmer another 5 minutes, then remove from heat.
• In a large saucepan, bowl, or tray, add the masa that you had removed from the regrigerator. Now add the sofrito that you just removed from the heat, and mix well.
• Add a half cup of the achiote oil to this, and mix again. Your masa should now have some color, and should have a good taste! If not, review the steps carefully- you might have missed something.
• If you haven't finished the last part of the meat, do so now. Otherwise, you're ready to wrap the pasteles!
• Wrap the pasteles: Use twenty bundles of plantain leaves.
• Note: If you can get the plantain leaf, do use it! It adds a world of a difference in taste to your pasteles!
• With a knife, remove the central ridge of the plantain leaves to give greater flexibility to the leaves. Divide leaves into pieces, about 12 inches square. Wash and clean leaves with a damp cloth and toast slightly over an open flame (such as the stove burner on low). This makes the leaf more pliable.
• You should still have about ½ cup of achiote oil left. Place 1 tsp of the achiote on the leaf, or the parchment paper. Spread it out to the size of a postcard (4" x 5"). Next, place 3 Tbsp of the masa on the leaf (or paper) and spread it out thinly over the oil that you just spread out.
• Place 1 ½ - 2 Tbsp of the meat filling in the center of the masa.
• Place 2 olive halves on top of the masa.
• Place strip of red pepper on top of the masa.
• Fold the leaf (or paper, or leaf on top of paper) one long half over towards the other. It won't actually get to the other end, but you have created a top and bottom layer of plantain leaf and enclosed the contents in it.
• Now fold both of those back towards the end that you first started from (making the crease at the far edge of the masa inside), while keeping in mind that you are sort of duplicating the shape of the rectangle of oil that you first made!
• Fold it once more, if you need to use up some paper. Then fold the right and left ends of the leaf toward the center.
• Tie the pasteles together in pairs (or alone), with a string, placing the folded edges facing each other. They should be tied from both sides, to prevent them from opening.
• This recipe yields approximately 12 -14 pasteles.
• Cook the pasteles: In Large pot, bring to a boil 5 qts of water with 1Tbsp salt. Add 12 pasteles and boil, covered, for one hour. Halfway, turn over pasteles. After the hour, remove pasteles from the water at once, and place in a strainer.