Trini Pastelles

Trini Pastelles

The year is coming to a close, there is a chill in the air, and the birds have migrated, except for the ones that pick at my garbage on Wednesday and Saturday mornings. Tis the season to be jolly and bright, but there appear to be a significant number of miserable people around. Have you noticed that too? To sum up 2016 in one word, I would say shocking, from the result of the US elections to news of divorces, break-ups, suicides, increase in bullying in schools, Brexit, speech plagiarizing, end of Cuba embargo and Castro subsequently dying, hurricane Matthew devastating Haiti, continued chaos and crisis in the Middle East and other areas, racial tensions, police brutality, murders, the increase in the number of homeless people on my train and in NYC, and one good news, Chicago Cubs winning against the Cleveland Indians, etc. What wasn’t shocking was Bolt winning his eighth Olympic gold medal.

At home, raising two teenagers is a feat on its own. My Jewish doctor mentioned that he raised eight teenagers, and the most valuable advice he gave me (I am already healthy) was “choose your battles”. We can’t argue and reprimand them for every single thing. Leaving your entire closet on the floor—if and when you trip and fall or can’t find something, don’t tell me about it, not combing your hair fine; studying till your eyes fall out—a parent’s dream come true; wearing your expensive contacts every day instead of your glasses—as long as you can see where you are going; fighting with your sister—leave me out of it, shaving your legs and declaring it fell off by itself—we will schedule an appointment with a doctor if it continues; buying Japanese food every time I give you allowance—leave some for me.

What’s not fine is wasting precious time, spending hours on social media/phone, listening to lewd music, not dressing adequately for the weather, permanently borrowing products from my bathroom (only to find them missing when I am in the shower), rummaging through the drawers in my bedroom (it does not contain all the solutions to your problems), wearing chemical-laden, strong smelling perfume(where do you get that stuff!), stashing 5 pounds of candy in your school bag after Halloween, eating all my baking chocolate in the refrigerator(I’m going to hurt someone), taking pics with your tongue sticking out of your mouth(what nonsense is that), posting selfies on social media with any of your epidermis showing(a Caribbean parenting thing), “caking your face”. As I am writing this, my daughter texts me her Christmas list, the first 5 items are makeup. I am not hopeful that I am going to win the battle against makeup with two teenagers. Folks, if you have teenagers or kids too, rest assured we will survive. As the Great Book says, this too shall pass.

Despite all the issues and my personal opinions, I know my Christmas will be merry and bright because my kitchen will be busier than ever. It all started at the end of November with Thanksgiving and I haven’t stopped the feasting yet. After January 20, I will drop the ‘e’ and hopefully the pounds I am about to gain(I say that every year). But until then, let’s make these pastelles together and have some fun.

What are Pastelles?

Pastelles are a popular favorite amongst Trinbagonians around Christmas time. I don’t know why we wait all year to make these (most likely the work involved). According to Wikipedia, it is believed that the pastelles were introduced by Spanish colonizers who ruled the island between the late 15th and early 18th centuries.

This comfort food should be in your freezer year-round to enjoy as a snack.

It’s made up of two components, the cornflour mix and a savory filling such as beef, chicken, pork, or seafood cooked with raisins, capers, olives and other Caribbean flavors. The filing of your choice is enclosed within the soft, melt-in-your-mouth corn flour(if done right) and wrapped in banana leaves.

What type of filling can be used?

I’ve made pastelles with chicken, turkey, ground beef, and bison, and I’m beyond excited to try many variations in the future. Pastelles’ sweeter counterpart, ‘paime’, does not contain any filling and is made with cornmeal, coconut, and raisins—an optional ingredient.

This pastelle recipe has a wonderful balance of flavors—sweet, savory, spicy (optional), and a hint of salty from the olives and capers. If you don’t like raisins, olive or capers, I would recommend that you not eliminate those ingredients entirely but chop them fine. This way you get the celebration of flavors without the experience of biting into anyone.

My Secret Method

I spread the mix with the back of a spoon in a circle on the banana leaf, placed the filling along the diameter, and wrapped it. The oblong pastelle ‘pie” is then tied with a string (I didn’t do it here because I couldn’t find mine!). Once wrapped, the pastelles can either be cooked in boiling water, steamed or frozen for later use(I prefer steaming so that liquid or water does not seep into the wrapped leaves).

What are Pastelles referred to as around the world?

Many regions of the world have their variation of banana leaf-wrapped snack/meal and there are many versions in the Caribbean, Central, South, and Latin America. Pastelle-making is rooted in tradition and usually involves many family members assisting in the process. My Jamaican co-worker talks about dukunu (blue drawers which has a banana-sweet potato filling. In the Dominican Republic, it is known as tamal or guanimos, and is made with cornflour stuffed with ground meat. Puerto Ricans use mashed green plantains and root vegetables to make theirs. My Venezuelan friend described their version as hayaca or hallaca, a corn dough stuffed with similar meat variations and ingredients—sometimes using hard fowl. The thought of that gets me excited.

Where can I find banana leaf?

You can find frozen banana leaves in your supermarket in the Caribbean section. These leaves are already supple, which does not require heating over an open flame or immersing in hot water. If your supermarket does not have such a section, ask the store manager—or move. That’s all. You may also get technical and use a pastelle press.

Two methods of making the dough

In my video below, I show you the traditional method plus my shortcut method of using a paste–no pastelle press is required. In this method, you can skip the step of making balls, then pressing into a circle. I find that a little extra liquid in the corn flour mixture results in a more tender pastelle without the need to add a pound of butter. At the end of the day and the holidays, my motto is still all things in moderation(I bet you don’t believe me).

These pastelles are already flavorful and do not require any condiments, but I won’t hold it against you if you drizzle it with a little Caribbean pepper sauce.

In the following pics, I demonstrate the paste method but do check the video for the traditional method.
Does that look like I skipped two steps…? No!!!
Does that look soft and tender? Heck Yes!
Folks, less time we spend cooking means more time to spend eating….Agree? If you don’t agree, use less water in the dough and make/roll your balls…if that kinda stuff makes you happy.
 

Testimony from a bona fide Trini: “I’m not mamguying you, but this is better than some they sell in Trinidad, this is real good girl.”

 

Wishing you and yours a Happy Holiday Season!
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TRINI PASTELLES

Pastelles are made made up of two components, the corn flour mix and a savory filling such as beef, chicken, pork, or seafood cooked with raisins, capers, olives and other Caribbean flavorings. The filing of your choice is enclosed within the soft, melt in your mouth corn flour paste which are wrapped and cooked in banana leaves. This pastelle recipe has a wonderful balance of flavors-sweet, savory, spicy (optional) and a hint of salty from the olives and capers.
5 from 2 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Appetizer, Breakfast, dinner, lunch, Snack
Cuisine: Caribbean, Mexican, Trinidadian
Keyword: meat pastelles, pastelles, trini pastelles
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Servings: 8
Calories: 371kcal

Equipment

  • Equipment
  • Large stock pot or wide saucepan.
  • Banana Leaf, cut into rectangles 10 x 9 inches
  • Foil or parchment paper, cut into rectangles, 12 x 8 inches
  • Twine (not required if using foil)

Ingredients

Make Dough

  • 2 cups fine yellow corn flour I used Promasa
  • 1 ½ teaspoons Himalayan salt
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 4 tablespoons butter salted, melted
  • 1 ½ cups water 3 cups for the paste method

For the meat filling

  • 1 lb minced meat beef, lamb, pork, chicken
  • ½ large sweet onion finely chopped
  • 6 cloves garlic
  • 1/2 carrot small
  • ½ large red sweet pepper bell pepper, finely chopped
  • 20 olives finely diced
  • 1/2 cup raisins chopped
  • 2 tablespoons capers drained and finely diced
  • 1 ½ tsp salt
  • 4 Scallions chopped
  • 2-4 Caribbean pimento peppers seasoning peppers and/or hot peppers (habanero or scotch bonnet), diced, optional
  • 2 tablespoons green seasoning
  • 2 tablespoons ketchup or tomato paste
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp roasted cumin
  • Salt to taste

Instructions

To cook meat:

  • Add the onion, garlic, carrot, bell pepper, (hot pepper, if using), olives, scallions and raisins to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until smooth or desired texture to save on prep time or finely chop by hand.
  • Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pot or dutch oven over medium heat.
  • Add meat and cook until brown. If it's dry, especially if you used lean meat, add 1-2 tablespoons oil.
  • Add minced ingredients—onion, garlic, carrot, bell pepper, hot pepper, pimento pepper, if using, olives, capers, scallion, ketchup or tomato paste, oregano, cumin, salt, black pepper, cook for 5 minutes, then add 1 cup water, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cook about 20 mins or until the meat is tender and flavorful and most of the liquid has evaporated. Taste and add more salt and pepper or seasoning if required.

Dough:

  • Place corn flour in a medium bowl. Mix in salt, sugar and melted butter. Gradually pour in warm water into corn mixture and mix thoroughly until the excess liquid is absorbed. Form into smooth balls and keep covered until ready to use.
  • If using the runny paste method, add enough water until the dough forms a smooth paste, about 3 cups. Amount of liquid will vary depending on the brand of corn flour.
  • If using the paste method, skip this step.
    Make into 8 balls, about 2 ozs each. You can certainly make them larger. I demonstrated 4 oz on the video. Place on an oiled tray and cover with a damp cloth, especially if you are making a large quantity.

To assemble and cook:

  • Cut parchment paper or foil 12 x 9 inches.
  • To prepare banana leaves: Wilt in boiling water or over an open flame only for a few seconds. Dry, wipe leaves and cut into rectangles 10 inches x 9 inches. Frozen banana leaves do not require any preparation except wiping with a paper or kitchen towel.
  • Place parchment paper or foil on counter, then place the banana leaf in the center.
  • Oil banana leaf liberally. Place dough ball into center of the banana leaf. Press to flatten using your fingers or a pastelle press. Do not press out too thin.
    If using the paste method, place 2-3 heaping tablespoons corn dough mixture into the center of the banana leaf. Flatten and spread out the dough evenly in a circle using the back of a spoon.
  • Place a heaping 2-3 tablespoons of filling vertically along the center of the dough. Using the leaf, bring half of the dough towards the center of the filling. Fold over the other half to cover the second half of the filling. Fold the bottom up and the top down to make a packet.
    Now fold the leaf around the filled dough to make a parcel. Fold and tie the parchment paper around the folded leaf with a kitchen string. If using foil tightly fold the ends of the foil to seal. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.
  • Meanwhile, bring a few inches of water in a stock pan or wide sauté pan to a boil. Put wrapped pastelles into pot, cover, reduce heat to low and steam for 60-90 minutes. Drain immediately and place on a flat surface as they retain the shape when they become cold. Check occasionally to ensure that all the water has not evaporated –or else they will burn. Enjoy hot or warm.

Video

Notes

For a vegetarian version, replace meat with mushrooms or cooked lentils.
You can find frozen banana leaves in your supermarket in the Caribbean section. These leaves are already supple which does not require heating over an open flame or immersing in hot water.
These pastelles are already flavorful and do not require any condiments but I won't hold it against you if you drizzle it with a little Caribbean pepper sauce.

Nutrition

Calories: 371kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 55mg | Sodium: 1217mg | Potassium: 402mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 1190IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 84mg | Iron: 2mg
With Love and the best dishes,
Ria


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