If you love Pasteles then this recipe is certainly going to become a favorite! Pasteles al Caldero (Pasteles in a Pot) is all the delicious flavors of a Pastel, without all the work! Don’t forget the hot sauce!
First things first! What is a Pastel?
If you are not familiar with pasteles, they sort of resemble a tamal, but taste very different.
Where a tamal is made of a corn masa, the masa of a pastel is made of green plantains, green bananas, yautia (taro root) and pumpkin.
Once the “masa de pasteles” is prepared, it is then filled with a savory and highly flavorful pork mixture. The pastel is then wrapped in plantain leaves and boiled in water for 45 minutes to an hour to fully cook.
Just like mofongo is a quintessential dish of Puerto Rico, so are pasteles.
A true Puerto Rican Christmas is not Christmas if pasteles are not part of our dinner table!
Here’s the thing though, yes, pasteles are absolutely delicious, but the truth of the matter is, they require quite a bit of time to make and are labor intensive. Although, trust me, they are completely worth it! 1000%!
For my fellow foodies that love and miss having pasteles whenever the mood strikes, here is a delicious alternative! Introducing, pasteles al caldero! Enjoy all the flavors of a pastel, without investing all the time and work!
Yes, now you can have your cake and eat too!
Enjoy this highly sought out dish in the form of a stew, made in a percent of the time!
Ingredients
- 5-6 green plantains, peeled and grated
- 1 pound boneless pork, rinsed and cut into 1 inch cubes
- 2 envelopes of Sazón with Culantro and Achiote (found in the Latin section of supermarket or online)
- 2 envelopes of powdered chicken bouillon or 2 cubes
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 6 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tbsp sofrito
- 2 potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 4 tbsp pimiento stuffed olives, cut in half
- half a can or full can of chick peas (optional) if using, drain water from can
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- salt and pepper to taste
- 8 cups of water
Marinade for Pork
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 tbsp dry oregano
- 1 tsp adobo
Optional: Handful of fresh chopped cilantro and hot sauce to serve.
How to Make Pasteles al Caldero
Make Pork Marinade
- Add garlic, oregano and adobo to a mortar and pestle. Mash finely. (Finely mince garlic if you do not have a mortar and pestle)
- Add oil to mortar. Mix together with a fork.
- Add garlic and adobo mixture to the cubed pork and incorporate well.
- Let pork marinate for 15 minutes.
- After pork has marinated, add oil to a caldero or large pot over medium heat.
- Add pork chunks, sofrito, cumin, sazon, chicken bouillon and garlic.
- Mix all ingredients together and cook pork for 10 minutes.
- Add olives and potatoes.
- Lower heat to medium low and begin working with the plantains.
- Using a knife, cut the ends off the plantains and peel.
- Grate all the plantains using the finest side of the grater.
NOTE: I was moving quickly when I grated my plantains and didn’t realize I used a different side on my grater than I intended to use, so my plantains looked finely shredded instead of a plantain puree, which is what we want. Of course it still was delicious, it just took my stew a little longer to cook. You want to use the finest side of grater so the plantains are grated more into a puree. (Please follow image to note which side to use and not to use)
- Add the grated plantain puree and 8 cups of water to pot.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Raise heat to medium and cook pasteles al caldero for 40 minutes, stirring every 5-10 minutes so the plantain doesn’t stick to bottom of pot or clump up.
Pasteles are done.
Serve immediately in bowls.
Optional: Top with freshly chopped cilantro and hot sauce.
What to Serve with Pasteles al Caldero
This is a meal all unto itself so you can serve it alone or with a side of arroz blanco (Puerto Rican white rice) and avocado slices.
For more delicious Puerto Rican Dishes, you will also love these:
Arroz con Gandules (Pigeon Peas and Rice)
Puerto Rican Chicken and Rice (Arroz con Pollo)
For a full list of all Puerto Rican dishes, click Puerto Rican Recipes
Pasteles al Caldero
Ingredients
- 5-6 green plantains peeled and grated
- 1 lb boneless pork rinsed and cut into 1 inch cubes
- 2 envelopes Sazón with Culantro and Achiote (found in the Latin section of supermarket or online)
- 2 envelopes powdered chicken bouillon or 2 cubes
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- 2 tbsp sofrito
- 2 potatoes peeled and cubed
- 4 tbsp pimiento stuffed olives cut in half
- half a can or full can of chick peas (optional) water drained
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- salt and pepper to taste
- 8 cups water
Marinade for Pork
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 tbsp dry oregano
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tsp adobo
Optional
- handful of fresh chopped cilantro to serve
- hot sauce to serve
Instructions
Marinate Pork
- Add garlic, oregano and adobo to a mortar and pestle. Mash finely. (Finely mince garlic if you do not have a mortar and pestle)
- Add oil to mortar. Mix together with a fork.
- Add garlic and adobo mixture to the cubed pork and incorporate well.Let pork marinate for 15 minutes.
Start Cooking Pork
- After pork has marinated, add oil to a caldero or large pot over medium heat.
- Add pork chunks, sofrito, cumin, sazon, chicken bouillon and garlic.
- Mix all ingredients together and cook pork for 10 minutes.
- Add olives and potatoes.Lower heat to medium low and begin working with the plantains.
Grate Plantains
- Using a knife, cut the ends off the plantains and peel.
- Grate all the plantains using the finest side of the grater.
- Add the grated plantain puree and 8 cups of water to pot.Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Raise heat to medium and cook pasteles al caldero for 40 minutes, stirring every 5-10 minutes so the plantain doesn't stick to bottom of pot or clump up.Pasteles are done.Serve immediately in bowls.Optional: Top with freshly chopped cilantro and hot sauce.
Notes
Nutrition
Am I able to add yucca to this recipe? If so, how?
Hello Sandie! Yes you can! You can pretty much add any root vegetable you like! If you’re planning on using frozen yuca, let it thaw for a few minutes, rinse and cut into 1/2 to 1 inch pieces. If using fresh yuca, peel yuca and cut into pieces. In a saucepan, add about 3 cups of water, add a little bit of salt (optional). Bring water to a boil, add yuca pieces and cook for about 10-15 minutes or until fork tender. Once yuca has cooked, rinse water and add cooked yuca to stew in the last 10 minutes of cooking. Hope this helps! Let me know if you have any other questions! 🙂