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Pasteles en Hoja [Recipe + Video] Dominican Plantain Pockets

Pasteles en Hoja (Plantain and Beef Pockets) are an essential part of Dominicans Christmas and New Year's Eve dinner. Recipe with step by step photos makes your life so much easier.

Prep Time
1 hr 30 mins
Cook Time
1 hr
Total Time
2 hrs 30 mins
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 136 kcal
Course: Snacks , Dinner
Cuisine: South American , Caribbean , Dominican

Ingredients

Filling
  • filling (see list above recipe)
For the batter
  • 1 plantain (green, unripe) or 1½ medium plantain (½ lb [227 g] once peeled, see notes)
  • ⅓ pound yautía (malanga) [151 g] peeled
  • ⅓ pound auyama (kabocha squash) [151 g] peeled
  • 1 tablespoon seasoning powder (must contain garlic and onion)
  • 1 cup milk (whole or skim) [237 ml]
  • 1½ teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoon salted butter [28 g]
  • 1 tablespoon bija (annato, achiote) powder
For wrapping
  • 12 Banana tree leaves squares (see notes)
  • 12 Leafs parchment paper (Amazon affiliate link - see notes)
  • Twine (the kind of string used for food)
For boiling
  • salt
For garnishing
  • ketchup (optional, see notes)
  • hot sauce (optional, see notes)

Instructions

1. Making the batter
    Cup of Yum
  1. By hand: Grate the plantain, yautía, and auyama with the least coarse side of the grater. Once grated, combine all the ingredients for the batter and mix well.Or with blender/food processor: Chop the plantain, yautía, and auyama, and combine them with the rest of the ingredients for the batter.Pureé in a strong blender or a food processor until it's uniform, and you can't feel any clumps, but feels like grains of sand in it. It may take 5-10 minutes, depending on the blender/processor.
2. Wrapping pasteles
  1. Put 2.5 tablespoons of the plantain and root mixture on one of the plantain squares. Put 2 tablespoons of filling in the center, cover with 2 more tablespoons of the root mixture to cover the filling.Fold the leaf square in the shape of an envelope. Wrap again in parchment paper and tie tightly.Repeat with the remaining batter.
3. Boiling pasteles en hoja
  1. When all are wrapped, bring one gallon of water to boil in a large pot over medium heat. Add a tablespoon of salt.When the water reaches a rolling boil, carefully lower the pasteles into the water. Cover and cook for 40 minutes. The pasteles will float when put into the water, but as they cook, they'll start to puff and sink. Make sure to turn them a couple of times during the cooking time, so they cook uniformly on all sides.Once the 40 minutes have passed, remove one from the liquid, unwrap, and check for doneness: the consistency of the batter will have changed throughout.
4. Serving
  1. If it's ready, remove all from the water, otherwise boil for another 10 minutes.Serve right after unwrapping, garnished with hot sauce and/or ketchup.

Notes

  • Why do I ask you to weigh the plantain? Because not all plantains are created equal (see notes above the recipe).
  • Cut the plantain leaves into 5"x5" [13 x 13 cm] squares.
  • Cut the plantain leaves into 5"x5" [13 x 13 cm] squares.
  • For wrapping, I prefer to use both plantain leaves and parchment paper [Amazon affiliate link], it is more waterproof that way, and the plantain leaves retain a nicer color. If you cannot find plantain leaves, then use parchment paper only. Just make sure to tighten the twine [Amazon affiliate link].
  • The nutritional info only includes the batter, not the filling. See the links above the recipe to pick a filling, and check the nutritional information in its recipe.

Nutrition Information

Serving 2pasteles Calories 136kcal (7%) Carbohydrates 21g (7%) Protein 2g (4%) Fat 5g (8%) Saturated Fat 3g (15%) Trans Fat 1g Cholesterol 14mg (5%) Sodium 638mg (27%) Potassium 471mg (13%) Fiber 2g (8%) Sugar 7g (14%) Vitamin A 928IU (19%) Vitamin C 10mg (11%) Calcium 68mg (7%) Iron 1mg (6%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 6servings

Amount Per Serving

Calories 136

% Daily Value*

Serving 2pasteles
Calories 136kcal 7%
Carbohydrates 21g 7%
Protein 2g 4%
Fat 5g 8%
Saturated Fat 3g 15%
Trans Fat 1g 50%
Cholesterol 14mg 5%
Sodium 638mg 27%
Potassium 471mg 10%
Fiber 2g 8%
Sugar 7g 14%
Vitamin A 928IU 19%
Vitamin C 10mg 11%
Calcium 68mg 7%
Iron 1mg 6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.