Chilean- Pastel de Choclo, Humitas, Empanadas de Pino, Chilean Bread
(Chilean bread, tomato salad, Pastel de Choclo, Empanada de Pino-made by my friend Lucilla)
8 cups frozen corn kernels (I like sweet white corn)
1-2 cups water
1-2 cups water
2 Tbsp to 1/4 cup sugar (depending on how sweet the corn is)
1 cup of cream (give or take)
salt
1 cup of cream (give or take)
salt
Meat from one Costco chicken (de-boned)
Chicken gravy 1-2 cups just to coat the chicken meat (make gravy flavored with bullion, paprika, pepper, salt, cumin, garlic, onion, etc.)
De-bone and chop the chicken leaving the pieces large. Make the gravy, and stir the chicken into it. It should coat it well, but not be drowning in gravy. Pour this into a 9x13 pan and spread evenly.
In a large pot, add the corn and water and warm it through. Transfer to a blender.
In a blender, make a coarse puree of the corn, cream, and sugar and salt. You don't want it to be really liquidy, but if you get too much liquid you can always return the mixture to the pan and boil it out. Taste mixture and make sure that it's flavors balance well.
If your puree is good, pour gently over the chicken gravy to completely and evenly cover it.
I cooked this for 3 hours at 200 degrees and then the last hour at 350 degrees. This helped dry out the corn (not that it was at all dry) which stabilized the corn mixture. I didn't want it to turn out like slop. The last hour at the higher temperature browned the top nicely and finished the job. But if you're in a rush...
Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Then turn on broiler and brown the top quickly and serve! This goes well with Chilean Tomato Salad (chopped tomatoes, garlic, cilantro, salt, oil). The saltiness of the salad goes well with the sweetness of the corn in Pastel de Choclo. Everyone gobbled this up at my 18th of September Chilean party which surprised me since it is a bit strange looking and tasting. Good taste memories for me though!!!
Chilean Humitas:
10 choclos grande (corn in English- and our corn here has too much water in it and doesn't work. the corn there is as big as your arm and they grate it into a paste. here you can grind up fresh corn in a food processor and then cook the water out of it)
5 leaves albahaca (basil)
2 cebollas grande (onions)
aceite (oil)
string to wrap corn, and the corn leaves, or husks
large pot filled with boiling water and sal
Grate corn pulp into a large bowl. Fry albahaca and cebollas con aceite till soft. Mix hot cebollas with corn pulp. Take two ohas of corn husks, intersecting eachother like a cross, and fill with corn mixture. Fold, and tie with string. Toss into hot water and cook 1/2 hour in boiling water.
Se puede comer calentita al tire con tomates (y ajo a gusto), w/o peel, picadas. or se puede guardar en el refri 2-3 dias y comerlos frios con azucar!
Empanadas de Pino- from the Spruce Eats
for the dough:
4 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
3 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp chilled butter
12 Tbsp chilled lard or shortening
2 egg yolks
1 c. water (more or less as needed)
for the dough:
4 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
3 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp chilled butter
12 Tbsp chilled lard or shortening
2 egg yolks
1 c. water (more or less as needed)
Sift flour into large bowl with salt and sugar. Cut in the fats. Whisk the egg yolks with the water and sprinkle in as needed until dough starts to come together smoothly. Knead a bit until dough is smooth. It may be shaggy until it has thoroughly chilled. Cover dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour up to two days. When ready to use, the dough should be soft and smooth, not elastic. If you poke a hole in the dough with your finger, the indentation should remain. Divide into 12-18 balls. These you will roll out into circles, fill with 1-2 tablespoons of filling (below) and a slice of hard-boiled egg, and then seal up with water, pressing and folding.
For the filling (salt as you go):
2 Tbsp oil
2 Tbsp butter
3 large onions, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 c. water plus 1 Tbsp beef bouillon
1 lb ground beef
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 Tbsp paprika
salt to taste
black pepper to taste
2 Tbsp flour
1/2 c. raisins
1/2 c. black olives, chopped or whole with the pits still in them if you want to be authentic
2 Tbsp oil
2 Tbsp butter
3 large onions, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 c. water plus 1 Tbsp beef bouillon
1 lb ground beef
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 Tbsp paprika
salt to taste
black pepper to taste
2 Tbsp flour
1/2 c. raisins
1/2 c. black olives, chopped or whole with the pits still in them if you want to be authentic
Cook onions for about an hour on low heat. Add the garlic for about 5 minutes. Then add the water/bouillon mixture and then the beef and seasonings. (Adding the water right before you add the beef helps to bread the beef up into tiny pieces easier, and the water mostly cooks out. But there is a little flour added at the end to thicken any remaining trace liquid). Once the meat is all broken up and everything is cooked and well mixed, check for seasonings. At the end, stir in the raisins and olives. This mixture needs to then cool for at least a couple hours in the fridge. Works best if you make it the day before. Don't try to assemble empanadas with hot filling.
For Assembly:
2-4 hard-boiled eggs, sliced
1 egg yolk plus 2 Tbsp milk for egg wash, or just an egg white whisked with water
2-4 hard-boiled eggs, sliced
1 egg yolk plus 2 Tbsp milk for egg wash, or just an egg white whisked with water
Divide dough into 12-18 balls. These you will roll out into circles, fill with 1-2 tablespoons of filling and a slice of hard-boiled egg, and then seal up with water, pressing and folding. Works best with 2-3 people helping.
Chilean Bread
Make my normal French bread recipe, but only do 1 Tbsp sugar, and 1 full Tbsp of salt. Roll it out after it's done rising for the first hour, and cut circles. Place on a greased baking sheet, and bake at 375 degrees for about 12 minutes. You want it to barely tan, but be mostly white. Serve Chilean bread plain or with toppings like cheese, egg, butter, jam, a piece of bologna, palta*, tomato salad*, or this manjar below. *see recipe for these. (But only one topping at a time is how they do it).
Make my normal French bread recipe, but only do 1 Tbsp sugar, and 1 full Tbsp of salt. Roll it out after it's done rising for the first hour, and cut circles. Place on a greased baking sheet, and bake at 375 degrees for about 12 minutes. You want it to barely tan, but be mostly white. Serve Chilean bread plain or with toppings like cheese, egg, butter, jam, a piece of bologna, palta*, tomato salad*, or this manjar below. *see recipe for these. (But only one topping at a time is how they do it).
Chilean Tomato Salad
Ripe, fresh tomatoes, dipped in boiling water for a few seconds to easily remove the skins
garlic
cilantro, chopped
salt
evoo
In Chile, they often made this in a large mortar and pestle, mincing up the garlic first and then adding the rest. They also peeled their tomatoes, which I don't do, but if you want it authentic, just drop each tomato in boiling water for about 15 seconds and the peels will come off easily. Slice tomatoes or break up in the mortar and pestle and mix in the remaining ingredients thoroughly. If you don’t have mortar and pestle, use a knife to mince garlic and dice tomatoes, etc. Just make it like salsa. Chileans like a good amount of salt and oil, and they eat this by dipping bread into it. The better the tomatoes, the better the “ensalada”. Fresh from the garden and nicely ripened is best!
Ripe, fresh tomatoes, dipped in boiling water for a few seconds to easily remove the skins
garlic
cilantro, chopped
salt
evoo
In Chile, they often made this in a large mortar and pestle, mincing up the garlic first and then adding the rest. They also peeled their tomatoes, which I don't do, but if you want it authentic, just drop each tomato in boiling water for about 15 seconds and the peels will come off easily. Slice tomatoes or break up in the mortar and pestle and mix in the remaining ingredients thoroughly. If you don’t have mortar and pestle, use a knife to mince garlic and dice tomatoes, etc. Just make it like salsa. Chileans like a good amount of salt and oil, and they eat this by dipping bread into it. The better the tomatoes, the better the “ensalada”. Fresh from the garden and nicely ripened is best!
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