Every fall, I am reminded just how lucky I am to have grown up a first-generation Latinx American. With Hispanic Heritage Month taking place mid to late September, I am grateful for my upbringing. My Dominican father and Puerto Rican mother raised me (and later my siblings) never losing sight of our culture and traditions. Spanish was my first language before entering the American school system and I NEVER had a PB&J sandwich for lunch.
While Hispanic Heritage Month gets things going, it’s really during Thanksgiving that I plug into my roots. Aside from faith and family, food is as much an identity for me. Every fall, my parents make pasteles, a Puerto Rican type of tamale. The outside is green plantain masa. Inside, a pork and adobo stuffing.
I don’t remember as a child, but I guess my grandparents made the pasteles until they couldn’t anymore. That’s when my parents took over the tradition. Now that I’m older and have a family of my own, it was important for me to learn how this holiday staple is made.
Making pasteles is incredibly time-consuming and labor-intensive. Traditionally, we make them in bulk, assembly-line style. Hundreds are produced, frozen, and then boiled throughout the Thanksgiving/fall and Christmas/winter seasons.
The process starts with peeling green plantains. Lots of them. It’s a tedious task. It’s made slightly faster by soaking them in hot water for a bit. You don’t want to cook the plantain! You’re just trying to soften the shell. You can then cut of the ends, slice along the ridges, and remove the peel in strips with a knife and your fingers.
After the plantains have been peeled, we grate them into a pasty masa. God bless my parents, they used to do this BY HAND when we were younger. Now, they have this bougie homemade contraption that is essentially a high powered motor attached to a spinning grater. The masa is mixed with some orange juice, milk, and sofrito for color and flavor.
Next up is preparing the stuffing. The pork is finely chopped, seasoned, and cooked. The pork is seasoned in adobo for color and sofrito for flavor. Traditionally, the pastel is wrapped in banana leaves. We’ve modernized this step by using parchment paper and string. Mom cooks (boils?) some vegetable oil and seasonings to keep the pastel from sticking to the paper during cooking. Once ready to eat, our frozen pasteles are boiled, unlike Mexican tamales which are steamed.
Putting together the pasteles this year was done assembly line style. Mom laid out four stations with parchment paper and oil. I plopped the plantain masa on each, flattening them out, keeping it close to the edge of the paper. Dad scooped the meat mixture in the middle of the masa. Mom then folded over the masa to encase the stuffing in the middle.
Once the pasteles are wrapped in the parchment paper, Dad takes string to tie them shut, two per bundle. The end result is delicious yum yums for months to come!
ACTIONABLE STEPS: Any family traditions you partake in around the Thanksgiving holiday? Do you eat a more “American” meal or “cultural” foods? Let me know in the comments!
