Cassava Empanadas
Cassava empanada is a recipe celebrated by all the people with whom we have shared them, the recipe was prepared by Mónica Tollinchi in collaboration with Plenitud PR. Learn the story of Monica Tollinchi here.
Cassava (‘Yuca’) Dough:
6 cassava roots, approximate
½ cup vegetable oil or ghee with annatto seed (achiote)
1 galon vegetable stock*, approximate
Bananas leaves, cleaned, wilted and cut to size
Aluminum paper
Vegetable Stock:
2 tablespoons oil or ghee
3 medium onions
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon coriander seed, ground
2 bay leaves
4 garlic cloves (optional)
1 tablespoon ginger, minced or grated
1 tablespoon ground turmeric
4 carrots
6 celery stalks
4-6 collard greens or any other greens on hand, roughly chopped
1 bunch each of cilantro and basil (or any other herb of your liking)
2 galons filtered water
Green olives, (optional)
Red pepper strips (optional)
Salt to taste
Directions:
Directions for Vegetable Stock:
Sautee first 8 ingredients at low heat for about 15 minutes.
Add vegetables, cover and ‘sweat’ them for about 15-20 minutes on medium heat. Some water can be added to keep them from sticking to the bottom. Add water and salt and bring to a boil.
When it comes to a rapid boil, lower the heat and keep simmering covered for about 1 hour. The longer it cooks the better the flavor.
Directions for the Dough:
1. Wash, peel and cube cassava roots.
2. In a blender, put the cassava with a little of the vegetable stock, and blend. Add stock as needed for desired consistency. For a firmer consistency, add less stock; add more for looser texture. Add vegetable stock by eye until consistency is to taste. To assist with this blending process, a blender tamper can be helpful. If you don’t have one, a peeled, whole green banana can be used instead! Continue blending until a homogeneous consistency is achieved. Do this in batches and set aside the prepared dough in a large bowl or pot.
3. After all the dough is prepared, add the annatto seed oil or ghee. And if you used a “pasteles“ machine, add vegetable broth until you achieve the desired consistency. See videos below for reference.
Cassava (Yuca) Dough Videos
4. Put a piece of aluminum paper and a piece of banana leaf (prepared with heat and cleaned) on top of the aluminum.
5. Spread about a teaspoon of the oil on the leaf. This will prevent the dough from sticking and allow it to slide off once it’s cooked.
6. Pour about ¼ cup of the dough onto the leaf and spread evenly with a large spoon or laddle.
7. Put desired amount of stuffing onto the center of the dough. Other ingredients such as olives, roasted red peppers, or raisins can be added at this point.
8. Fold the foil and the sheet with the mixture in half so that the edges meet, looking to contain the mixture joined in the center while you flatten the mixture so that the pie is thin and long. Close the foil and fold the edges.
9. You can bake the empanadas in the oven (350 ° F for 40-45 minutes) or on a barbecue to consume at the moment, or you can also freeze them for later use.
Stuffings:
There are many options for the stuffing:
Stewed chickpeas
Stewed beans
Stewed lentils
Stewed pigeon peas (gandules)
Tempeh or Tofu
Vegetable of your choice
Soy meat is not recommended because it is a highly processed product
¡Buen Provecho!
