These Venezuelan Bollos Pelones are delicious and easy to make. Cornmeal dumplings stuffed with a tasty meat mixture, and then served with a delicious tomato sauce. This dish takes Venezuelan comfort food to a whole new level!

The first time I ate these Venezuelan Bollos Pelones was at a friend’s house. Her mother-in-law, who is a veteran cook, prepared them for breakfast. She did everything in 30 minutes… amazing! For us, it was definitely a different but delicious breakfast. To be honest this was the first and only time I ate them until I had the idea of making them myself.
Bollos Pelones (Latino Beef Dumplings) is a popular dish in Venezuela. The translation of “bollos pelones” it’s something like HAIRLESS BUNS LOL. Seriously! Anyways. This dish is delicious. You can prepare them ahead of time and warm them up the day that you want to eat them. They are an excellent choice for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Back home you can find them in different versions, stuffed with shredded beef, chicken, pork, and even shark.
At first, I was a little intimidated because the process looked a bit complicated. But in the end, there was no complication. I prepared the sauce and stuffing the day before and I stored them in the refrigerator. The day that I planned to serve them I only prepared the dough, which is very easy, and I formed the balls. They are cooked in a blink, just ten minutes.
The filling has a special touch that’s given by the olives and capers. I have also heard of people that put raisins in it, but I decided not to add them this time. I will surely add them next time.
These Venezuelan Beef Dumplings were a total success. We all loved them. They will, for sure, be on our menu more often from now on.
Esta receta esta disponible en Español, Bollos Pelones Venezolanos.
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Venezuelan Bollos Pelones
Ingredients
Stuffing:
- 2 tablespoons of corn oil
- 1 cup of onion, finely chopped
- 3 clove of garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup of green bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 cup of leeks, sliced (white and pale-green parts only)
- 1/4 cup of scallions, sliced
- 1 lb ground beef
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons of tomato paste
- 4 tablespoons sweet red wine (I used Marsala)
- 23 -25 green olives stuffed with red pepper, sliced
- 3 tablespoons of capers, drained
Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons of corn oil
- 2 cups of onion, chopped into small pieces
- 1 can (28 oz) of diced tomatoes
- Salt and pepper to taste
Dough:
- 2 1/2 cups of chicken broth, warm
- 3 cups Harina PAN
- 2 tablespoons of corn oil
- 8 oz of queso fresco or queso para rallar, crumble (opcional),
Important
Don’t forget to check out the step-by-step photos above in the post—they’ll guide you through the process and make everything super clear!
Instructions
Prepare the filling:
- Heat the oil In a medium saucepan over medium-high. Saute the onion until translucent. Add the garlic, pepper, leeks, and scallions; cook 5 minutes. Stir in ground beef. Using a wooden spoon break the meat and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook until it’s no pink, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste, wine, olives, and capers; mix well until everything is well combined. Adjust salt and pepper, if necessary. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until most of the liquid has evaporated. Remove from heat and set aside.
Prepare the sauce:
- In a small saucepan add the corn oil. Saute onion until transparent; about 3 minutes. Add the diced tomatoes and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
Prepare the dough:
- Mix chicken broth and Harina PAN until has no lumps. Let stand for 5 minutes then add the corn oil and knead until smooth. Divide the dough into 14 equal-size balls. Set aside.
Assemble:
- Take a ball of dough and make a hole in the center with your finger, big enough to place the filling. Add 1-2 teaspoons of the filling. Close bringing the edges together carefully with your fingers. Re-form into a ball again. Repeat until all the dough is finish.
Cook:
- Fill a large pot halfway with water. Bring it to boil over medium heat high heat. At first boil reduce the heat to low. Place the stuffed dumplings in the hot water and cook about ten minutes. You’ll know when they ready because they’ll float. With a slotted spoon transfer them to a serving dish.
- Top with tomato sauce and fresh cheese (queso fresco), if desired, and serve immediately.
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Thank you for the Bollos Pelones recipe. I will make this in honor of my Venezuelan neighbors. I hope they will be pleasantly surprised and enjoy this delicious food when they come to visit.
Hi Tere! What a lovely and thoughtful gesture—I’m sure your Venezuelan neighbors will be delighted and touched! Bollos Pelones are such a comforting and traditional dish, and it’s wonderful that you’re sharing it to celebrate their culture. I hope it turns out beautifully and that everyone enjoys it. Thank you for giving the recipe a try—it means so much!
Hi just discovered your wonderful blog ! I love this dish made By some long ago Venezuelan friends but. When I’ve had this dish it is made with arena pan , will your dough recipe work with arena pan? If not do you have the dough recipe for it ? Ty so much in advance
Hello Maria! yes, you can use the same proportions of Harina PAN, just reduce the oil quantity to 2 tablespoons. Please let me know how they turn out =)
Hi Oriana…
About 25 years ago my friend’s neighbor (Patty from Venezuela) made a variation of this recipe at her husband’s birthday party. The cornmeal dough was lemony and the inside was tuna with mayo and scallion…They were approximately 1/3rd bigger than the ones in your photo….They were so delicious it was one of the most memorable things I ever ate….
Have you ever made a variation like that?
Oh my! I’d make the bollos pelones too. I would make this with ground turkey! I’d also try making corn tortillas (or learning how to since I married a Mexican guy. He would be surprised!). Thanks for this great post!
I would make the dumplings but add some raisins to the filling like my old babysitter used to do in her tamales.