Traditional Venezuelan Hallacas Recipe

Learn how to make Traditional Venezuelan Hallacas with this easy recipe and step-by-step tutorial. Their taste will make you feel you’re back at home, no matter where you are!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Venezuelan

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 4

Total Time 9

Servings hallacas

Calories 520kcal

Author Oriana Romero

Equipment

Ingredients

Banana Leaves – Hojas

5 kg banana leaves, smoked (I used 10 packs (500 gr each) of frozen leaves)

Achiote Oil

1 liter (4 cups) vegetable or canola oil
200 g onoto (a.k.a. annatto or achiote seeds)

Broth - Caldo

7 liters (30 cups) water
2 tablespoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
3 beef bouillons cubes
2 leeks, dark green leaves only (the top part)
4 green onions, dark green leaves only (the top part)
6 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
2 onions, peeled and quartered
1 bell pepper, deseeded and chopped
6 sweet peppers, deseeded and chopped
1 ½ kg (3.3 lb) beef (see notes in the recipe card)
1 ½ kg (3.3 lb) pork (see notes in the recipe card)
1 ½ kg (3.3 lb) chicken breast (see notes in the recipe card)

Meat Filling – Guiso

Beef, diced
Pork, diced
Chicken, diced
2-3 liters (8 - 12 cups) reserved broth - caldo
240 - 480 ml (1 -2 cups) achiote oil
4 large yellow onions, chopped (I chopped it in a food processor to save time)
2 leeks, sliced (the light green part only)
4 green onions, sliced (the light green part only)
200 g (7 oz) garlic cloves, peeled peeled (I chopped it in a food processor to save time)
2 bell green peppers, deseeded and chopped (I chopped it in a food processor to save time)
10 -12 sweet peppers, deseeded and chopped (I chopped it in a food processor to save time)
80 g (3 oz) capers, drain, rinse, and finely chopped (I chopped it in a food processor to save time)
480 ml (2 cups) red sweet wine (see notes)
3/4 cups (3/4 cup) Harina P.A.N

Dough – Masa

4 liters (16 cups) reserved broth - caldo
240 - 480 ml (1 - 2 cups) achiote oil
2 kg (2 packs, 1kg each) of Harina P.A.N

Toppings – Adornos

Yellow onions, cut into rings
Red bell peppers, cut in thin strips
Black raisins
Green Olives (see notes)
450 g (16 oz) Italian Mix Giardiniera pickles (encurtidos), finely chopped (I chopped it in a food processor to save time)
6 medium potatoes, cook and cut into slices
Chicken breast, cut in thin strips

Instructions

Banana Leaves – Hojas

Clean the banana leaves well with a damp cloth and then dry them with a dry one.
Remove the center stem (la vena) from the leaves, to make the folding process easier. When cutting the stem with scissors, be careful not to break the leaf.
Divide the leaves into three types:
The main one (the biggest one) which is where you have to place the dough and hallaca filling, approximately 12 x 12 inches or 30 x 30 cm squares.
The second leaf (smaller than the main one) that covers, encloses and protects the hallaca while it is cooking. approximately 10 x 8 inches or 25 x 20 cm rectangles.
The third (faja) that hold in the hallacas, and all those previous leaves, together right before it is tied up with the cooking twine. approximately 10 x 4 inches or 25 x 10 cm rectangles.
Important: Please, keep in mind that the measurements of the leaves are approximate, so you have an idea of how to cut them, but they do not have to be exactly those measures.

Achiote Oil - Aceite Onotado

Add oil to a medium saucepan at medium heat. When the oil is hot, add achiote seeds. Let achiote seeds tender their color for 3-4 minutes. Don't let the oil boil, or the achiote oil will the bitter. Remove from the stove and let cool.
Once it's cool. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a large container. Reserve the colored oil for later use.

Broth – Caldo

Add water into a large pot. Add salt, black pepper, beef bouillons, leeks leaves, green onions leaves, garlic cloves, onions, bell pepper, and sweet peppers. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
When boiling, add the beef and pork; cook for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, add the chicken breast and cook for 20 more minutes. Then turn off the heat.
Remove the meats from the broth and place them on a large plate to cool down. Reserve the broth.
Let the meat cool enough to handle. Then cut the beef, pork, and 4 chicken breasts (the other 2 breasts will be used as a topping) into small pieces. Make sure to remove any extra fat that the meat might have. Reserve.
When the broth is cool, strain through a fine-mesh strainer. Reserve ALL the broth and discard the veggies.

Meat Filling – Guiso

Add the cut meats and enough broth to cover the meats (I added 8 cups) into a large pot. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. When boiling, reduce heat to medium-low.
Add 1 cup of achiote oil to a large skillet. When hot, add onion and cook for 3-4 minutes; make sure the oil is not too hot that it is going to toast the onion. Then add the leeks and green onion; continue cooking for 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic; mix to combine and cook until fragrant and soft, about 3 minutes. Finally, add the bell pepper and sweet peppers and cook for 5 minutes.
Add the sautéed veggies (sofrito) to the pot with the meat and broth. Mix well and let it cook for 5 – 8 minutes. Add capers, mix and continue cooking for 5 minutes.
In a mixing bowl, combine the sweet wine and Harina P.A.N. Mix vigorously to prevent lumps from forming.
Add the wine mixture to the meats. You need to add the wine mixture and mix vigorously at the same time to prevent lumps from forming. Taste and add more salt if needed. If the guiso is too pale, you can add more achiote oil to add more color. Let the guiso cook for 5 – 8 more minutes. The guiso must be thick, not runny, so if needed, you can dissolve more Harina P.A.N in water or broth and add it to the guiso to thicken.
Turn off the heat and let the guiso cool.

Dough – Masa

Add 4 liters of broth to a large mixing bowl. Mix in 2 cups of achiote oil; mix well. Slowly add the Harina P.A.N. Mix with your hands, making circular movements and breaking with your fingers the lumps that may form. Continue mixing until all the oil has been incorporated. Taste and add more salt if needed. If the dough is too pale, you can add more achiote oil to add more color.
Let masa rest for 5 minutes to thicken.
Important: This dough should have a smooth and spreadable texture since you will spread it onto the banana leaf with a spoon. If it is too soft, add a little more Harina P.A.N; if too thick, add a little more water or broth.
Set aside.

Assemble Hallacas

Place one of the main banana leaves over a flat surface. Make sure the leaf vein is horizontal to make the folding process easier.
Spread, in the middle of the leaf, with a spoon ½ cup of dough, spread with the back of a spoon until it is 1/6 of an inch or 4 mm thick.
Add, in the middle of the spread dough, 1/3 cup of guiso (meat filling).
Then start adding the toppings of your choice. This is what I did: I sprinkled 1/2 teaspoon of chopped Italian Mix Giardiniera pickles over the guiso. Then, I added a ring of onion, one strip of red pepper, a potato slice, 2 green olives, 5-6 raisins, and one chicken breast strip.
Close the hallacas: Take the top and bottom edges of the leaf and attach them upward, making sure the top and bottom edges of the dough join together. Then create a fold until it is completely sealed. Fold the other two ends towards the inside.
And then, place the fold perpendicularly on the second sheet and wrap it. Fold the ends towards the inside.
Finally, wrap around the fold the third leaf (faja) just to help everything together.
Tie the hallacas with cooking twine. Cross them three times in each direction (horizontal and vertical) and close with a knot or bow, almost as you would with a gift.

Cook Hallacas

Fill 3/4 of a large pot with water (I used a 24-qt pot). Add 2-3 tablespoons of salt. NOTE: Depending on the capacity of your pot, you might need to add more or less salt. The water is supposed to taste salty, so add the salt, mix, taste, and adjust if necessary. Bring to a boil.
When the salty water is boiling, add as many hallacas as you can fit, they must all be completely submerged in the water. Cook for 40 minutes.
Remove and drain them, preferably in the vertical position. I like to place them side by side in the sink.
Repeat the process with the other hallacas.
Let them cool completely before refrigerating.

Notes

BEEF: In Venezuela, the most popular cut used to make hallacas are ganzo or pulpa negra. In the USA, you can use Round Tip Roast or Round Tip Steak, Bottom Round Roast, or Sirloin Tip Roast.

PORK: I usually use Rib End Boneless Pork Roast or a Boneless Loin.

CHICKEN: To make my life easier, I like to use boneless, skinless chicken breasts but feel free you use bone-in chicken if you like.

RED SWEET WINE: The traditional wine to make hallacas is Sagrada Familia. Unfortunately, this wine is very difficult to find in other countries, so I found out that the sweet marsala wine or sweet Porto wine are a good substitute.

OLIVES: I used whole green olives because that is what my mom uses, but manzanilla olives stuffed with pimiento will work fine, too; just make sure to rinse them before using them to reduce the amount of vinegar.

ONIONS: To maximize the use of the onions, I like to cut them into rings, then I pick the rings I will use as a topping and the remaining onions I use for the meat filling/guiso.

STORING HALLACAS

Store cooked hallacas in the refrigerator for up to 4 weeks.

HOW TO FREEZE HALLACAS

The best way to freeze hallacas is before you cook them. To freeze hallacas, you have to assemble and wrap them as instructed. Then lay them flat in a plastic freezer bag and freeze them for up to 6 months. When ready to eat, cook them frozen in a pot with salty water for 60 minutes.

REHEATING HALLACAS

STOVE: Add water and salt to a pot; bring to a boil over high heat. Add the hallacas you wish to reheat (make sure the water is covering them). Lower the heat to medium and cook for 20 -25 minutes. Remove the hallacas from the pot. Drain the hallacas, cut the cooking twine, remove the leaf and enjoy!
MICROWAVE: If you are short of time, you can reheat them in the microwave. Just place the Hallaca on a plate, reheat for 1 minute, then flip and reheat for 30-45 more sec. This works best for one hallaca at a time.

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Please note that nutritional information is a rough estimate, and it can vary depending on the products used.

Nutrition