Pastel de Choclo

Making Pastel de Choclo Ahead

Refrigerate up to 3 days and reheat at 190°C / 374°F fan. It freezes 2 months, assembled and unbaked.

How to Make Pastel de Choclo

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1. Cook the onions in the oil over medium-low heat for 20 minutes until completely soft and sweet.

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2. Add the beef and brown it well, then the cumin, paprika, oregano and salt.

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3. Sprinkle over the flour, stir for 2 minutes, then add the stock and simmer 10 minutes to a thick, saucy mixture. Cool.

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4. For the topping, blend the corn with the milk and basil to a coarse purée — not completely smooth.

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5. Pour it into a wide pan with the butter and salt and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, for 12 to 15 minutes until it thickens noticeably and pulls from the sides of the pan.

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6. Spread the pino filling in the base of a large earthenware dish or six individual ones.

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7. Lay the shredded chicken over it, then the egg slices, olives and raisins.

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8. Spoon the hot corn mixture over the top and smooth it flat, right to the edges.

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9. Sprinkle the sugar evenly over the surface.

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10. Bake at 200°C / 390°F fan for 30 to 35 minutes, until the top is set and browned in patches. Rest 10 minutes before serving.

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Worth Knowing

• Cook the corn topping on the hob first. Raw corn separates in the oven.
• Twenty minutes on the onions for the pino. It is the base of the flavour.
• The sugar on top is not optional — it makes the crust.

Some Background

The corn topping is cooked on the hob with milk and basil before it goes on, so it sets to a firm, sliceable layer rather than staying wet — raw ground corn spread over the filling will separate in the oven. The dusting of sugar on top is a Chilean habit that makes a lacquered, slightly bitter crust against the sweet corn.

What to Put Next to It

A tomato and onion salad · A Chilean Carmenère · Pebre on the side

Common Substitutions & Variations

• Fresh herbs work in place of the dried oregano at roughly three times the quantity — a teaspoon of dried is about a tablespoon of fresh, chopped.

Pastel de Choclo Nutrition Facts

No nutrition figures are given for this recipe: they cannot be worked out reliably from its ingredient list (some ingredient lines cannot be read). Why some recipes have none.

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