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Cachapas

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Sweet corn pancakes topped with cheese and meats or fruits and whipped cream!

Ingredients

Scale

Cachapas

  • 4 cups fresh yellow corn kernels + 4 tablespoons – divided
  • 1/2 cup cacique creme – Mexicana table cream
  • 1 TBL sugar
  • 2/3 cup P.A.N. sweet corn flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • Venezuelan queso de mano – OR – fresh mozzarella – shredded
  • Butter – for frying
  • Cilantro sauce – garnish – get the recipe HERE

 

Chicharrones

  • 1 lb pork belly – sliced into bite sized chunks
  • 1 cup peanut oil – for frying
  • Cayenne pepper – to taste

 

Carne Mechada

  • 2 lb skirt or flank steak – trimmed of excess fat and gristle
  • 1 onion – peeled and quartered
  • 1 onion – quartered and sliced
  • 2 red bell peppers – quartered and sliced
  • 3 garlic cloves – minced
  • 1 TBL olive oil
  • 2 small tomatoes – diced
  • 1 TBL salsa inglesa – or – substitute worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 3/4 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
  • 2 cups reserved beef cooking broth

Instructions

Cachapas

  1. Blend the flour, crema, sugar and salt with the corn kernels until it forms a thick paste – if it is too runny, add another teaspoon of corn flour and pulse it in
  2. Add the reserved whole corn kernels and stir gently to combine, then let the batter stand for 5-10 minutes to thicken
  3. Warm a griddle or non-stick frying pan on low, then increase to low medium heat. Take your time to get an even heat over the griddle or pan surface
  4. When it is up to temperature grease it with a pat or two of butter, pour 1/3 cup of batter and make a 4″ circle. It should be thick enough that you have to spread it out evenly with a spatula
  5. Cook covered with a vented glass lid for 3-4 minutes, until you see little steam bubbles on the top of the cachapa, uncover and cook another 1-2 minutes until golden brown on the bottom
  6. Carefully flip with a spatula and cook, the second side uncovered 3-4 minutes until golden brown
  7. Remove and place the cachapa on a serving plate
  8. Top with a layer of cheese and then fried pork or chicharrones
  9. Serve hot with cilantro sauce

 

 

Chicharrones

  1. Season the pork belly with a sprinkle of cayenne pepper – optional
  2. Heat the oil on medium high heat and fry in batches about 8-10 minutes until well done
  3. Strain out with a spider and cool on a paper towel covered rack until ready to serve

 

Carne Mechada

  1. Place the meat into a pot and cover with water. Add the quartered onion and simmer for 2 hours, skimming off any foam that floats to the top. Once cooked, strain the beef from the pot, reserve 2 cups of the beef broth, shred the beef with two forks and set aside
  2. Heat the oil in a large saute pan over medium heat, add the sliced onion, peppers and garlic and saute for 4-5 minutes until the onions are soft
  3. Add the diced tomatoes, salsa inglesa, salt pepper and cumin, stir well to combine and add the shredded meat with 2 cups of reserved broth
  4. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer uncovered for 20 minutes
  5. Taste and adjust your seasoning with salt and pepper
  6. Continue to simmer until almost all the liquid is gone and it is almost dry, because you don’t want runny carne mechada on top of your cachapa with cheese!

Find it online: https://www.cooksavorcelebrate.com/cachapas/