One of the best part of having a multicultural friendships is savoring the variety of foods. I was inspired to try out this recipe by my Venezuelan friend’s mom (thank you Rosgil Quint!). In this dish we have  deliciously spiced ground beef covered with Arepa dough and doused with a rich, savory tomato sauce. Now this is soul food!
Ingredients (Bollos Peloñes)
Corn Dough
  • 2.5 cups warm water
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 cups corn flour (Masa Harina)

Ground Beef Filling 

  • 1 medium onions, finely chopped
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • Red chili powder ½-1 teaspoon (for mild to spicy)
  • 1 tsp garlic paste or 4-5 cloves of finely minced garlic
  • 1 tsp ginger paste or finely grated fresh ginger 1 tsp
  • 2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro
  • 1/2 red bell pepper, roughly chopped

Toppings 

  • 18 oz jar diced tomatoes
  • 3 cloves of garlic, chopped
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp chilli powder
  • 2 tsp ground black pepper
  • 1 tbsp brown sugar
  • 2 tsp sea salt/regular salt
  • ½ cup olive oil
  • Parmesan cheese, garnish

Method

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 10-12 min

Serves 8-12 (depends on the size)

  1. Combine all the ingredients for the corn dough, the outer layer of the “dumpling”, in a large bowl until it comes together. Let sit while you make the ground beef filling.
  2. Prepare the ground beef: heat oil and saute 1 onion until golden brown. Add ground beef, ginger, garlic, salt, chili powder and lemon juice and cook on medium high heat. When meat is well browned add cilantro. Mix well on medium to high heat until water has essentially evaporated. Cool the filling.
  3. Once the ground beef mixture is cooled, begin creating large balls of dough as shown in the picture. You want them to be big so there is room to stuff more ground beef. Once the balls have been created, use your thumb to create a large indent where the beef will go; then fill with the prepared mixture.
  4. To serve right away, get a big pot of water (with a pinch of salt) and let it come to a boil. Then, boil the “dumplings” in batches for 10-11 min.
  5. For the tomato sauce, add all the ingredients into a pan and simmer for about 10 min, or until the diced tomatoes have absorbed all the flavor from the other ingredients.
  6. To finish the dish, top the bollos pelones with the sauce and some parmesan cheese.
  7. Enjoy!