Hi @carolynstahl !
I felt super happy when I saw this recipe for vegan hallacas, and not only happy, but honored because you were motivated to make this super complex recipe and it turned out WONDERFUL, I think it's the best vegan hallaca recipe I've ever seen in my life.
Yesterday I was talking to mom about your post. I told her about the tamales you had previously shared, and she told me: "Remind her that hallaca is a job that requires love, that's why it's done as a family, and generally only at Christmas, because it's so laborious, which requires everyone to collaborate to make a unique dish." And yes, mom is right, this is a dish that we generally make as a family in Venezuela, because it is complex; but the laborious gives way to a unique family experience, in which we come together to celebrate and share that, our roots and our sense of family.
Regarding your recipe, it is PERFECT, and I don't think you tied the hallacas wrong, what's more, it was great to use the jute twine, because it is strong and they are better tied. For your first time making this dish, they have been super neat. As for the achiote, when you prepare it like this, heating the seeds in oil, the flavor is milder. We in Venezuela do not use achiote paste, only onotado oil, and if you pay attention, its flavor is a bit sweet, it is very particular. Another key ingredient in the preparation of the hallaca is "ají dulce", which only occurs in Venezuela, although I know that other South American countries have been able to cultivate it, but I know that it is very difficult to find.
I remember that when I was little, at home, every Christmas, we made about 600 hallacas, (of course, they were not vegan), and mom and dad gave gifts to the neighbors or to my uncles, my grandparents and cousins. We also froze them in the freezer, well wrapped in plastic bags and then we had hallacas to eat until February. It was always nice to open that package and discover a world of love expressed in such a special dish.
Thank you very much for having made this recipe so Venezuelan, and for having fully respected its essence.
I hope you have a great year 2023. A hug.
What your mother said allows me to see a culture that is close and family oriented. Food for me is not just to fill the stomach. It is an experience and it leaves you with a memory. I love the thought of the participation.
I really am thankful that I could learn of an international dish that I was not familiar with. Most people here have no clue about it. I could eat this,close my eyes and imagine being in a warm beautiful land surrounded by good people. I travel through food
Thank you for the encouragement and all the best to you.
And for me it was a great honor to talk to you about the hallaca, because I believe that, like the "Venezuelan pabellón", perhaps even more so, it is our national dish. Not to disparage tamales, but these are made more frequently. The hallaca is so complex that it requires collective work.
On the other hand, I was very pleased to see that you got the P.A.N. brand pre-cooked corn flour, which is Venezuelan. In fact, precooked cornmeal is a Venezuelan invention from the 1950s, created by engineer Luis Caballero Mejías, tired of seeing that his wife had to grind corn daily to make arepas (the arepa is our bread of everyday). Then I think, I'm not sure, he sold the patent to Industrias Polar, which is a Venezuelan company. The fact that P.A.N. is for sale in countries as far away as Canada, it gives an idea of what the migratory process of my people has been.
When I told you about the hallacas of my childhood, we made them with ground corn, not with precooked flour. Then mom understood that it was easier to make them with precooked flour and so she agreed to make them with that flour.
There is also the younger brother of the hallaca, which is the Christmas bun or seasoned bun, of which @franciscana23 recently shared a recipe in the community, in a vegan version.
The original Christmas bun is made with all the remains of the stew and contour of the hallacas, and a generous portion of hot sauce is added. Me in particular, even making them vegan, I make them very spicy, because I like them that way. They are also delicious and can be frozen.
And I agree with you: Food is not just filling the stomach, it is a trip down memory lane, culture, feelings, emotions, it is an act of love and it is an act that connects us with our roots.
A big greeting.
Now you have added more interest to the flour P.A.N. I did not know the history of it originating in Venezuela. Very interesting. There are several items that I cannot get here in Canada but this flour is everywhere. We seem to have a huge Latino community in this City. More then ever before. But until a while back there were only a few here and there.
You have just introduced for the first time the dish pabillon. It reminds me of Cuba. I will have to find the perfect vegan substitute. For me a plate of rice and beans is divine. Adding an extra item is even better.
Cheers and thanks!