Today we’re heading to Chile—a country where the Pacific Ocean meets the Andes, and the table is ruled by hearty, warming dishes with soul. We’ll make two iconic recipes without which Chilean cuisine is unthinkable.
A rich Chilean soup-stew with large pieces of bone-in beef, potatoes, pumpkin, and corn. This thick, fragrant golden dish with its deep meaty flavor is a true symbol of home comfort in Chile, served in deep bowls so that everyone gets a generous piece of meat and vegetables.
Ingredients (serves 4):
• Bone-in beef (shank or ribs) — 800 g
• Potatoes — 4 medium potatoes
• Pumpkin (butternut squash) — 400 g
• Corn on the cob — 2 ears
• Rice — 80 g
• Carrots — 2
• Onion — 1 large
• Garlic — 3 cloves
• Green beans — 150 g
• Dried oregano — 1 tsp
• Ground cumin — 0.5 tsp
• Sweet paprika — 1 tsp
• Salt — to taste
• Black pepper — to taste
• Fresh cilantro — a small bunch, for serving
• Water — 2.5 l
Preparation:
Step 1. Preparing the meat.
Cut the bone-in beef into individual portions weighing around 200 g each. Rinse under cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Place the meat in a large pot with a capacity of at least 5 liters and pour in 2.5 l of cold water. Set over high heat and bring to a boil. When foam appears, skim it off thoroughly with a slotted spoon—the broth should turn clear. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 40 minutes. Sign of doneness: the meat is starting to pull slightly away from the bone, but still holds on to it.
Step 2. Preparing the vegetables.
While the broth cooks, prepare the vegetables. Dice the onion into 1×1 cm cubes. Finely chop the garlic with a knife. Peel the carrots and slice them into 1 cm-thick rounds. Peel the potatoes and cut each one in half—no smaller, so they do not fall apart. Peel and seed the pumpkin, then cut it into large 4×4 cm cubes. Cut the corn cobs crosswise into 4–5 cm pieces. Trim the ends off the green beans and cut them into 3 cm lengths.
Step 3. Building the aromatic base.
Add the chopped onion, garlic, dried oregano, cumin, and paprika to the broth with the meat. Stir and cook for 5 minutes over medium heat. The broth will take on a light golden hue and a distinct aroma of spices.
Step 4. Adding the vegetables and rice.
Add the potatoes, pumpkin, carrots, and corn to the pot. Stir in the rinsed rice. Mix carefully, trying not to damage the pieces of pumpkin. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Cook for 20 minutes with the lid slightly ajar to let steam escape.
Step 5. Adding the beans and final cooking.
Add the green beans, then season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook for another 10 minutes. Sign of doneness: the potatoes are easily pierced with a knife but do not fall apart; the pumpkin is soft but holds its shape; the rice is fully cooked and has slightly thickened the broth.
Step 6. Resting.
Remove the pot from the heat, cover with a lid, and let the dish rest for 10 minutes. During this time, the flavors will come together and the broth will grow even richer and silkier.
Step 7. Serving.
Divide among deep bowls: each should get a piece of bone-in meat, half a potato, a piece of pumpkin, a round of corn, carrot, and beans. Generously ladle over the broth with rice. Sprinkle with freshly chopped cilantro. Serve immediately, while the cazuela is piping hot.
💡 Fact: Cazuela is a dish eaten in Chile year-round, though it is especially prized in winter. Its history reaches back to the colonial era, and by the law of Chilean tradition every homemaker has her own “secret” recipe. In 2020, cazuela was recognized as one of Chile’s seven gastronomic symbols at the national level.
Golden and crisp on the outside, juicy within—half-moon pastries filled with chopped beef, onions, olives, hard-boiled egg, and raisins. This is perhaps Chile’s most recognizable dish: fragrant, savory, with an astonishing balance of meaty, salty, and faintly sweet flavors.
Ingredients (makes 8):
Dough:
• Wheat flour — 500 g
• Butter (cold) — 120 g
• Chicken egg — 1
• Warm water — 150 ml
• Salt — 1 tsp
• Egg yolk — 1 (for brushing)
Filling (pino):
• Ground beef (or finely chopped beef) — 500 g
• Onion — 4 large
• Ground cumin — 1.5 tsp
• Sweet paprika — 1 tsp
• Chili flakes (merkén or regular) — 0.5 tsp
• Pitted black olives — 8
• Chicken eggs — 2 (hard-boiled)
• Raisins — 40 g
• Vegetable oil — 3 tbsp
• Salt — to taste
• Black pepper — to taste
Preparation:
Step 1. Making the filling (pino).
Dice the onion into tiny 5×5 mm cubes—this is the key point: there should be plenty of onion, roughly equal in volume to the meat. Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté, stirring every 2 minutes, for 10–12 minutes. Sign of doneness: the onion is completely soft, translucent, lightly golden, and significantly reduced in volume.
Step 2. Frying the meat with spices.
Turn the heat up to high. Add the ground beef to the onion (or finely chopped beef—pieces no larger than 5 mm). Break up any lumps with a spatula. Add the cumin, paprika, chili flakes, salt, and black pepper. Fry for 8–10 minutes, stirring actively. Sign of doneness: the meat has completely changed from pink to brown, the released liquid has evaporated, and the filling is fragrant and crumbly. Remove from the heat and let cool completely—this is critically important, as hot filling will soften the dough.
Step 3. Preparing the additional ingredients.
Hard-boil the eggs: place them in cold water, bring to a boil, cook for exactly 10 minutes, then transfer to ice water. Peel and cut each egg into 4 wedges. Cover the raisins with warm water for 10 minutes, then drain and pat dry—they should become soft and plump.
Step 4. Kneading the dough.
Sift the flour into a mound on the work surface and make a well in the center. Cut the cold butter into 1 cm cubes and arrange them around the edges of the well. Add the egg, salt, and warm water. Start kneading from the center outward, gradually rubbing the butter into the flour. Knead for 5–7 minutes. Sign of readiness: the dough is smooth, elastic, does not stick to your hands, and slowly springs back when pressed with a finger. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Step 5. Shaping the empanadas.
Divide the dough into 8 equal portions (about 95 g each). Roll each one out with a rolling pin into a circle 18–20 cm in diameter and 3 mm thick. Place 2–3 tablespoons of cooled filling, a wedge of hard-boiled egg, one olive, and a few raisins on one half of each circle. Moisten the edges of the dough with water using your finger. Fold the dough in half to form a crescent. Press the edges firmly together and crimp them into a rope-like seal (the so-called “repulgue”): pinch the edge, folding it inward every 1.5 cm to create a decorative braid. It is not only beautiful—it seals in the filling tightly.
Step 6. Baking.
Preheat the oven to 200°C (top and bottom heat). Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Arrange the empanadas 3 cm apart. Brush the surface of each empanada with egg yolk beaten with 1 tbsp of water—this will give them a glossy golden crust. Use a toothpick to make one small hole on top for steam to escape. Bake for 25–30 minutes. Sign of doneness: the dough is evenly golden brown; when tapped on the bottom, the empanada makes a dull sound; fragrant steam may gently escape from the hole.
Step 7. Serving.
Let the empanadas rest for 5 minutes after taking them out of the oven—the filling inside is scalding hot. Serve on a wooden board or a large platter. The traditional accompaniment is Chilean “pebre” sauce (chopped tomatoes, onion, cilantro, chili, and lemon juice), or simply a wedge of lemon.
💡 Fact: Empanadas de pino are an essential dish for Chile’s Independence Day celebrations on September 18 (Fiestas Patrias). More than 200 million empanadas are eaten across the country that day! The word “pino” comes from the Mapuche language and means a meat filling with onions. The classic ratio of onion to meat is one to one, and it is precisely the abundance of slow-cooked onion that makes the Chilean empanada unique and unbelievably juicy.