Traditional Chilean Dishes
Sopaipillas Pasadas with Chancaca, Chilean Recipe
Chilean sopaipillas made from pumpkin, fried until golden and then soaked in a hot chancaca sauce with cinnamon, cloves, and orange. A traditional, aromatic, and comforting dessert for cold days.
These sopaipillas pasadas combine a homemade pumpkin dough with a fluid and spicy chancaca sauce. The recipe yields approximately 12 units and is ideal for serving warm, with plenty of sauce in each plate.
01
Ingredients
Have everything ready before you begin.
- ✓500 g of all-purpose flour without baking powder
- ✓250 g of peeled and cubed pumpkin
- ✓50 g of butter
- ✓1 teaspoon of salt
- ✓2 teaspoons of baking powder
- ✓Approximately 120 ml of pumpkin cooking water
- ✓750 ml of vegetable oil for frying
- ✓400 g of chancaca, panela, piloncillo or papelón
- ✓600 ml of water
- ✓1 cinnamon stick
- ✓3 cloves
- ✓Peel of 1/2 orange, without the white part
- ✓1 tablespoon of cornstarch
- ✓2 tablespoons of cold water to dissolve the cornstarch
02
Step-by-step method
- 01
Place the pumpkin in a small pot, cover it with water and cook it over...
Place the pumpkin in a small pot, cover it with water and cook it over medium heat for about 15 minutes, until it is very tender and can be easily pierced with a fork.
- 02
Remove the pumpkin and reserve some of the cooking water
Remove the pumpkin and reserve some of the cooking water. Let it drain for a couple of minutes and mash it until you get a smooth puree.
- 03
While the puree is still warm, add the butter and mix...
While the puree is still warm, add the butter and mix until it is completely melted. Let the mixture cool down.
- 04
In a large bowl, mix the flour, salt, and baking powder
In a large bowl, mix the flour, salt, and baking powder. Add the pumpkin puree with butter and integrate it with a spoon or with clean hands.
- 05
Add gradually up to 120 ml of the reserved cooking water
Add gradually up to 120 ml of the reserved cooking water. Knead for about five minutes, until you get a smooth, flexible, and slightly humid dough that does not stick to your hands. It is not necessary to use all the water if the dough is already manageable.
- 06
Form a ball, cover it, and let it rest for 15 minutes
Form a ball, cover it, and let it rest for 15 minutes.
- 07
To prepare the sauce, place the chancaca, water, cinnamon, cloves, and orange peel in a wide pot
To prepare the sauce, place the chancaca, water, cinnamon, cloves, and orange peel in a wide pot.
- 08
Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the chancaca dissolves
Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the chancaca dissolves. When it starts to boil, reduce the heat and cook for 10 minutes.
- 09
Dissolve the cornstarch in the two tablespoons of cold water
Dissolve the cornstarch in the two tablespoons of cold water. Pour it into the pot while stirring continuously and cook for two or three minutes more, until the sauce thickens slightly. Turn off the heat and reserve the sauce covered.
- 10
Lightly flour the work surface using a small part of the measured flour
Lightly flour the work surface using a small part of the measured flour. Roll out the dough to a thickness of about five millimeters.
- 11
Cut out disks of approximately eight centimeters in diameter
Cut out disks of approximately eight centimeters in diameter. Gather the scraps, roll them out once, and continue until you form about 12 units.
- 12
Pierce each disk two or three times with a fork to prevent it from...
Pierce each disk two or three times with a fork to prevent it from inflating too much during frying.
- 13
Heat the vegetable oil in a deep pot or a deep-sided skillet to about 170 °C
Heat the vegetable oil in a deep pot or a deep-sided skillet to about 170 °C. The oil should not smoke.
- 14
Fry the sopaipillas in small batches for one or two minutes on each side
Fry the sopaipillas in small batches for one or two minutes on each side, until they are puffed and golden brown. Drain them on absorbent paper and wait a few seconds between batches for the oil to recover its temperature.
- 15
Remove the cinnamon, cloves, and orange peel from the sauce
Remove the cinnamon, cloves, and orange peel from the sauce. Reheat it over low heat and place the sopaipillas inside, in one or two batches if necessary.
- 16
Cook the sopaipillas in the sauce for about three minutes on each side
Cook the sopaipillas in the sauce for about three minutes on each side. Turn off the heat and let them rest for five to ten minutes to absorb the chancaca.
- 17
Serve two or three sopaipillas per person in a deep plate, covered...
Serve two or three sopaipillas per person in a deep plate, covered generously with the hot sauce.
- Add the pumpkin cooking water gradually, because the humidity of the pumpkin and the absorption of the flour can vary.
- Fry at about 170 °C and avoid filling the pot too much to prevent cooling the oil.
- If you don't have a thermometer, test the oil with a small piece of dough: it should rise surrounded by constant bubbles without darkening immediately.
- The sauce should be fluid and slightly thick, not like a dense caramel, because the sopaipillas will absorb part of the liquid.
- For a softer texture, leave the sopaipillas for a few more minutes inside the hot chancaca.
- Remove the white part of the orange peel to avoid a bitter taste.
- Keep the pot handle towards the inside during frying to reduce the risk of accidents.