The Best Pastelon/Puerto Rican Lasagna

ground beef

🥗Healthier: ground turkey

💰Cheaper: ground pork

Ground turkey reduces fat while maintaining flavor.

cheese

🥗Healthier: nutritional yeast

💰Cheaper: processed cheese

Nutritional yeast offers a cheesy flavor with fewer calories.

olive oil

🥗Healthier: avocado oil

💰Cheaper: vegetable oil

Avocado oil is healthier with a high smoke point.

tomato sauce

🥗Healthier: homemade tomato puree

💰Cheaper: canned tomatoes

Homemade puree is fresher and lower in sodium.

Heat a frying pan on medium heat and add 3 pounds of ground beef.

Halfway through cooking the meat, drain it and let it sit in a colander for a minute.

Add 1.5 tablespoons of olive oil to the frying pan.

Add chopped green pepper to the pan.

Add minced garlic to the pan after the vegetables have cooked for a few minutes.

Incorporate the cooked meat back into the pan with the vegetables.

Season the meat with adobo, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, salsa, and Italian seasoning.

Add homemade sofrito to the meat mixture.

Add salad olives with pimentos and fresh cilantro to the mixture.

Pour in tomato sauce and add some water, then cover the pan to let the flavors meld for a few minutes.

Cut the sweet plantains into long strips, ensuring they have darker spots for sweetness.

Fry the sweet plantains in vegetable oil at medium-high heat for a few minutes until golden.

Taste the meat mixture to check for seasoning and adjust if necessary.

Prepare to assemble the pastelon by spraying a baking dish with nonstick spray.

In a bowl, whisk together 3 large eggs to use as a binding agent.

Add a little bit of the egg mixture to the bottom of the baking dish to help bind the plantains.

Layer the fried sweet plantains at the bottom of the pan.

Add the meat mixture on top of the plantains.

Drizzle a bit more of the egg mixture over the meat layer.

Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over the meat layer.

Add cheddar cheese and pepper jack cheese with jalapeno on top of the layers.

Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil.

Place the pastelon in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, with the first 30 minutes covered and the last 15 minutes uncovered.

Remove the pastelon from the oven when it is golden and bubbly, and let it rest for about 15 minutes before cutting into it.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level: