Why Pasteles Are Puerto Rico’s Christmas Dish | Eater
"Located in Astoria, Queens, this restaurant is run by Derick Lopez, who prepares traditional Puerto Rican pasteles as a deliberate nod to home and holiday ritual. He stresses using everything fresh, cooking pork in sofrito and then mixing the leftover gravy into freshly grated banana, yautía, and calabaza to flavor the masa. Lopez also emphasizes technical details—boiling achiote oil to extract a vibrant red color and brushing banana leaves with achiote so the pastel slips off easily—reflecting a family-style, hands-on approach that treats pasteles as both comfort food and a cultural touchstone." - Claire Jimenez
