They will be finished. They were part of the shopping list, but their disappearance from the shelf where they usually are did not seem to have much importance. The following week there were none either and, when asked, the employees acknowledged that the traditional puff pastry wafers for making empanadas had not arrived for a long time. The situation is repeated in three other supermarkets in the neighborhood from different chains and, shortly after, a tweet from someone asking what the hell is happening with the dumpling dough sets off alarm bells. Why have they apparently disappeared from the market?
The responses to that same tweet confirmed that, indeed, there is no trace of this product in many parts of the country, although in some supermarkets it seems that there is stock left. We are talking, in case someone does not see them, about the classic round and flat masses of the Buitoni brand. The ones in the white, red and blue package with a woman holding a steaming tray. Yes, we were not wrong: although in our heads they are still called La Cocinera and maintain the colors and design, a few years ago they became Buitoni's.
A brand that is part of the Nestlé group, so the easiest way to reveal the mystery is to refer the question to its communications department. While we wait for the response, we reviewed La Cocinera's product catalog to confirm that there is no longer any trace of these masses, although there are different varieties of filled, frozen and ready-to-fry empanadas.
On the customer service telephone number of Findus, current owner of the La Cocinera brand, they confirm that, in fact, this product has not been part of the company for years and that it is marketed under the Buitoni brand.
“Quite a few people have called us in recent days asking the same thing,” they explain on the other end of the line, “because apparently there are production problems and they are not available in supermarkets.”
The clue is good but there is no need to continue playing the mysteries, because the requested answer comes from Nestlé. “We are currently experiencing a lack of flour supply that meets the technical specifications that make our product so characteristic,” the company explains.
“The efforts required to recover the supply of this flour - they acknowledge - will take approximately a period of three months. Therefore, during this time, we have been forced to interrupt the manufacturing and marketing of Buitoni wafers.”
Having clarified the matter, it is possible that there are more people surprised by this brand change than by the temporary disappearance of the supermarket shelf. In reality, it was in 2015 when the La Cocinera masses disappeared, even though almost a decade later the original brand is still established in our memory, and we may even buy the product without realizing the change.
A dance of brands and sales that has marked the history of La Cocinera. An interesting work by Ana M.ª Rivas Rivas from the Department of Social Anthropology of the Complutense University of Madrid analyzed the changes in the company and their effects on the workers.
Founded in 1965 by the Iturbe brothers, in 1987 they sold the majority of the company to the North American General Mills, which in 1990 became the 100% owner of the company, whose factory is in Torrejón de Ardoz. In 1991 La Cocinera passed into the hands of the Danone Group, and in 1999 it was purchased by Nestlé, which, just two years later, moved production to Valladolid, closing the Torrejón factory.
The last movement is what determines the change of the brand of this popular product: in 2015 Nestlé sold the frozen dishes division of La Cocinera to Findus, which had been part of the multinational until 2000, but kept the masses, which become part of the Buitoni catalogue. Of course, with very good commercial judgment, they decide to maintain the characteristic design of the packaging.
But, returning to the missing wafers and facing the prospect of not finding them again in the supermarket for at least a couple of months, it's time to think about alternatives. Beyond the frozen empanadas, of course, or the dozens of Argentine empanada shops that are now found on every street in most cities.
Does pizza dough cut into smaller portions work? It's not the same, of course. In fact, the Buitoni brand itself seems to have no problems with the supply of this product, so it is clear that it does not use the same flour or the same recipe. But it can be used to get by if there is a craving for dumplings.
Nor is the gyoza dough that can be found frozen in many supermarkets specializing in oriental products the same. But, again, it can give us some play and encourage us to try making homemade dim sum, which is not prepared fried, but steamed and grilled.
In any case, the less quick but more logical option would be to make the dough at home. There is no mystery to it: wheat flour, a little less than half the amount of hot water (240 ml per half a kilo of flour), olive oil (about 80 grams for that amount) and a little salt.
There is no fermentation, but you will have to knead for a few minutes, so a food processor can be of great help. Once you have a smooth dough, you just have to let it rest for half an hour so that it is easier to smooth it with a rolling pin until it is about a millimeter thick. Then with a round pastry cutter or a glass we will be able to make our homemade wafers for empanadas.
