A shell of Edam or Gouda cheese stuffed with spiced chicken, olives, capers, and raisins, then baked until molten.

Where does Keshi Yena come from?

Keshi Yena is a Curaçaoan dish from Willemstad, Curaçao.

Can Keshi Yena be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?

Yes. This Keshi Yena recipe includes ingredient substitutions to make it vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, or egg-free — including several of those at once, such as gluten-free and dairy-free together.

How long does Keshi Yena take to make?

About 75 minutes total (30 minutes prep, 45 minutes cooking), serving 6.

Recipe

Name: Keshi Yena
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 75 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Curaçaoan
Ingredients: 1.5 lb chicken, cooked and shredded; 1 lb Edam or Gouda cheese, thinly sliced (or a whole shell); 1 large onion, finely chopped; 1 bell pepper, diced; 2 tomatoes, chopped; 1/3 cup green olives, sliced; 2 tbsp capers, drained; 1/3 cup raisins; 2 tbsp piccalilli (or sweet pickle relish); 1 tsp ground cumin; 1 lime, juiced; 2 tbsp neutral oil; to taste salt and black pepper

North America → 🇨🇼 Curaçao → Willemstad

Keshi Yena

Curaçaoan · medium · serves 6

prep 30 min · cook 45 min

~607 cal · 49g protein · 18g carbs · 37g fat (estimated, per serving)

🍽️

Baked cheese dome filled with spiced meat stew

🇨🇼 Willemstad

Keshi yena — "stuffed cheese" — was born of thrift on Curaçao, when the hollowed rinds of imported Dutch Edam were filled with a sweet-savory meat stew and baked. The result is pure Antillean fusion: a melting cheese case around a filling laced with olives, capers, and raisins, a taste of the island's trade-crossed past.

Make it yours

Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.

🥕 Vegetarian

🌱 Vegan

🌾 Gluten-Free

🥛 Dairy-Free

🥜 Nut-Free

🥚 Egg-Free

Ingredients

Serves 6 —

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1.5 lb chicken, cooked and shredded

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1 lb Edam or Gouda cheese, thinly sliced (or a whole shell)

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1 large onion, finely chopped

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1 bell pepper, diced

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2 tomatoes, chopped

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1/3 cup green olives, sliced

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2 tbsp capers, drained

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1/3 cup raisins

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2 tbsp piccalilli (or sweet pickle relish)

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1 tsp ground cumin

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1 lime, juiced

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2 tbsp neutral oil

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to taste salt and black pepper

Instructions

Warm the oil in a wide pan over medium heat and soften the onion and bell pepper for about 5 minutes, until translucent and fragrant.

Add the chopped tomatoes (and the jackfruit and lentils if going meat-free) and cook 5 minutes more, until the tomatoes break down into a sauce.

Stir in the shredded chicken, olives, capers, raisins, piccalilli, and cumin. Season with salt and pepper and simmer 8–10 minutes until thick, then brighten with the lime juice and let it cool slightly.

Oil a heatproof bowl or several ramekins and line them completely with overlapping cheese slices, letting some overhang the rim to fold over later.

Pack the warm filling firmly into the cheese-lined mold, then fold the overhanging slices over the top and cover any gaps with more cheese.

Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 30–40 minutes, until the cheese has melted into a golden, bubbling shell around the filling.

Let it rest 5 minutes to set, then invert onto a plate so the molten cheese dome holds its shape, and serve hot.

Willemstad tradition.

Ratings & reviews

No reviews yet — be the first to cook it.

🌏 While it simmers — know your destination

📍

Willemstad. Pastel Dutch waterfront famous for stuffed cheese.

🗺️

Curaçao. A Dutch-Caribbean island of stuffed Edam cheese.

🌍

North America. A collision of Indigenous, colonial, and immigrant tables.

The story behind this dish is up top — worth a read while the pot works.

👩‍🍳

Richard Moore & Kelsey Tucker

Recipes cooked, tested, and researched by the creators of Spin the Globe. How we build our recipes →