Brazilian cuisine is famous for its rich flavours that often pack a spicy punch! Much of Brazil’s cuisine is either fried or slow-cooked to bring out the flavours, with coconut oil added to bring the dish together.
As one of the country’s most famous street-eats, pastel de queijo is a deep-fried portable pastry snack that is mainly found in the south-east of Brazil. Served warm as an accompaniment to drinks, these delicious snacks can contain any number of fillings including chicken, ground beef or a melting cheese of your choice. For those with a sweeter tooth, variations include chocolate, caramel or tropical fruits.
So before settling down to watch the Olympics, why not create these simple to make snacks by following our guide below.
Before you start, you’ll need the following ingredients:
450g of all purpose flour
1/4 cup of cold water
1/4 cup of vegetable oil
1 egg
3 Tbsp of Cachaça (alternatively use dark rum)
Your favourite shredded cheese
Any other seasoning for additional flavour i.e. paprika, chilli flakes, diced onion
Directions:
1. Add the cold water to a bowl with the oil, a lightly beaten egg and the cachaça (or rum).
2. Add the flour, mix until you have a smooth dough. Don’t over mix the dough and add more flour if the dough is sticky.
3. After allowing the dough to rest for 10 minutes, roll it out as thinly as possible with a rolling pin.
4. Cut into square pieces (about 5×5 inches) and take a tablespoon of your favourite cheese, placing it in the middle of the dough pieces. You may also want to add any additional flavouring at this point.
5. Fold over to either make a triangle or a rectangle and pinch the sides with a fork so that the cheese does not spill out.
6. Heat 2–3 inches of oil in a heavy saucepan, or deep fryer to about 360 degrees. Fry in hot oil until golden and crispy.
7. Let the pastel de queijos drain on a paper towel and serve warm with salsa.
This recipe will make around 20 small pastel de queijos so if you have guests, you may want to double the ingredient quantity. It is a good idea to poke a hole into them to allow steam to escape and are best enjoyed whilst watching Great Britain winning gold medals!