🥜 snackRank #5medium

Pastels

Name: Pastels
Cuisine: Senegalese
Ingredients: 2 cups all-purpose flour; 3/4 cup water; 1 tsp salt; as needed vegetable oil (for frying); 200 grams white fish fillet; 1 medium, chopped onion; 2 cloves, minced garlic; 1 tsp grated ginger; 1 small, finely chopped hot pepper; 1/2 tsp black pepper; 2 tbsp oil (for sautéing filling); 1 beaten egg (for sealing)

Pastels are savory Senegalese pastries typically filled with fish or meat, deep-fried to a golden crisp. They are a popular street food and appetizer, embodying the fusion of local ingredients with colonial culinary influences.

12 ingredients

savoryspicycrispyumami

Culinary DNA Preview

Senegalese70%

Portuguese30%

Ingredients

all-purpose flour
2 cups
water
3/4 cup
salt
1 tsp
vegetable oil (for frying)
as needed
white fish fillet
200 grams
onion
1 medium, chopped
garlic
2 cloves, minced
ginger
1 tsp grated
hot pepper
1 small, finely chopped
black pepper
1/2 tsp
oil (for sautéing filling)
2 tbsp
egg (for sealing)
1 beaten

Method

Steps not available

Origin Story

Pastels originated as a fusion dish influenced by Portuguese pastries introduced during early colonial contact, adapted by Senegalese cooks using local fish and spices.

Culinary DNA

Ingredient ancestry breakdown

Senegalese70%

ingredients+techniques

Portuguese30%

ingredient_origin

Techniques

kneading sautéing deep-frying folding

Stories about this dish

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