Pastel de Palmito, as it is called in Portuguese, is a super delicious savory pastry from Brazil. This is made with palmito/hearts of palm, as known in English, and is cultivated in South-American countries and hence found abundantly in their cuisines. It is a stem vegetable. While harvesting the cultivated young palm, the tree is cut and the bark is removed revealing layers of white fibers around the center core. During its processing, the fibers are removed, thereby leaving the center core or heart of palm, which is completely edible. The entire center core is widely used in numerous dishes because of its delectable taste and high nutritional values. It is mostly used in salads, appetizers and savory dishes. They are sold in cans and glass jars, with some added salt. Consistently tender and delicious, palmito has become chefs’ favorite all over the world, complementing a wide range of recipes. They make a delightful appetizer or side dish when sautéed with butter and topped with grated parmesan or mozzarella. They may also be enjoyed straight from the can as a low-calorie snack, or sliced and served as a wonderful addition to any salad. Once you try them, they will surely become a favorite addition to your culinary world!
Having spent quite a few years of our life in Brazil, my family indulges on this vegetable whenever we get a chance to. As we don’t get fresh ones everywhere in the world, I mostly purchase the palmitos encased in glass jars that are available in the grocery stores that sell international food. These hearts of palm come very handy to add in salads and snacks as they don’t require to be cooked to be eaten, but you could always whip up creative techniques of incorporating palmito in different meals! I mostly use them in fresh salads, some pastries like quiche, stuffed breads and/or other savory dishes.
Last weekend my younger daughter brought her friend home and she asked me to cook something new that her friend never tasted before. So, I prepared these pastels de palmito, that are pastry rolls filled with hearts of palm and cheese. My daughter felt very happy to introduce this new dish to her friend and so did I after seeing a smile light up her face. So, here’s the recipe of pastel de palmito for y’all!
Check out the recipes of other appetizers, salads, main courses, chutneys & pickles and desserts on my blog!
Pastel de Palmito Recipe:
Heat olive oil in a saucepan or vessel over medium heat, add some minced garlic and let it fry till it turns slightly golden in color. Then add the chopped onions and cook till the onions turn translucent. Maintain the heat in medium to low while cooking this. Also add some powdered vegetable broth seasoning or vegetable stock to add some flavor to the dish. If you are using the cubed ones, you can use one entire cube for your recipe.
Now add the peas and tomatoes to it. You can also use corn kernels instead of peas. Let these vegetables cook till the tomatoes are soft and mushy, then add chili flakes or red chili powder/paprika, whatever you prefer to add for a touch of spice. You can also add fresh chilies if that’s what you prefer. Give it a nice mix after adding the spice, to spread it evenly throughout the vegetables, before you add the hearts of palm/palmito. I didn’t add any salt yet as the vegetable seasoning, hearts of palm and cheese that I am going to add later all have enough salt needed for this dish. So, it is always recommended to add the salt in the end if you feel it requires more.
Add the hearts of palm that is cut into cubes or any other shape and size that you prefer for your dish. I also added some sliced black olives as my daughters love olives. Add some Brazilian cream cheese (requeijao cremoso) and give a gentle stir. The Brazilian cream cheese is slightly different than the American cream cheese. It is more creamy and liquid in texture.
The hearts of palm is very tender so stirring it harshly can make them very mushy and overall, just not a good texture. So try to give a very gentle stir after adding them. If your vegetables have a lot of water from the onions and tomatoes, then add a fair amount of corn flour to absorb the water and to make the vegetables dry. Finally add some grated mozzarella cheese and turn the heat off. The cheese should become stringy as shown in the picture above. Adjust the salt as required. The filling is ready to go into the pastries. Let it cool down to room temperature before you stuff it into your pastry sheets.
Prepare the dough to make your pastries. I generally buy the pastry sheets from the store to keep it simple, but today I prepared the dough and rolled the sheets. Take enough filling as per the size of the pastry sheet and place it in the centre of the sheet. Holding one edge of the sheet, bring it to the other end and wrap it. Seal the edges using some water and press it with a fork to make the design as shown above.
Repeat the same procedure till you are done with your stuffing. You can also freeze these pastries for later use and take them out of the freezer just before frying them. Heat oil in a kadai or a pan for deep frying. You can also bake these pastries in the oven or use an air fryer to keep them low in calorie. This time I deep fried them in the oil, but I usually bake them in the oven. It tastes wonderful either ways! Keep the heat in medium while frying to avoid excess frying of the pastries. Fry them in the oil, till they turn a nice golden color from both sides. Remove them from the oil and drain on a paper towel. Serve them hot with some ketchup or tabasco (chili sauce) and enjoy!
The crispy outer crust that is stuffed with the soft, creamy and unquestionably delicious filling containing the super yum and crunchy lil’ bits of hearts of palm, the zesty veggies and an explosion of gooey cheese is what will make you crave for it time and again! Enjoy it guilt-free as it isn’t everyday that you take the time to prepare such a delicious International delicacy. So give yourself a pat on the back, sit back and enjoy your Pastel de Palmitos!
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| Prep Time | 20 mins |
| Cook Time | 30-45 mins |
| Servings |
pcs
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- 2 tbsp of olive oil
- 1/2 cup chopped onions or 1 medium onion finely chopped
- 2 tbsp of minced garlic or 6-8 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 cup chopped tomatoes or 2 medium sized tomatoes cut into cubes or chopped
- 1/4 cup of frozen or canned peas (If you want to use fresh ones boil them before use)
- 500 gms of of hearts of palm cut into cubes or 1 can whole
- 1 cube of vegetarian seasoning mix or 2 tsp of vegetable broth seasoning mix
- 1 tsp of red chili flakes or chili powder (as per your spice tolerance)
- 1 tsp of sliced black olives (optional)
- 1 tbsp of Brazilian cream cheese or requeijao cremoso
- 1-2 tsp of corn flour if required
- 1/2 cup or 50 gms of grated mozzarella cheese
- 12-15 sheets of pastry
- Oil for deep frying
Ingredients
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- Heat oil in a pan over medium heat, add garlic and onions to it.
- Once the onions turn translucent add the vegetable seasoning.
- Add in the peas and tomatoes and cook till they are done.
- Add paprika or red chili flakes for some spice and give it a stir.
- Add in the hearts of palm, olives and Brazilian cream cheese or requeijao cremoso and gently stir it.
- If your vegetables have a lot of water from the onions and tomatoes, then add a fair amount of corn flour to absorb the water.
- Finally add some grated mozzarella cheese and turn the heat off. Let it cool down to room temperature before you stuff it into your pastry sheets.
- Take enough filling as per the size of the pastry sheet and place it in the centre of the sheet. Holding one edge of the sheet, bring it to the other end and wrap it. Seal the edges using some water and press it with a fork to make the design.
- Repeat the same procedure till you are done with your stuffing.
- Heat oil in a pan to deep fry, and fry these pastries in oil till they turn golden in color from both sides.
- Remove them from the oil and drain on a paper towel.
- Serve them hot with some ketchup or chili sauce and enjoy!
