Pastel (Brazilian food)

A pastel (pl. pastéis) is a typical Brazilian fast-food dish, consisting of half-circle or rectangle-shaped thin crust pies with assorted fillings, fried in vegetable oil. The result is a crispy, brownish fried pie. The most common fillings are ground meat, mozzarella, Catupiry, heart of palm, codfish, cream cheese, chicken and small shrimp. Pastéis with sweet fillings such as guava paste with Minas cheese, banana and chocolate also exist. The pastel is classified in Brazilian cuisine as a salgado (savoury snack). It is traditionally sold on the streets, in open-air marketplaces, or in fast-food shops known as pastelarias.

It is commonly said to have originated when Chinese immigrants adapted their traditional spring rolls to the Brazilian taste using local ingredients.^[1] When these immigrants arrived in Brazil through the Port of Santos, they remained in the city before going to the countryside. ^[2]

The recipe was later introduced to even more Brazilians by Japanese immigrants who, during World War II tried to pretend to be Chinese to escape from the prejudice Japanese people faced because of the Japanese alliance during the war. Another theory was that Japanese immigrants adapted Chinese fried wontons to sell as snacks at weekly street markets. A common beverage to drink with pastéis is caldo de cana, sugarcane juice.^[3][4]

It is also known as pastel paulista (plural: pastéis paulistas) or pastel de feira (plural: pastéis de feira).^[5]

• Pastel
• List of Brazilian dishes