Rissóis de Camarão (Portuguese Shrimp Turnovers)
- Prep
- 40 min
- Total
- 1 h
- pieces
- 20
- Calories
- 165 kcal
Rissóis de camarão are, with salt cod fritters, among the most ordered snacks in any Portuguese café or pastry shop: thin, crisp pastry around a creamy filling of shrimp in bechamel, breaded and fried until golden. They’re served as a starter or with a draft beer, and never missing at parties and family teas.
Recipe
Rissóis de Camarão
Thin pastry filled with shrimp in a creamy bechamel, breaded and fried until golden. A café and pastry-shop snack, for parties and afternoon tea.
Ingredients
Method
- 1Cook the onion in half the butter until translucent. Add the chopped shrimp and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside.
- 2In the same pan, melt the rest of the butter and add the flour, stirring well to make a roux.
- 3Add the milk a little at a time, stirring constantly, until you have a thick, smooth bechamel.
- 4Add the shrimp to the bechamel and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Let it cool completely, preferably in the fridge.
- 5Fill rounds of rissol dough with a spoonful of the cold filling, fold them in half and seal the edges well.
- 6Dip each rissol in beaten egg and then in breadcrumbs.
- 7Fry in very hot oil until golden on both sides. Drain on paper towels before serving.
Tips
The bechamel is the secret: thick enough to hold its shape once cool, but still creamy inside after frying. Let the filling cool completely in the fridge, ideally overnight; it’s easier to work with and stops the rissóis opening in the oil.
Seal the edges well with your fingers or a fork. For extra crunch, coat them twice in egg and breadcrumbs. In an air fryer, cook them at 200 °C (400 °F) for 12 to 15 minutes, turning halfway.
You can freeze them breaded but uncooked and fry them straight from frozen. Fried ones keep 1 to 2 days in the fridge; reheat them in the oven, not the microwave.
