The new Pastel da Ria has been “sculpted” to resemble the texture of a bivalve
A new savoury pastry which uses local ingredients inspired by the Ria Formosa estuary can already be tasted at the Kubidoce pastry shop in Olhão.
Aptly named ‘Pastel da Ria’, the new culinary creation is made of puff pastry filled with béchamel sauce, cockles, coriander, lemon, spinach, olive oil, bay leaf, and fleur du sel.
The idea was pitched to chef Filipe Martins, founder and CEO of the Kubidoce pastry shops, by the Confraria Marinha da Ria Formosa (Marine Brotherhood of the Ria Formosa).
“At the time, a friend of mine who is a chef in Dubai, Pedro Coelho, was here, and I challenged him to work together with me on this project. I made the dough from scratch, and he created the filling recipe,” said Filipe Martins.
While the duo thought about using clams, they believed that cockles was a more affordable option and provided a stronger “sea flavour”.
The dough is homemade and “sculpted” to resemble the texture of a bivalve. The chef is producing between 12 to 24 units per day, although other local businesses, some of which based at the municipal market, have already expressed an interesting in selling these special pastries at their own establishments.
The ‘Pastel da Ria’ recipe will be included in the second book to be published by the Marine Brotherhood of the Ria Formosa, which will feature several traditional recipes using ingredients from the local estuary as well as new culinary creations. The brotherhood was created in 2018 and has been developing activities to promote what the Ria Formosa has to offer in environmental, but, above all, gastronomic terms. It is led by Cláudia Luz as Grand Master.
For now, anyone interested in tasting the new ‘Pastel da Ria’ can do so at Kubidoce in Olhão, with each pastry costing €3.
Filipe Martins, who is also a master chocolatier, is also working on his Easter sweets, which include a giant rabbit.
