← Nouns Cooking · Brazilian & Peruvian

Ingredients

• 375 g plain flour, plus extra for rolling
• ½ tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Sugar
• 60 g Butter, cold, diced
• 1 Eggs, beaten
• 120 ml cold water, roughly
• 300 g firm salty white cheese (queso blanco llanero, or halloumi), cut into 20 sticks, 1 cm thick and 8 cm long
• vegetable oil, for frying

Method

1. Mix the flour, salt and sugar in a bowl, then rub in the butter with your fingertips until it looks like breadcrumbs.
2. Add the egg and most of the water and knead to a smooth, firm dough, adding more water a spoon at a time if needed. Knead for 5 min, wrap and rest in the fridge for 30 min.
3. Roll the dough out on a floured surface to a thin rectangle, about 3 mm thick, and cut it into long strips 1.5 cm wide.
4. Wrap a strip around each cheese stick in a spiral, overlapping slightly so no cheese shows. Pinch the dough over both ends to seal completely.
5. Heat 5 cm of oil in a deep pan to 175°C (350°F). Fry the tequeños in batches for 3–4 min, turning, until deep golden. Drain on paper and serve hot, with guasacaca or a garlic dip.

Tips

• Any gap in the dough lets the cheese leak out, so seal the ends well. Freeze them raw on a tray and fry from frozen for 5–6 min.
• Halloumi or a firm block of mozzarella are good stand-ins for Venezuelan queso blanco.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

196 flavors Peru Delights