Jamaica fish patties

• 8 ¾ oz plain flour
• ½ tsp ground turmeric
• ½ tsp salt
• 4 ¼ oz hard margarine
• 3-4 tbsp cold water
• 1 egg, beaten

For the fish filling:

• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 2 tomatoes, finely chopped
• 1 red pepper, finely chopped
• 1 tsp hot pepper sauce
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 small tin tuna, drained
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp tomato purée

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC or gas mark 5.
2. To make the filling, fry the onion and garlic in the oil until soft, add the other filling ingredients, except the tuna, and cook until the vegetables are soft, then stir in the tuna flakes.
3. Make the pastry while the filling is cooling. Sieve the flour and turmeric into a bowl with the salt, and rub in the margarine until it looks like breadcrumbs. Add enough cold water to make a stiff dough and knead it gently until the pastry is smooth.
4. Roll out the pastry into a circle about inch thick, and cut out about 12 circles with a pastry cutter.
5. Put the circles on a greased baking tray and brush the edge of each with the beaten egg to help the edges stick. Place a small amount of the filling in the centre of each and fold each circle in half, pressing the edges together with the prongs of a fork.
6. Brush the surface of each pattie with the beaten egg and bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes until golden brown. Serve them hot or cold with a crisp mixed salad.

Other options

Hot tips: Don’t handle the pastry too much because it will make it hard and chewy. Try cooked kippers mixed with mashed sweet potato instead of tuna.

Nutritional information

Allergy advice

Contains: wheat (gluten), egg, fish, milk. Some pepper sauces contain mustard, always check the label.

Food safety tips

Always wash your hands, work surfaces, utensils and chopping boards before you start cooking. Pregnant women should eat no more than 4 medium-sized tins of tuna per week.