CURRIED CASSAVA AND CRAB PASTELES WITH
PIQUILLO RED PEPPER SAUCE AND
PAPAYA AND MANGO CHUTNEY

FOR THE PASTELES (CRAB CAKES):
1 cup crab meat, frozen OR canned
1/4 pound cassava (a root; also called yuca), peeled, boiled and grated OR ground
1 green pepper, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1/4 tablespoon curry powder
2 tablespoons lemon juice
6 tablespoons mayonnaise
Salt and pepper
1/8 cup all purpose flour
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup bread crumbs
Peanut oil (for frying)
FOR THE PIQUILLO RED PEPPER SAUCE:
2 ounces Spanish pimientos, finely chopped
4 ounces mayonnaise
FOR THE PAPAYA AND MANGO CHUTNEY:
1/2 cup finely chopped mango pulp
1/2 cup finely chopped papaya
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon white vinegar
Tabasco sauce to taste
TO SERVE:
Assorted salad greens, like arugula, romaine and Boston lettuce, shredded
Rosemary sprig

TO PREPARE THE PASTELES:
Combine crab, cassava, green pepper and garlic, in a mixing bowl. Mix well. Add curry, lemon juice and mayonnaise. Season with salt and pepper.

Have ready a dish with flour, a bowl with the beaten egg and another tray with the bread crumbs. With your hands, form 4 rectangular cakes or pasteles.

Coat pasteles with flour; dip in egg and coat with bread crumbs. Refrigerate, covered, for 1 hour.

Fry pasteles in peanut oil in a deep skillet or frying pan, over high heat, until golden on both sides. Remove carefully with a slotted spatula and drain on paper towels. Place pasteles in a baking dish.

Bake in a preheated 325-degree F oven 6 minutes. Keep warm.

TO PREPARE THE PIQUILLO RED PEPPER SAUCE:
Mix chopped pimientos and mayonnaise well in a mixing bowl.

TO PREPARE THE PAPAYA AND MANGO CHUTNEY:
Mix all chutney ingredients well in a mixing bowl.

TO SERVE:
In center of serving plates, place about 1/2 cup assorted salad greens. Add one pastel on top and top with Chutney. Pour Red Pimiento Sauce on plate, around pastel. Decorate with a rosemary sprig.

Makes 4 servings
Recipe by Mario Pagan, chef-owner of Chayote, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Adapted from source: Puerto Rico: Grand Cuisine of the Caribbean by Jose L. Diaz de Villegas