This is a genuine Macanese speciality. Eat once, and you will want it again.

1 cup farinha arroz (rice flour)
1 cup boiling water
2 egg yolks
4oz | 110g cold porco salmourado (pickled pork with turmeric) preferably rather fat
2 oz | 56g Chinese ham (cooked)
3 tsp grated cheese
3 chopped spring onions (optional)
salt to taste
fat for deep frying

Boil water in a small pan, add the flour and stir well until all the flour has taken in the water. Remove from the fire, close the lid tightly and put on the side of the stove.

In the meantime chop up the meats together very finely (do not mince), cut the spring onions and grate the cheese. Turn the cooked flour on a board, add the yolks and knead.

Lastly, add the meat and the other ingredients and knead all together until quite smooth.

Then take in a little lump, the size of a large plum. Roll it round on the board, then roll lengthwise to the thickness of a thin sausage. Join the two ends together, press firmly. Do the same with the rest of the dough.

The circumference must be like a child’s bangle. Heat half a pan of lard, and fry the rings in moderate heat, so that the inside may be cooked.

Other cold meats such as vaca estufada, corned beef, porco pó de bolacha, etc, can also be used.

2 cups water
1 dsp lard
2½ cups rice flour
5-6 egg yolks
1lb | 450g cold meat – porco salmourado, porco vinho d’alho, Chinese ham, porco pó de bolacha, vaca estufada, vaca salgada (corned beef), or any tasty cold meat
8tsp grated cheese
10 spring onions, finely chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Fat for deep frying

Bring to the boil water and lard and then pour in the sifted flour. Stir till well mixed, remove from the fire, close the lid tightly and let it on the side of the stove.

In the meantime, cut up the assorted cold meat in very small squares. (Do not use the mincing machine, as this will make the meat too fine.)

Turn the half cooked flour on a board, let it cool a little, knead down, adding the egg yolks, one at a time. When the yolks are well mixed in, knead in the rest of the ingredients, until all is well blended.

Roll out and fry in the same way as the previous recipe.

Do not use roast beef or roast mutton for “cria cria” as they will not taste so good.