{"id":3000,"date":"2019-10-11T08:37:11","date_gmt":"2019-10-11T12:37:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tchakayiti.com\/home\/?p=3000"},"modified":"2022-10-13T13:03:05","modified_gmt":"2022-10-13T17:03:05","slug":"fridays-we-ate-pate-kode-empanadas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tchakayiti.com\/home\/fridays-we-ate-pate-kode-empanadas\/","title":{"rendered":"Haitian food tradition: On Fridays we ate pate kode"},"content":{"rendered":"

Don\u2019t take this title too literally. When I talk about Friday pate kode, I am not actually referring to every single Friday. Nor am I implying that all Haitians eat these fried staples on a weekly basis. Instead, I am referring to a time that is now long gone. I am traveling down memory lane. Fifteen years back to be exact.<\/p>\n

I was a high school senior at the time. Just like the seniors before us, the class of 2005 I was a part of had its own entrepreneurial ventures. The Friday one involved a mini snack bar during our quick 20-minute recess. The key selling item on our menu: these Haitian street foods known as pate k\u00f2de.<\/p>\n

Akin to the Hispanic empanadas, these fried dough goodies stuffed with spicy salted smoked herring were a success.<\/h4>\n

We quickly ran out of them every Friday. They disappeared from our stall in a matter of seconds. Thing is, they were the best thing yet. Unlike most pate k\u00f2de, ours were not drenched in frying oil. As for the stuffing, it was on point. The salted smoked herring<\/a> was well-seasoned with just the right amount of heat. And yes, by heat I definitely mean piment bouc.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

I have never been able to forget those pate kode in particular. To this day, my taste buds still long for them. Unfortunately, I wouldn\u2019t know where to get them from. I never knew the cook. Neither did most of my classmates. We never met her. We had found out about that street merchant through one of our classmates who religiously placed the orders for us and brought them to school for our bake sales. None of us ever tried to find out more about her. But today, I wish I had done so. So much has changed since those high school days. Too much.<\/p>\n

Today, the word pate kode seems to refer to a plethora of flavors.<\/h4>\n

I am even tempted to say it has acquired a whole new meaning. See, when we ordered our pate k\u00f2de 15 years ago, we didn\u2019t have to request the herring stuffing. It was implied. But that is no longer the case. This Haitian food as evolved. In this new pate k\u00f2de era, a pate k\u00f2de has become everything but the simple salted smoked herring stuffed fried dough I grew up with. When you place a pate k\u00f2de order you have to confirm the type of stuffing you want. Otherwise, you may be served something you did not want. Like a hot dog and boiled egg stuffed pate, for example.<\/p>\n

I will never forget when that happened to me. I was shocked. Even more so because those around me seemed to be convinced that the herring version I was hoping for was not the real deal. Yet, that was the pate k\u00f2de I grew up with. It was the one we bought from that street merchant, and the same one a cook from my dad\u2019s office cafeteria used to prepare for the staff on Saturdays when I was eight or ten. I don\u2019t know when that changed. But it definitely did. And I must confess, I miss those days when I did not need to specify which pate k\u00f2de I wanted.<\/p>\n

It is both that longing for an exact replica of those pate k\u00f2de and the evolution of this staple that encouraged me to try and prepare them myself. The pate kode I am serving you today are the closest thing to the ones I grew up with.<\/p>\n

<\/div>
\n
\"Haitian<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Haitian smoked herring pate kode<\/h2>\n
<\/div>\n\n
<\/div>\n
As mentioned above, to me pate kode are stuffed with some well-seasoned salted smoked herring. That is the recipe I am sharing with you today. Some people like to stuff their pate kode with some pikliz<\/a>, but I prefer serving mine on the side. You could however include some in your filling should you wish to do so.

The dough recipe below is simple. It only calls for flour, water and salt. This may seem odd, but it is the closest thing to our street pate kode.

<\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n\n
<\/div>\n
\n\t<\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/span> Print Recipe<\/a>\n\t<\/path><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/span> Pin Recipe<\/a>\n \n<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/span>
<\/div><\/div>\n
Prep Time <\/span>1 hour<\/span><\/span> hr<\/span><\/span><\/div>
Cook Time <\/span>30 minutes<\/span><\/span> mins<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n\t
\n \t
<\/div><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/span>
<\/div><\/div>\n\t\t\n <\/div>\n
\n
<\/div><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/span>
<\/div><\/div>\n\t\t\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

Ingredients
<\/div>  <\/h3>

For the dough<\/h4>