Beyond Good and Evil - Starkos

I missed out on Beyond Good and Evil the first time around but was fortunate enough to enjoy it when the HD version was released on Xbox Live earlier this year. I can see why it’s received so much critical acclaim; it’s a wonderful piece of adventure gaming and since seeing this video quite a while ago now I’m still eagerly awaiting a sequel… Making a Starkos is tricky business and it was supposed to be my second post here on Gourmet Gaming but I didn’t feel confident enough at the time to attempt it. When thinking about what a Starkos was I focused on the idea that it’s street food in the very culturally diverse land of Hillys - and who are the best species in Hillys? The Rhino humanoids over at Mammago Garage obviously. So I’ve taken a dip in their Jamaican-esque roots and have created a Starkos patty filled with a sweet, curried shrimp (since there’s a lot of water around - they must have a pretty good fishing trade, no?).

This recipe makes 4-6 Starkos.

What you will need: Large mixing bowl, a sieve, large pan, baking tray, greaseproof/baking paper, rolling pin and cling film.

For the Pastry:

250g Plain Flour

1 Teaspoon Salt

1 Tablespoon Turmeric

125g Shortening

125g Unsalted Butter

2 Tablespoons Ice Water

1 Beaten Egg

For the Shrimp Filling:

250g Small Prawns/Shrimp

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

2 Small Potatoes

½ White Onion

1 Large Clove Garlic

1 Tablespoon Mild Curry Powder

1 Tomato

110ml Coconut Cream

1 Teaspoon Paprika

1 Stalk Spring Onion

1 Teaspoon Parsley Leaves

1 Teaspoon Thyme Leaves

1-2 Dried Chillies

Making the Pastry:

1. Sieve the flour, salt and turmeric into a large bowl. Cut the butter and shortening into small chunks and use your fingers to rub it into the flour until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
2. Add the water and mix gently until the dough comes together.
3. Lightly flour the ball of dough, wrap it in cling film and place in the fridge to chill for an hour.

Making the Shrimp Filling:

1. If needed, peel and de-vein your prawns and set them aside.
2. Peel and dice the potatoes and onion. Finely chop the garlic, spring onion and dried chillies. Deseed and skin the tomato.
3. Heat the olive oil in a large pan on a medium heat, then sauté the potatoes for about 10 minutes until they soften, stirring regularly.
4. Add the onion and spring onion and allow to cook until soft, then add the garlic, paprika, chillies and curry powder. Allow to simmer on a low heat for several minutes.
5. Pour in the coconut cream, add the tomato and sprinkle in thyme and parsley, simmer gently allowing the coconut cream to reduce a little.
6. Add the prawns, this may make the sauce watery which is fine, just allow it to reduce on a low heat then leave to cool.

Making the Starkos:

1. Preheat the oven to 200C. Lay out some cling film on the counter and lightly flour it. Take the dough from the fridge, remove a golf ball sized piece and place it on the cling film.
2. Cut another piece of cling film and lay it over the dough. Roll out the dough from the centre out until it’s about 1-2cm thick.
3. Take 1 heaped tablespoon of the shrimp filling and place it in the middle of the dough. Wash around the filling with the beaten egg and fold over the pastry. Press firmly around the filling to seal/bind the dough then trim it into the triangular shape - make sure to reuse any excess dough.
4. Place the Starkos on a baking tray lined with baking/greaseproof paper and cook for 15-20 minutes until crisp and golden brown.

My pastry for these was perfect, I think I levelled up nicely with the pastry for the Fable II Amazing Apple Pie. I’d ramp up the chilli if you like things hot, which I do, as the batch I made were a little mild for me. The test one I made was pretty huge too, I ate it for lunch and it was super filling, so I’d keep them rather small. A nice dipping sauce also wouldn’t go amiss. The filling to these is pretty tasty though - if you wanted you could just eat that with some rice and it would be awesome. Feel free to try your own variations of Starkos from the traditional beef or vegetable to maybe even a sweet version. So whether you’re luring out some of the shyer inhabitants of Hillys or restoring some hearts, these Starkos are sure to go down a treat at your next IRIS Network meeting.

Like this? You might also enjoy the Kirby’s Dream Land/Super Smash Bros. Brawl - Superspicy Curry.