The potato:

Boil potatoes in lightly salted water for about 15 minutes or until just soft.

Drain, cool a bit , peel, mash , and add to mixing bowl.

Simultaneously prepare the bacalhau:

Drain reconstituted bacalhau,then cover with water and simmer for 15 minutes until tender.

Drain very well then flake, discarding skin and bones, then mash. The proper way to do this is to place the flaked bacalhau inside a clean cloth, fold it, squeeze it and pound it with your fist

Add to potato

The rest:

Heat 1 tbs of olive oil in a small pan and saute shallots or onion until golden.

Add the garlic and cook until you smell it.

Scrape into potatoes and bacalhau.

Add salt, pepper, paprika, nutmeg and beaten egg.

Mix until smooth and firm. The mixture should be quite stiff, enabling a spoon to stand up in it. If too dry add milk.

Allow to cool completely before frying.

Frying :

Roll them with with hands into tablespoon sized balls

Chill them for a while to firm up before frying.

Deep fry at 375 degrees and very, very gently roll them off the basket after a couple of minutes without forcing them.

The Portuguese method :

Pour  enough oil in a non stick or cast iron pan so that the oil level is half that of the pasteis.

Then when oil is hot (350), gently add a bunch of pasteis, turning them only when they have a a good golden crust underneath.

Turn too quickly and they will crumble, too long and they will burn. If oil is too hot may need to reduce.

Lift them out onto a plate with kitchen paper to drain excess oil.

Salt and serve with lemon.

Best warm but often served room temperature.