Argentine Empanadas

Submitted by ANN N.

"I originally got this recipe 30 years ago from my Argentine hairdresser. It has evolved somewhat over the years but is basically still the same. They are delicious and worth the effort. The chimichurry sauce can be made a day ahead to allow the flavors to meld."

 

• Ready In: 55mins
• Ingredients: 24
• Serves: 6-8

ingredients

• 4 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 tablespoons shortening
• 1 cup warm water
• 1⁄2 tablespoon salt
• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 lb beef tenderloin
• 1⁄3 cup seedless raisin
• 1⁄4 cup green olives, finely chopped
• 1 bunch green onion, minced
• 1 hard-boiled egg, minced
• paprika
• salt
• crushed red pepper flakes

• ChimichurrI sauce

• 1 tomatoes
• 1 green bell pepper
• 2 medium onions
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1⁄2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1⁄2 cup vinegar
• 2 tablespoons parsley
• salt
• pepper

directions

1. Mince the beef.
2. In a medium-size frying pan, heat olive oil.
3. Add the onion, bell pepper; Saute over medium heat until the onion starts to turn golden.
4. Add the meat.
5. Season to taste with salt, red pepper, and paprika.
6. Saute, stirring occasionally, until the beef is browned on all sides.
7. Remove from heat; Mix in the egg, raisins, olives, and green onions. Allow to cool to room temperature.
8. While the beef filling cools, pour the flour on a smooth surface, forming a mound.
9. Using the back of a spoon, make a depression in the center.
10. Add shortening in the depression. Mix and knead the ingredients until fully mixed.
11. Dissolve the1/2 Tablespoon salt in warm water.
12. Gradually incorporate this liquid into the dough, kneading 10-15 minutes until it becomes smooth and elastic.
13. Make balls of dough about the size of a golf ball.
14. On the floured surface, roll out each ball of dough into a 10-cm-diameter circle.
15. Flour your hands. Hold the dough circle in one hand and place1 tbsp of the filling in the center. Press and crimp the edges together to secure the filling within.
16. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
17. Spray baking sheet with non-stick spray.
18. Arrange the empanadas on the sheet and bake until the pastry is golden brown, approximately 10 minutes.
19. Serve with chimichurri sauce (see below).
20. DIRECTIONS FOR CHIMICHURRI SAUCE: (2-1/2 cups).
21. Roughly chop the tomato, bell pepper, and onions.
22. Place the vegetable in a blender.
23. Add the garlic cloves, olive oil, vinegar, and parsley.
24. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
25. Blend until all ingredients are well mixed.
26. Transfer to a non-metal container. Cover and refrigerate.

Reviews

[Meredith C-ville]

Great recipe. 5 stars for the dough alone. I subbed whole wheat pastry flour and butter in making it and it still just turned into the easiest, unstickiest, and sturdiest pastry I have made in a long time. I will probably try it with other things, too. I actually ended up needing only about 3/4 cup water to get it together. For my filling, I used chicken instead of beef; I'd love to try the beef, too, but the chicken was good. The filling has a very subtle but definitely not bland flavor. The chimichurri was nice, easy, and fresh-tasting, but I found it to be a little bit strong for serving with that filling, because of the raw onion (for me anyway, but I seem to be overly sensitive to raw onion), because it seemed to overpower, but it is a fine sauce for another purpose. I preferred the empanadas by themselves (or I could try it with sauteed onion). I made these on a weekend morning and froze them in 3 sets of 4 in foil. To serve, I put the foil packet on a cookie sheet in a 250* oven for 50 min or so, and opened the foil in the last 5 minutes to ensure an unsoggy crust. A stockpile of these would be good to have around for a quick handheld lunch. Thanks for the recipe!

 

[Sydney Mike]

Somewhat time-consuming, but I did find the whole process very enjoyable (That's one of the reasons I'm in the kitchen so much, I suspect!), & the resulting empanadas were VERY TASTY, what with the interesting blend of flavors! Another time I want to make these as finger food for guests! Thanks for sharing this recipe! [Made & reviewed while touring South & Central America on the Zaar World Tour 4]