How to make Empanadas Argentinas

Recipe covered at Cooking With Teresita in Buenos Aires, Argentina The term empanada simply means breaded-as in breaded chicken or vegetables. However, in South America, the word has grown to refer to a stuffed, semi-circular pastry. Although the empanada has different incarnations in various countries, it always consists of a stuffing-be it a cheese, vegetable or meat-wrapped in dough, and then baked or fried. Fruit filling can be used to create dessert empanadas. In Argentina, the country that is perhaps most associated with the empanada, empanadas are served frequently as appetizers, and consist primarily of ground beef, sometimes spiced with cumin.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• 1 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup of Salmuera (brine). Prepare a concoction with dissolved salt in hot water and left aside until cold.
• 4 ounces of butter or margarine
• 1 pound ground beef
• 2 tablespoons Corm oil
• 1 tablespoons of butter
• 1 large yellow onion chopped in small squares
• 2 hard boiled eggs, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup green olives, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons raisins
• ¼ cup chopped spring green onion (only the green part)
• 1 tablespoon ground hot and sweet paprika
• 1 tablespoon ground red dry spicy peppers
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1 egg, beaten 1 tablespoon milk

1. Preparing the crust at Cooking With Teresita in Buenos Aires Crust Preparation
   To make the crust, place the flour into a bowl and mix the margarine or butter into the flour using your fingers. Pour the Salmuera slowly into the mix and mix it with your fingers just until the dough comes together and can be formed easily into a ball. Let the dough rest (outside the fridge) for about half an hour. Divide the dough in small balls the size of half an egg. Then roll with a roller pin out to a thickness of 1/8-inch making a rounded shape.
2. People participating in a Hands on cooking class in Argentina Ingredients Preparation
   
   In a large saucepan, melt the butter with corn oil together, and place the onions and stir them until transparent. Add the ground beef, next add the raisin, spices, salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste and stir with a fork to keep the meat broken-up. Pour over the about a half cup of water and let it cook for about about 10 minutes or until meat is completely cooked. Once cooked, place in a bowl, cover it and put in the refrigerator (for better taste) over night, otherwise if time does not permit, leave the filling for about an hour in the refrigerator. Once you have the mix cold then is when you add the hard boiled eggs, green olives and spring green onions.
3. Cooking classes website at www.try2cook.com Filling the empanadas
   
   Take the dough you let to rest and divide the dough in small balls the size of half an egg. Then roll with a roller pin out to a thickness of 1/8-inch making a rounded shape from each ball. Spoon the filling onto one half of each leaving room to fold in the other half and seal. Tab some warm water with your fingers, place in half of the ends so the dough will stick better, press the edges with the tip of a fork or you can do what we call in Argentina "repulgue" which instead of using the fork to seal you flip it upwards and press with your fingers. Place on a non-stick baking pan or add a thin layer of butter to the pan. Combine the ingredients for the glaze and brush each empanada at the top. Put oven heat to 350 and bake until the crust turns light brown.

Tips & Warnings

• Tip for the Fried Empanadas Use sunflower oil. When frying the empanadas do it only in batches no more than three at a time. Then place in basket or tray and sprinkle with sugar.