Beef Chorizo Empanadas Recipes

BEEF & CHORIZO EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Tip the flour into a bowl with 1 tsp salt and add the butter. Rub the butter and flour with your fingertips until crumbly. Add the eggs and 100ml cold water, bring together to a dough then turn out onto a floured surface and begin to knead until soft and smooth. Cover with cling film and put in the fridge to rest for 20 mins.
• Remove the chorizo from its casing and add to a mixing bowl with the mince, onion, coriander, parsley, paprika, cumin and chilli flakes. Mix everything together, then cook in a frying pan over a medium heat for 2 mins. Add the tomato purée and cook for a further 7-10 mins until everything is cooked through. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
• Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Divide the dough into four portions and roll out each one into a thin sheet. Use a 10cm biscuit cutter to cut out discs. Place 1 tsp of filling in the centre of each disc, wet the edges, pinch both sides up and fold in half to seal. Use a fork to crimp the edges.
• Arrange on a lined baking tray, brush with beaten egg and bake for 20 mins. When the empanadas are ready, remove from the oven and cool for 5 mins before serving.

BEEF EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the beef, chorizo, onion, garlic, cumin, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly and breaking up chunks of meat with a potato masher or wooden spoon, until the ingredients are well blended, 5 to 7 minutes. Add additional cumin, if desired, and cook until the meat is browned and cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes longer. Set aside to cool.
• On a floured surface, roll out each pie crust to a circle about 13 inches in diameter. Stamp out rounds using a 3-inch cutter. Put 1 tablespoon of filling on half of a round. Fold the other half of the round over the filling. Crimp the edges with a fork to seal the empanada all around. Repeat with the remaining rounds and filling.
• Whisk the egg in a small bowl. Brush the top of each empanada with the egg wash. Arrange the empanadas on a nonstick baking sheet and bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Transfer the empanadas to a platter and serve.
• Cook's Note: You can substitute your favorite pie crust recipe for store-bought. Make enough for two crusts.

BEEF EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Make the dough: Put 2 cups boiling water, 4 ounces lard and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in large mixing bowl. Stir to melt lard and dissolve salt. Cool to room temperature.
• Gradually stir in flour with a wooden spoon until dough comes together. Knead for a minute or two on a floured board, until firm and smooth. Add more flour if sticky. Wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Make the filling: Season chopped beef generously with salt and pepper and set aside for 10 minutes. Melt 3 tablespoons lard in a wide heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add beef and fry until nicely browned, stirring throughout to keep pieces separate, about 5 minutes.
• Turn heat down to medium and add onion and chorizo. Keep turning mixture with a spatula, as if cooking hash, until onion is softened and browned, about 10 minutes. Add potatoes, garlic, thyme and marjoram and stir well to incorporate. (Add a little more fat to pan if mixture seems dry.) Season again with salt and pepper and let mixture fry for 2 more minutes. Stir in tomato paste, pimentón and cayenne, then a cup of broth or water. Turn heat to simmer, stirring well to incorporate any caramelized bits.
• Cook for about 10 more minutes, until both meat and potatoes are tender and the sauce just coats them - juicy but not saucy is what you want. Taste and adjust seasoning for full flavor (intensity will diminish upon cooling). Stir in scallions and cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
• Divide chilled dough into 1-ounce pieces and form into 2-inch diameter balls. Roll each piece into a 4 1/2-inch circle. Lay circles on a baking sheet lightly dusted with flour.
• Moisten outer edge of each round with water. Put about 2 tablespoons filling in the center of each round, adding a little chopped green olive and some hard-cooked egg to each. Wrap dough around filling to form empanada, pressing edges together. Fold edge back and finish by pinching little pleats or crimping with a fork.
• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Place empanadas on parchment-lined or oiled baking sheet, about 1 inch apart. Brush tops lightly with lard or butter and bake on top shelf of oven until golden, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve warm.

CHORIZO EMPANADAS

Steps:

• For the empanada dough: Add the flour, butter, salt, eggs and 1 cup water to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Mix on medium speed until a dough is formed.
• Wrap the dough with plastic wrap and hold at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• For the chorizo filling: Mix together the chorizo, potatoes, cheese and cilantro in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix until combined, then set aside.
• Lightly flour a work surface and roll the dough out to 1/8-inch thick. Using a 4-inch round cookie cutter, punch out the rounds.
• Wet the dough rounds slightly with water. Place 1 to 1 1/2 ounces of filling on a round. Fold over and crimp with a fork. Repeat until all rounds are filled.
• Heat the oil in a deep-fryer or Dutch oven fitted with a deep-fry thermometer to 350 degrees F.
• Fry the empanadas in batches until golden brown.

CHORIZO AND REFRIED BEAN EMPANADAS

Steps:

• To make dough, in medium bowl, stir together flour, sugar and salt. Using fingers, cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Add egg; stir until dough comes together.
• Place dough on work surface; shape dough into thick disk. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour.
• While dough is chilling, in 10-inch skillet, cook and mash chorizo over low heat 6 to 8 minutes or until it begins to brown. Add frijoles de la olla with the liquid; cook over medium heat. While beans are boiling, mash with potato masher. Continue to cook until beans form a thick paste, about 10 minutes.
• To assemble and bake empanadas, heat oven to 350°F. On lightly floured work surface, roll out chilled dough with rolling pin until about 1/8 inch thick. Cut out disks with bowl or cookie cutter 3 to 4 inches round.
• Place 2 tablespoons bean mixture on 1 half of 1 dough disk. Fold dough over to cover filling; seal edge by pressing down with fork. (This also makes for a pretty pattern when baked.) Repeat with remaining dough and filling. Pierce top of each empanada with fork to allow steam to escape during baking. (See Tip about freezing unbaked empanadas.)
• Spray large cookie sheet with cooking spray. Arrange fresh or frozen empanadas on cookie sheet.
• Bake on middle rack in oven 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. If after 15 minutes, bottoms of empanadas are starting to brown, move cookie sheet to top oven rack and continue to bake for last 5 minutes.
• Serve empanadas warm or at room temperature. Refrigerate any leftover baked empanadas for a few days; reheat in a toaster oven or bake at 350°F for 8 minutes.