Giant Beef Empanadas From Karen Southern Plate Recipes

BEEF EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onions, scallions, and bell pepper. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are translucent, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Add ground beef, oregano, salt, cayenne pepper, and cumin to the onion mixture. Cook and stir beef until no longer pink, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly, then cover and place in the refrigerator until meat is completely cooled, about 1 hour.
• Remove filling from the refrigerator and transfer into a colander to drain. Return filling to the Dutch oven.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Liberally grease a baking sheet with butter.
• Place about 2 tablespoons filling into the center of an empanada disc. Fold empanada in half into a crescent shape, press the edges of the dough together with a fork or your fingers to seal, and place onto the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining empanadas and filling. Brush tops with egg white.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

EMPANADAS (BEEF TURNOVERS)

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add ground beef and cook until browned, breaking up meat with a wooden spoon, about 10 minutes. Add onions and cook until soft, about 5 minutes more. Stir in tomato sauce, olives, Sofrito, Sazon, garlic, oregano and black pepper. Lower heat to medium-low and simmer until mixture thickens, about 15 minutes.
• On a lightly floured work surface, using a rolling pin, roll out discos until 1/2-inch larger in diameter. Spoon about 1 tbsp. meat mixture into middle, fold in half to form a half moon; moisten edges with water and pinch to seal closed, or seal with a fork.
• Fill a deep saucepan with oil to a depth of 2 1/2-inches. Heat oil over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking (350 degrees F on deep-fry thermometer). Cook Empanadas in batches until crisp and golden brown, flipping once, 4 - 6 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain.

GIANT EMPANADAS

Steps:

• In a skillet, cook beef, onion and green pepper over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in tomatoes and seasonings. Simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. , Place pastry shells on a baking sheet. Divide filling; spoon half of filling on one half of each pastry, spreading to within 1 in. of edges. Fold other half of pastry over filling and press edges to seal. Beat egg yolk with water; brush over pastries. , Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until golden. Cut into wedges to serve. Garnish with sour cream, tomatoes, cheese and/or lettuce if desired.

BEEF EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Make the pie crust according to package directions. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• In a small bowl mix together the egg with the cold water to create an egg wash. Set aside.
• Divide the dough into 6 even pieces, and roll each into a ball. On a floured work surface roll out each piece of dough, with a rolling pin, into 1/4-inch thick rounds about 3 to 4 inches in diameter. Using a small bowl as a template cut around to form perfect circles.
• Break the leftover Salisbury Steak into small pieces and add it to a bowl with the leftover Brown Gravy. Stir to combine.
• Put a heaping tablespoon of the meat mixture into the middle of each piece of dough. Brush the edges of the circles with egg wash. Fold the dough over the filling to form a half circle. Press the edges together and seal them again with the tines of a fork to make pretty borders. Brush the tops of the empanadas with the egg wash. Arrange the empanadas on a sheet pan and bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Remove the empanadas from the oven to a serving platter and serve.

ARGENTINEAN-INSPIRED BEEF MINI EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Prepare filling: Cook ground beef, onion, bell pepper, and garlic in a large, nonstick skillet over medium to medium-high heat until vegetables are tender and beef is browned and crumbly, about 10 minutes. Add olives, paprika, cumin, salt, and pepper. Stir in chopped eggs.
• Scrape mixture into a bowl. Cover and refrigerate until fully chilled, 1 to 2 hours; this ensures the dough will not be soggy when the empanadas are baked.
• Prepare dough: Whisk flour and salt together in a medium bowl until combined. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
• Whisk cold water, egg, and vinegar together in a small bowl. Pour into the dry ingredients and blend with a fork. Use your hands to finish blending the ingredients until they come together in a ball. Flatten the ball into a disc, wrap with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• When you are ready to cook, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Roll the dough on a lightly floured surface. Use a 3-inch round cutter to cut circles, rerolling the scraps as necessary. I got about 18 circles.
• Hold each circle in your hand and place a heaping tablespoon of filling in the center. Gently fold the ends over the top and press to seal all the way around. Reserve extra filling for another use.
• Set empanadas on a baking sheet. Press around the sealed edges with a fork if desired.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown on the bottoms, about 18 minutes. Flip and bake until the other side is browned, about 5 more minutes.

BEEF EMPANADAS

Steps:

• For the filling: Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the potato. Cook and toss until golden on the edges, about 3 minutes. Add the onion along with a pinch of salt and cook until just softened, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the ham and garlic and cook until sizzling, about 1 minute. Add the beef and cook, breaking up into small crumbles with a wooden spoon, until browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Season with the abodo.
• Add the red wine and simmer until reduced, about 1 minute. Add the tomato puree and 1/2 cup water. Simmer until the sauce is thick and flavorful, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in the olives and capers and transfer to a bowl to cool.
• For the chipotle chimichurri: Combine the parsley, garlic, scallions, vinegar and chipotle in a blender. Process to make a chunky paste. With the blender running, add the oil in a slow, steady stream to make a smooth, thick sauce. Season with salt. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate while you form the empanadas.
• For the empanadas: Unroll the pie dough. If there are any cracks in the dough, use a rolling pin to gently roll the dough back together. Use a 4-inch round cutter to cut as many circles as you can; you should get 10 to 12 rounds depending on the size of your pie crust. Repeat with the second pie crust. Beat the egg in a bowl with a fork. Add about a tablespoon of filling to each circle and brush the edges with egg wash. Form into half-moons and press the edges well to seal. Pleat the edges or crimp with a fork. Put the empanadas on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling. Refrigerate the empanadas for 15 minutes to firm up slightly.
• Heat 2 inches of vegetable oil in a large Dutch oven until a deep-fry thermometer reaches 365 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with a wire rack. Fry the empanadas in 2 batches until crisp and deep golden, 4 to 5 minutes per batch, letting the oil return to 365 degrees F between batches. Drain on the wire rack. Serve hot or warm with the chipotle chimichurri for dipping.