Spanish Style Empanadas Recipes

SPANISH-STYLE EMPANADAS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, sift together the flour and salt. Add the butter and, using your hands, work it into the dough until the flour mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. Make a well in the center and add the water, egg, and vinegar. Mix well to make a smooth dough.
• Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface and knead it for just a few minutes to form a flat rectangle. Wrap it in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
• Meanwhile, make the filling: In a large skillet, heat the oil over low heat. Add the onion and cook for 10 minutes, stirring every now and then. Add the linguiça and cook for 4 minutes, stirring. Add the oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Add the bell peppers and potato, stir well, cover, and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring every few minutes, or until the potato is almost tender. Add a generous splash of hot pepper sauce. Remove from the heat and let cool. The filling can be made a day ahead of time; cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
• Cut the dough in half and then cut each half into 6 equal pieces. You should have 12 pieces. Working on a lightly floured surface, roll out one of the pieces into a 5- to 6-inch circle. Place 2 heaping tablespoons of the filling into the center of the circle. Fold the dough in half to enclose the filling and press the edges together to seal. You may need to dab the edges with a touch of water before folding to help them adhere. Place the empanada on a baking sheet. Use a fork to make decorative tine prints into the sealed edges. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling, placing 6 empanadas on a baking sheet.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• In a small bowl, whisk the egg with the water, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste.
• Using a pastry brush or the back of a spoon, lightly brush the top of each empanada with the glaze.
• Place the baking sheets on 2 shelves and bake for 10 minutes. Reverse the baking sheets so the empanadas cook evenly and bake for another 10 minutes, or until the tops of the pastries are a pale golden brown.
• Let cool for a few minutes and serve hot or at room temperature.

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.

SPANISH BEEF EMPANADAS RECIPE

Steps:

• For the dough, mix the flour, salt, and butter in a bowl with your hands until you get a homogeneous dough.
• In a different large bowl, beat the egg, water, and vinegar with a fork and add to the flour dough.
• Knead the mixture on a clean surface covered with a little bit of flour until you get a rustic dough and set aside covered in the fridge for one hour.
• For the filling, start by cutting the hard-boiled eggs into thin slices. In a saucepan over low heat cook the onion in the oil and until golden brown, then add the garlic and oregano, mix it for 1 minute.
• Then add the ground beef and cook for 5-10 minutes until the meat is cooked. Add the raisins, olives, hard-boiled eggs, and tomato sauce.
• Preheat the oven to 200°C or 390°F and spread some oil on a large baking sheet to prevent the empanadas from sticking. If you are frying them then put oil in a large frying pan at medium heat.
• Take the dough from the empanadas and roll it with the help of a rolling pin to form a rectangular sheet type of shape. Then using a cookie cutter or a cup cut circles to make the empanadas.
• Take the circle and fill with 2 tablespoons of the ground beef filling, then fold the dough over and mark the edges with a fork to close the empanadas.
• Bake the empanadas in the oven for 20 minutes or until the dough is golden brown. If you are going to fry them, place them in the pan with hot oil (don't overcrowd it) and cook for about 4 minutes each.