Fried Beef Empanadas Recipes

BEEF & CHEESE EMPANADAS: BAKED OR FRIED

Steps:

• First, make the empanada dough. In a mixing bowl, add the melted lard or shortening, flour, and hot water. Mix it until it comes together into a smooth ball of dough, adding a little more flour if necessary (depending on the humidity in your kitchen). Refrigerate the dough for one hour.
• Next, make the filling. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium high heat. Brown the ground beef. Add the onion and garlic and cook until translucent. Next, add the Spanish olives, the chili peppers, the sun-dried tomato, the spices, sugar, and salt. Stir to combine, and let cook for an additional few minutes.
• Add the water and bring to a boil. Add the tomato paste, stirring the entire mixture thoroughly to dissolve it, and let cook until the water has cooked off and the filling has thickened. Remove from the heat and cool completely.
• Next, prep your dough! On a clean, floured work surface, roll the dough into a 1/8-inch layer. Using a round cookie cutter (or cup/bowl) in the size of your choice (you could make teeny tiny finger food empanadas instead of the bigger ones we made!), cut out as many rounds as you can. Peel away the spare dough and transfer back into the refrigerator.
• For each empanada, spoon filling into the middle of the dough and top with a generous amount of cheese, ensuring you have enough margin around the edge of the dough to fold it over and seal the empanada. You can also stretch the dough out a bit into an oval shape and put the filling on one half of the dough, to make the folding process easier. Fold in half and crimp the edges, either with a fork, or if you want to be fancy, with a traditional twisting technique. (YouTube is your friend!) Repeat these steps with all of the dough rounds, and repeat the rolling out & cutting process until there is no leftover dough.
• If you are baking the empanadas, heat your oven to 400 degrees. Brush the empanadas with oil prior to baking, and bake for 10-15 minutes. If you are frying the empanadas, heat a small, deep pot with enough oil to submerge a couple empanadas. Heat the oil to 350 degrees, and fry the empanadas until golden brown, in small batches of 2-3 (depending on the size of your pot and your empanadas). When they're cooked through, transfer to a wire rack or a plate lined with a paper towel to drain.
• Eat these empanadas on their own or with a nice salad!

FRIED EMPANADAS

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, stir together the flour and salt. Cut in shortening using a pastry blender, or pinching into small pieces using your fingers, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Use a fork to stir in water a few tablespoons at a time, until the mixture forms a ball. Pat into a ball, and flatten slightly. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until tender. Crumble in the beef, and season with salt, paprika, cumin and black pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until beef is browned. Drain excess grease, and stir in the raisins and vinegar. Refrigerate until chilled, then stir in the hard-cooked eggs.
• Form the dough into 2 inch balls. On a floured surface, roll each ball out into a thin circle. Spoon some of the meat mixture onto the center, then fold into half-moon shapes. Seal edges by pressing with your fingers.
• Heat oil in a deep-fryer to 365 degrees F (180 degrees C). Place one or two pies into the fryer at a time. Cook for about 5 minutes, turning once to brown on both sides. Drain on paper towels, and serve hot.

FRIED BEEF EMPANADAS WITH OLIVES AND SOFRITO

Steps:

• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir ground beef in the hot skillet until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain and discard grease; remove beef to a plate and set aside.
• Cook onions, bell pepper, and garlic in the same pan over medium heat until peppers are soft and onions are translucent, making sure not to brown or burn garlic, about 5 minutes. Add beef back into the pan and stir to combine. Add tomatoes, sofrito, and raisins; cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in chicken stock, tomato sauce, cilantro, olives, sazon, oregano, cumin, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until thickened, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let mixture cool slightly, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Combine beaten egg and water in a small bowl. Spoon filling mixture evenly into the middles of the thawed empanada discs. Brush edges with egg and water mixture, fold in half, and seal the edges with a fork.
• Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large saucepan to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Fry empanadas in the hot oil, working in batches if needed, until golden brown, 4 to 6 minutes, turning halfway through.

FRIED BEEF EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat; add onion and bell pepper. Cook and stir, 3 to 4 minutes. Add beef, garlic, and adobo; continue to cook and stir until meat is browned, crumbly, and no longer pink, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain mixture in a colander to remove most of the liquid and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
• Transfer cooled mixture to a mixing bowl with raisins, tomato paste, eggs, olives, and vinegar. Mix to combine and season with salt and pepper.
• Lightly dust a work surface with flour and lay out empanada discs on top. Place a spoonful of stuffing on the bottom half of a disc and moisten the edges with water. Fold disc in half over the stuffing and press with a fork to seal the edges. Dust with flour and transfer to a plate. Repeat to form remaining empanadas, stacking on the plate between layers of waxed paper.
• Heat vegetable oil (3/4 inch deep) in a large frying pan over medium heat. Place empanadas in the hot oil, working in batches, and fry until browned and crisp, 2 to 4 minutes; flip. Continue frying on opposite side until browned, 3 to 5 minutes more.