Empanadas

[jlwquilter]

Find a visual guide to making Empanadas Salteñas

Guía visual para la elaboración de empanadas salteñas (Spanish only)

http://www.iruya.com/index2.php?option=com...55&pop=1&page=5

Enjoy!

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Thanks for the link! I don't read or speak Spanish but the pics were good. I don't think they really gave me anything new to try to solve my leaking problem though.

[Poffertjes]

Another great flavor combination for this is guava and white cheese...

I usually see restaurants that make empanadas, fill them with either some guava paste or guava jelly, and some queso blanco as most hispanic people call it, and its amazing and delicious savory dessert empanada...

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Argentineans do make ham and cheese and humita(corn and white sauce) empanadas and some seafood and stronger cheese but of course they all are savoury.

Although Argentineans also make a kind of quick fried pockets filled with quince paste or other sweet pastes. These pockets resemble the federal star of eight points rather than an empanada.

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The Argentinian sweet empanada like things are called pastelitos. There are three versions, quince membrillo, sweet potato membrillo, and dulce de leche. Each has a specific fold so you know which one they are. Almost won ton wrappers, fried, covered with thick simple syrup. OMG....

I remember my host sister making them every weekend morning to sell to pay for her quinto ano class trip to Bariloche. She would always set aside a plate for me for when I returned from the boliches after the sun came up.

[Ce'nedra]

I'm not sure what the actual name is but I make the Chinese version with a filling of pork & prawn mince, mushrooms, onions, soy sauce, fish sauce, salt, pepper...

[jlwquilter]

Well, I baked up a ton of empanadas yesterday... sausage, peppers and onions with extra american cheese on top.

Steam slits were a disaster... the cheese bubbled thru and made a mess. Hubby ate the cheese and was happy.

There didn't seem to be any difference is sealing power between water vs. egg wash for keeping the crimped edges closed.

I still had some cheese leaking from crimped edges but overall less than before. I think I am simply getting more skilled at the whole folding process... and guaging how much filling to put inside. We do like overfilled empanadas... more meat to crust ratio. I also have to get better on my rolled dough thickness. I am still rolling too thin too often and that creates issues.

Practice makes perfect, right?!

[Ce'nedra]

Ok so I remembered the ingredients incorrectly...just made meat pockets yesterday (was craving from this damn thread!) and found them to be simpler! Very easy and fairly basic but oh so heavenly.

Mixture of minced pork, button mushrooms, diced onions, salt, sugar and pepper. Oh and cornstarch.

Sliced puff pastry sheets into equal squares and filled them (reminds me of wonton for some reason).

Folded the pastries into triangles and sealed them by lightly pressing the edges and then used a fork.

Egg wash the pastries for colour! At first, mum and I used only egg yolk, second batch used whole eggs...eventually we figured 2 egg yolks, 1 white was the preferred ratio.

Freshly baked goodies

Edited November 19, 2008 by Ce'nedra (log)

[Daniel]

I have found that there is really no substitute for real lard in making the dough. It makes such a lighter, crisper, better empanada.