Beef Empanadas

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My friends, Melanie and Dan Diaz, brought their homemade empanadas to a party once and I couldn’t stop eating them. I was surprised to know they used ground turkey instead of beef. They shared the recipe with me, but as usual, I tweaked it a bit to fit my personal preferences, starting with using beef instead of turkey. Either way, these are delicious.

MISE EN PLACE

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1/2 Cup finely diced onion
  • 1/3 Cup finely diced green bell pepper
  • 1/3 Cup finely diced celery
  • 1 Firmly packed tbsp finely chopped garlic
  • 1 Lb. ground beef (I used 90/10)
  • 1 Can Rotel tomatoes (I blend this to avoid large chunks of tomato)
  • 2 Tbsp. capers
  • 1/3 Cup sliced Spanish olives (I sliced them length wise and then in half moons)
  • 2 Pkgs Sazon seasoning
  • 1 Tsp adobe seasoning
  • 1/4 Cup jarred sofrito
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil (If using ground beef fattier than 90/10, omit the olive oil)
  • 2 Packages empanada rounds (if you are not frying, purchase the puff pastry rounds)
  • 1 or 2 beaten eggs
  • 1 to 2 Quarts of vegetable oil for frying

INSTRUCTIONS:

  • In a medium sauce pan with a lid, add the olive oil, meat, onions, celery and bell pepper.
  • Sauté on medium high heat, breaking up the meat as you sauté.
  • Continue sauteing until all liquid has evaporated. Then add the garlic and continue cooking for 30 seconds to a minute.
  • Add the adobe seasoning, Sazon seasoning, sofrito, Rotel, olives and capers.
  • Cover and simmer until there is little to no liquid. You want the mixture to be moist but not runny.
  • Remove from pan and let cool. Once cooled, place in the refrigerator for at least an hour so that the mixture is on the firm side.
  • Brush the inside rim of the empanada round with the beaten egg and add 2 level spoonful’s of the meat mixture.
  • Fold the empanada over and crimp the edges with a fork.
  • Heat the oil to a temperature of 350 degrees in a deep cast iron pan or pot or electric fryer.
  • Carefully drop 4 empanadas at a time and brown evenly on both sides. You may have to flip them from time to time.
  • Place them on paper towels to drain and then on a sheet pan that has a rack. Keep them warm in a 200 degree oven while you continue making the rest of them.