Beef empanadas

Tam West

Traditional, easy to make pastry dough makes the difference to these small, oven-baked "pies" — they will melt in your mouth. You can make the dough and the filling a few days in advance. These are served with chimichurri, perhaps the most famous Argentinian sauce, similar to pesto, and very popular throughout South America.

For the empanada dough

6 cups	Flour
225 g	Butter
1 tsp	Salt
2	Egg yolks
1 ¾ cups	Warm milk, use up to 2 cups

For the filling

100 g	Butter
1 large	Onion, diced
500 g	Beef mince (Main)
1 Tbsp	Smoked paprika (Main)
1 tsp	Chilli powder, use up to 2 tsp
1 tsp	Ground cumin
1 Tbsp	Chopped parsley
1 Tbsp	Chopped oregano leaves
3	Hard-boiled eggs, sliced (Main)
¼ cup	Green olives, sliced (Main)
1	Egg, whisked with a pinch of salt, for egg wash

Directions

1. Mix flour, butter and salt in a food processor, pulse until well combined. Add egg yolks and milk, pulse until a dough starts to form. Divide in two, flatten into disks and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
2. On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough into a thin sheet and cut out round discs approx. 12cm in diameter. Store in the fridge, covered until ready to use.
3. For the filling, melt butter in a large frying pan. Add onion and cook for 8-10 minutes or until soft. Add beef, paprika, chilli, cumin and some salt and pepper to taste. Cook on a medium heat until meat is done, stirring frequently. Mix in herbs.
4. To assemble empanadas, place a spoonful of the beef mix on the centre of each empanada disc, add a slice of egg and a piece of olive. Brush the edges of the disc with egg wash, fold over and seal the edges firmly with your fingers. Use a fork to press down and finish sealing the empanadas. Place them carefully on a baking paper-lined baking tray. Lightly brush the top of each empanada with egg wash.
5. Rest empanadas in the fridge for 30 minutes before baking. Cook at 200C for 20 minutes or until golden on top. Serve warm withchimichurri.

More of Geoff's Argentinian street food recipes

• Choripan
• Chimichurri
• Lomito completo