Hand Pies
I once heard a chef say that every cuisine in the world has its own variation of the empanada... and I believe him. If you have access to flour, you are on you way to making something delicious and highly portable. And Chef Jerry Pellegrino, you are a big fan of what we may call generically, "hand pies".
Using a basic flour dough, the hand pie is nothing more than a filling buried inside a folded over cover. Relatives of the empanada include the British pork pie, the American turnover, the Indian samosa, the Michigan pasty, the Italian sciachiatta, and the Chinese xian bing.
Empanadas can be either savory (meat, fish or vegetable fillings) or sweet (fruit fillings). They are baked, fried, or boiled, eaten hot or cold. The point is you can carry a meal in your pocket for enjoyment at your leisure.
Here are some empanada basics Jerry put together.
EMPANADAS SALTEÑAS
5 ounces beef lard (suet)
2 large white onions, diced
2 tablespoons ground red pepper
2 tablespoons paprika (preferably smoked)
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 pounds sirloin beef, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
2 large potatoes (1 pound) boiled to al dente, two tablespoons water reserved, and then peeled and diced to 1/4-inch cubes
4 spring onions finely chopped
salt, to taste
4 hard boiled eggs, peeled and chopped
1 recipe standard empanada dough (enough for 20 empanadas) or 20 prepared discs empanada dough
2 egg yolks, lightly beaten
DIRECTIONS
Melt the lard in a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the white onion, lightly frying it until translucent. Add the spices and then the beef, stir frying for 1 to 2 minutes.
Add the reserved potato water and then the diced potato, spring onion and salt to taste. Remove from the heat and cool. Stir in the egg.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. If you make an empanada dough, roll it out to just under 1/4-inch and cut out circles of about 4 inches in diameter.
Holding the circle of dough in the palm of your hand, wet the outer rim of one half of the circle with a big of beaten egg– this will help you seal the empanada. Place a heaping spoonful of the mixture in the middle and join the two halves of the circle.
Going from left to right, twist and fold the edge of the dough over onto itself to form the traditional repulgue (or you could complete the seal by pressing down with the point of a fork).
Place on a baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling. Brush the formed empanadas with beaten egg yolk. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until golden brown.
EMAPNADA DOUGH
2 cups water
1 ½ teaspoons salt
3 ½ Tablespoons lard
6 to 7 cups all-purpose flour
For the salmuera, bring the water and salt to a boil in a small sauce pan over high heat. Add the lard and stir until it melts, then transfer to a large mixing bowl and allow to cool to room temperature.
Using your hand, gradually mix in 5 ½ to 6 cups of flour, about 1 cup at a time, until you can gather the dough into a ball. Sprinkle ½ cup of flour on a work surface and knead the dough, adding more flour until it will not absorb any more. You want a stiff, dry dough. Chill the dough for an hour before using.
Francis Mallmann’s Chimichurri
1 cup water 1 tbs. coarse salt 1 head garlic, separated into cloves and peeled 1 cup packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves 1 cup fresh oregano leaves 2 tsp. crushed red- pepper flakes 1/4 cup red-wine vinegar 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Bring the water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add the salt and stir until it dissolves. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Mince the garlic very finely and put in a medium bowl. (1) Mince the parsley and oregano, and add to the garlic, along with the red-pepper flakes. (2) Whisk in the red-wine vinegar, then the olive oil. Whisk in the salted water. (3) Transfer to a jar with a tight-fitting lid and keep in the refrigerator. Let the flavors mingle for at least a day and serve with grilled meats. The sauce can be kept refrigerated for up to 3 weeks (adapted from Seven Fires: Grilling the Argentine Way, by Francis Mallmann with Peter Kaminsky; Artisan, 2009).
Here are our three favorite sweet hand pie recipes:
https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/blueberry-hand-pies-recipe
