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Empanadas / Chimichurri

I used to make these a while ago and was hoping I hadn’t lost my touch, lol. I’m not gonna lie, I had to bake 2 batches, but this is what cooking is all about, repeated trials and errors and eventually... success!

Filling with fish
Very light pastry crust, baked just right.

I tried the Filipino variety on the first try and baked the Argentinian kind on the second try. I prefer baking to deep frying because they come out less oily. My family, even with their Filipino ancestry, preferred the second variety without meat. I liked the Filipino kind, a bit sweet and savory, because they brought back happy memories of my childhood. Isn’t that what finding an old recipe is all about ?

Here’s the recipe, I’ll show you the difference between two batches :

Dough : 
3 cups of flour (450 g)
100 g butter
1 egg
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon sugar (optional, for the filipino variety)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder 
2 tablespoons sour cream 

1 egg yolk + 1 tablespoon of water for brushing

Filling (filipino recipe)

2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 chopped onion
2 cloves minced garlic
1 pound lean ground porc
1 potato, diced in small pieces
1 carrot, diced small
200 g (small can) green peas
1/4 cup raisins
2 tablespoons soy sauce or oyster sauce
3 hard boiled eggs, sliced in 6-8 parts
Salt and pepper to taste 

Or

Argentinian filling (tuna fish)
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 chopped onion
1 potato (optional)
2 bell peppers
2 cloves minced garlic 
1/2 cup olives
3 cans of tuna (400g) 2 or fresh white fish (I used hake)
1-2 tablespoons of capers
1 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon of oregano
3 hard boiled eggs, sliced in 6-8 parts (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste 

For the filling, fry garlic and onions in oil, add porc or fish according to choice of filling and cook about 12-15 minutes or until the potato is cooked. Add all other ingredients (except eggs). Set aside.

For dough, preheat oven to 175 C/325 F. Soften butter, add sour cream and egg, blend in flour and dry ingredients. Make sure the dough isn’t sticky to the touch, add flour if too sticky. Roll out into a flat 1/8 inch thickness, or just thick enough not to break when filling with meat or fish mixture. Cut with the help of a small bowl or cutter into round portions 3-4 inch wide. Fill with a heaping tablespoon of stuffing in the center, (add a slice of egg for the filipino variety), and cup it in your hand and seal with a wipe of water, either folding one lip over the other, or pinching closed with fingers or with a fork. Brush with egg wash and bake in oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

You can serve the empanadas as is or with sauces like a banana ketchup for the filipino variety, or for the Argentinian kind, with chimichurri, which is also a quick recipe that we add to all kinds of dishes (roasts, fried fish or steak, bruschetta): 


A salsa and chimuchurri, so nice to add zing to any dish.

Chimichurrri : 
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
4 cloves garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup chopped parsley
2 small red chilies or 1 jalepeno, deseeded
1/2 teaspoon oregano
Pinch of sea salt + pepper.

Mix all ingredients in a mixer.  That's it!

Enjoy, everyone!

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