Argentine-Style Beef Empanadas

Various events are hosted through "MeetinDC” , the local chapter of the larger social group "Meetin.org”. I recently hosted a "Mine & Yours” event through the group. The concept behind the Mine & Yours events is that one or two people demonstrate a favorite recipe, and the other participants do the same at a later date. I demonstrated a version of my family’s Argentine-style beef empanadas.

I use pre-made dough, and prefer to bake the empanadas. I use the La Salteña brand of empanada dough because there is plastic between the layers of dough, making the individual pieces of dough easier to separate. The La Salteña empanada dough is imported from Argentina, and is available at local Latin Markets, including Euro-Latino Grocery in Arlington, where the product is $3.49, and includes 20 pieces of dough.

I use a Pocket Gourmet Dough Press to seal the dough, but you can use a fork to seal the edges. I purchased the Pocket Gourmet at an As Seen on TV store in New York, but the one in the Ballston-Common Mall does not carry them. A google search for the product will come up with various places you can order your Pocket Gourmet, which generally includes three different sizes of dough press.

Jason’s version of Argentine-style (baked) beef empanadas:

• 1 lb. chopped sirloin
  
• A small amount of oil to sauté the ingredients
  
• One small yellow onion
  
• ¼ cup dark raisins
  
• ¼ cup green olives stuffed with pimentos, cut in half.
  
• One coarsely chopped hardboiled egg
  
• Salt, pepper, and ground cumin to taste. I probably use about 1/8 of a teaspoon of both cumin and ground black pepper
  
• One package of La Salteña brand empanada dough. Get the version intended for baking. You can buy the version intended for frying, if you prefer to fry your empanadas.

Sauté the chopped onions until they are translucent. Add the chopped meat, salt, pepper, and cumin, and sauté until it is browned evenly. Add the raisins, olives, and hardboiled egg. Refrigerate the mixture until is it cool or the dough will not retain it's shape while you are trying to stuff it. I sometimes make the filling the day before. Use 2 or 3 tablespoons of mixture per piece of dough. Keep a cup of water handy, and dip your finger in the water, and then touch the inside edge of the dough prior to sealing. Moistening the inside edge of the dough will help the dough stay sealed. Then close the empanada (into a half moon shape) and use a fork to press down all around the outside edge in order to seal it. This will form a pattern of lines going away from the empanada.

Place the empanadas on an oiled cookie sheet, and bake at 350 degrees until done, which should take approximately 20-25 minutes. You should turn the empanadas over when one side is brown, maybe halfway through the cooking time.

The empanadas are either served with a salad, or as appetizers.

Euro-Latino Grocery
2700 Pershing Dr. (at Washington Blvd.)
Arlington, Va.
703-524-6800.
Hours: Monday-Saturday: 9 am. to 8 pm. Sunday: 9 am. to 1 p.m.