Empanada (Stuffed Pastry)

Ingredients

• Dough (or store-bought empanada discs)
• Flour350 g
• Butter or lard · cold80 g
• Warm water120 ml
• Salt1 tsp
• Filling (carne)
• Minced beef400 g
• Onions · chopped2 each
• Paprika & cumin · each1 tsp
• Pimentón (smoked paprika)1 tsp
• Hard-boiled eggs · chopped2 each
• Green olives · halved12 each
• Green onion · sliced2 stalk
• Egg wash · to brush before baking1 each
• Salt & pepper1 to taste

Steps

1. Dough: rub cold butter into the flour and salt, knead with warm water, and rest 30 min (skip if using store-bought discs).

   ⏲ 30 min

2. Filling: sauté onion, add the beef and spices, cook through, and season. Cool, then mix in chopped egg and green onion — cool it well so it's easy to fill.

   ⏲ 15 min

3. Roll the dough thin and cut 12cm rounds.

   ⏲ 5 min

4. Place a spoon of filling and half an olive on each disc and fold into a half-moon.

   ⏲ 5 min

5. Dab water on the edge, press to seal, then fold and twist it into the 'repulgue' (or crimp with a fork).

   ⏲ 10 min

6. Brush with egg wash and bake at 200C (400F) for 15-20 minutes until golden. You can deep-fry them instead.

   ⏲ 18 min

Tips & Variations

The basics behind this dish

• Knife Skills: Grip, Cuts, and Why Size MattersHow you hold the knife matters more than how fast you cut. The pinch grip, the claw hand, and why uniform size is a cooking decision rather than a cosmetic one.
• Salt: When You Add It Matters More Than How MuchThe same amount of salt either draws water out or seasons all the way through, depending on when it goes in. Osmosis, seasoning in layers, and why salt types are not interchangeable by volume.
• Heat Control: Preheating, Oil, and Reading the PanThe same ingredients become a different dish depending on pan temperature. When to add the oil, how to read heat by sound, and which dishes want low heat instead.