Empanada de carne con chorizo

Lately, spurred on by the travel fever that I always get in the autumn, I've been travelling all over the world, in my kitchen anyway. There have been snacks from India, dips from Middle East, soups from Asia so I suppose I'd better get back to the blog's Andalusian roots and delights of the Spanish cuisine! Next up is one of the tapas favourites, empanada.

Empanadas are (usually meat or tune) filled pasties, the size, texture of the dough and the type if filling of which vary from one country to the next. In Spain these are typical to the Galician region but much like another regional speciality, Pulpo a la Gallega, has become a popular treat all over the country. I often get mine from a little bakery close to the railway station at Arroyo de la Miel as I'm getting the daily paper. 

There are two types of empanadas: big ones like this and smaller pasties. Some are baked, some are deep-fried. If you want individual-sized ones, puff-pastry-type dough is more suitable as it's less elastic and more manageable. Recipe for these too to come!

Filling:

140 g chorizo
400 g mince (pork)
1 largeish green pepper
1 largeish onion
3 garlic cloves
1 dl (dry) white wine
500 g crushed tomatos
Handful of parsley
salt, pepper

Start by making the filling so it has time to cool. Peel and cube chorizo and finely chop the garlic, onion and pepper. Fry chorizo over moderate heat so it won't burn and starts releasing that delicious fat. Add garlic and fry it in the fat. Then add mince and let it brown. Then add onion and garlic. Stir and then pour in the wine. Cook for about 5 minutes and add crushed tomatos. Continue cooking until most of the liquid has evaporated and the mixture is almost dry. Fold in chopped parsley and season as needed. Let cool and prepare the dough for the crust.

Crust:

7 dl flour

1 tl baking powder

2 tl salt

1 1/4 dl water

1 dl olive oil

1 large egg (or 1,5 regular sized ones)

For glazing: 1 egg (of that 1/2 egg left over from the crust)

Combine the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet in another. Add the wet ingredients into the dry ones a little at a time and then knead to a smooth, elastic dough. Wrap in cling film and let rest for a good half an hour.

Divide the dough in half and roll them fairly thinly to 2 discs with diameter of about 30 cm (between two sheets of parchments is the easiest way). Keep the other half covered as you're working on the other. Then spoon the filling on the other one, leaving a couple of cm border. Then place the other half on top and crimp the edges shut. If you have a suitably sized pie dish, it's worth doing this in one - that way the dish will make sure the edges won't come undone even if the crimping starts opening in the oven.

Brush with egg, prick with a skewer and bake at 180 until golden brown - depending on the oven 30-40 minutes. Let cool before serving.

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ANYONE FOR SECONDS?