Baked Empanada Ingredients
For this recipe, you'll need:- 3 cups flour
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 cup of lard or shortening
- 1 egg yolk
- 3/4 to 1 cup of cold water
Empanada Filling Ingredients
For the empanada filling, you'll need:- 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp. cumin
- 1 cup low-fat shredded Mexican cheese blend
Mix the Empanada Dough
Place the flour in a large mixing bowl. Add the salt and the shortening. Use a pastry blender or your hands to mix it together until it forms coarse crumbs, like this.Now whisk the egg and a little water together, and add that to the flour mixture. Use a fork to mix it in, and add about 1/2 cup of the water and mix together until it forms a dough. If it's too dry add more of the water.
Use your hands to knead the dough a few times, then wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Prepare the Chicken
To make the filling, season the chicken with salt and pepper. Grill it on a grill pan or a contact grill like I'm using, until it's cooked through. Check with a thermometer. It should be 165 degrees F.Remove the chicken and cut it into bite-sized pieces. OK, now heat the oil in a small skillet. Add the onions, jalapeno peppers and garlic. You could add some salt and pepper now, too. Then cook until softened.
Now preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Mix the Empanada Filling Ingredients
Place the chicken in a large mixing bowl and add the vegetable mixture and the chili powder, cumin and cheese. Mix it all together. And that's your filling.Fill the Empanadas
Now for the dough, take a golf ball-sized piece of dough and roll it in your hands to form a ball. Roll it out on a floured board to a circle about 6 inches wide.Place about 2 tablespoons of the empanada filling in the center of the dough. To make it stick easily, wet two fingers in some water and just paint a semi-circle on the bottom edge of the dough with the water.
Now fold it over, and to seal it, you just kind of want to fold a triangle over the and keep repeating that all the way around and then pinch the edges.
Bake the Empanadas
Place the empanadas on a baking sheet. To make them shiny, you can beat an egg yolk with water and brush that on the empanadas. Bake 14-18 minutes until golden brown.And here are your baked chicken empanadas.
