Chicken Empanadas Recipes

Steps:

• Mix flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda together in a large bowl. Add water and 1/4 cup vegetable oil; mix with an electric mixer until well combined and a dough begins to form, about 3 minutes. Remove dough and knead on a lightly floured surface for about 3 minutes. Wrap in plastic wrap and set aside for 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add shredded chicken and saute until heated through, about 2 minutes. Add onion, bell pepper, cilantro, olives, garlic, sazon seasoning, tomato paste, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables have softened, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
• Divide empanada dough into 12 pieces and form each one into a 4-inch circle. Place about 2 tablespoons filling in the center of each circle, fold in half, and press down on the edges with a fork to seal.
• Heat 1 cup oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add empanadas, working in batches, and fry until golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.

Steps:

• In a large saute pan, over medium heat, add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the onions. Season with salt and crushed red pepper. Saute for 2 minutes. Add the chicken. Saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and turn into a mixing bowl. Add the garlic, green onions, olives, raisins and eggs. Season with salt. Mix well. On a floured surface, roll the dough out to a circle, 1/8-inch thick. Using a 4-inch round cutter, cut the dough into individual circles. Press the remaining dough together and repeat the above process. Preheat the fryer. Place about 1 tablespoon of the filling in the center of each circle. Lightly wet the edges of the dough with water. Fold the dough over, forming a half-moon, using your fingers, seal the edges completely and crimp the sides of the dough. Place the finished empanadas on a parchment lined baking sheet. Fry in batches until golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove and drain on paper towels. Season with salt. Serve warm on a large platter. Garnish with parsley. Yield: about 1 1/2 dozen empanadas
• In a mixing bowl combine the masa harina, flour, cornmeal and baking powder. Season with the salt and pepper and mix thoroughly. Cream in the lard and add the water a little at a time, working the mixture until all is completely incorporated. Using your hands, form the dough into a log about 12 inches long by 3 inches across and refrigerate for about 20 minutes.
• Difficulty: Intermediate

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a baking sheet with nonstick spray.
• Place a large saute pan over medium heat and add oil. Once the oil is hot, add the onion, jalapeno, garlic, green onions and saute until tender, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• In a large bowl, combine the chicken, cheese, cream cheese, sauteed mixture and hot sauce together.
• Whisk the egg in a small bowl. Set aside. Sprinkle flour on your work surface and unroll the pie dough.
• Roll out each round to a 13-inch circle. Cut each crust into eight 4-inch circles with a biscuit cutter. You can knead the scraps and then roll out, if necessary. Spoon about 1 heaping tablespoon of the chicken mixture into the center of each round. Brush the edges with the egg wash and fold each circle in half. Gently press on the top of the empanada to release any air. Seal the edges with a fork and brush the top with the remaining egg wash. Sprinkle with chile powder. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.
• Serve the chicken empanadas with the Chili Lime Dipping Sauce.
• Combine the yogurt, chipotle and lime zest and juice in a bowl.

Steps:

• Mix together first 8 ingredients, and refrigerate until ready to assemble empanadas.
• On a floured surface, roll out pie shells and cut into 4-inch circles (use all the pie dough by re-rolling scraps).
• Place approximately 2 tablespoons of chicken mixture in center of dough circles.
• Fold each circle in half and crimp edges with a fork.
• Place on a baking sheet and brush tops with egg yolks.
• Sprinkle top with mixed salt and chili powder.
• Bake 12-13 minutes at 400F degrees.
• Serve warm or at room temperature.
• Freezes well.

Steps:

• For the empanada dough: Mix all empanada ingredients in a mixer. Let dough rest in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.
• For the filling: Bake the chicken breast until fully cooked. Put breast meat in a food processor and pulse until chopped (you don't want very small pieces). Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil. Add onions, green and red bell peppers, salt, black pepper, paprika, garlic powder, red pepper, oregano and basil. Cook until onions are soft, about 10 minutes. Pour in chipotle sauce and stir. Finally add tomato sauce. Allow filling to cool.
• To form the empanadas, knead the dough. Roll the dough out by hand or with a commercial sheeter. Cut out circles of dough. Place a dough circle in an empanada mold if you have one, but it's not necessary; fill with chicken mixture. Wet the edges of the dough with your fingers. Close the mold to seal, or fold dough over filling and use the tines of a fork to seal the edges. Repeat with remaining dough and filling. Use a pastry brush to paint empanadas with an even coat of egg wash.
• Preheat a convection oven to 450 degrees F, or regular oven to 400 degrees F. Place empanadas on greased baking sheets. Bake for 3 minutes in convection oven or 10 to 15 minutes in regular oven.

Steps:

• Combine the garlic, onions, salt and 5 cups water in a 12-inch high-sided saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the chicken breasts and bay leaf, and lower the heat to a simmer. Cook the chicken, partially covered, until cooked through, about 35 minutes. (To check for doneness, slit the chicken in half to make sure the interior is no longer pink.) Remove the chicken (reserve the broth) and allow to cool slightly. When cool enough to handle, shred by hand and place in a medium bowl.
• Remove enough broth to leave about 2 cups in the pan with the onions and garlic (cool and refrigerate or freeze the extra broth for another use). Remove the bay leaf. Add the tomatillos and jalapenos and cook until the tomatillos are olive green, 10 to 12 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer the solid ingredients (onions, tomatillos and garlic) to a blender. Add the cilantro and process until smooth (using some of the liquid in the pan if needed). Season with salt and pepper. Pour the salsa back into the saucepan and bring to a boil; add the chicken and cook until the flavors incorporate, about 5 minutes. Adjust the seasoning. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• To assemble the empanadas: Dust a flat surface with flour. Roll out the pizza dough about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. Using a 6-inch round cookie cutter (or a bowl or plate with the same diameter), cut the dough into circles. Expect to get about 3 circles from 1 pound of dough. Brush the egg wash over the surface of one dough round. Add 2 tablespoons of filling onto half of the circle and sprinkle about 1 ounce of mozzarella on top of the filling, if using. Fold the plain half over the filling. Seal the edges with fork tines or crimp decoratively. Repeat for the remaining empanadas. (Save any leftover filling in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week for another use.)
• Transfer the empanadas to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Using a pastry brush, brush the tops of the empanadas with the egg wash. Bake until crisp and golden brown, about 20 minutes. Let cool for about 10 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease 2 baking sheets with cooking spray.
• Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add chopped green onions and cook until tender, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Mix in cooked chicken, salt, nutmeg, and black pepper; cook 1 minute more.
• Arrange pastry discs on a flat work surface. Dab a little water around the rims. Place a large tablespoonful of the chicken mixture in the center; fold pastry over and press with a fork to seal.
• Transfer empanadas to the prepared baking sheets. Brush with beaten egg.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden, about 20 minutes.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Combine chicken, Neufchatel cheese, and salsa in a saucepan over medium heat until cheese melts, 3 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and stir until well combined.
• Lay out empanada discs and place 1 tablespoons of chicken filling onto each disc. Fold dough over filling to close. Wet fingers with water and run them along the edges to help seal. Press edges together using the tines of a fork. Place empanadas on the prepared baking sheet and brush with heavy whipping cream.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375ºF.
• Combine first 4 ingredients. Whisk egg and water until blended.
• Unroll 1 pie crust on lightly floured surface; roll out to 12-inch diameter with rolling pin. Cut into 8 (4-inch) rounds with biscuit cutter, rerolling scraps as necessary; place in single layer on parchment-covered baking sheet. Repeat with remaining pie crust.
• Spoon 2 Tbsp. chicken mixture onto center of each dough round; brush edge with egg. Fold in half. Gently press tops to remove excess air; seal edges with fork. Brush with remaining egg. Sprinkle with chili powder.
• Bake 15 min. or until golden brown.

Steps:

• Mixture:.
• Add Jalapeno, Onion, and Garlic to a pan with a teaspoon of oil on medium heat. Saute until onion is clear.
• Add ground chicken, and immediatly add Cumin, Chili Powder, paprika, salt and Cayenne pepper over the ground chicken. so its looks like its Dusted. Mixing well over medium heat and breaking it down until it it browned.
• Remove and drain out fat, place into a bowl and let it sit for 5 mins.
• Add Cheese to the Ground Chicken and mix well. Let rest for about 10 mins before filling.
• Roll dough out, dough should be .5 inch thick. You will need 4 inch circles for each empanada.
• Place about 2 tablespoons of Meat Mixture into the middle of the Circle. And then gently fold over. Using A fork press the ends closed.
• Dough recipe:.
• Shift flour and Salt together. cut butter into 1/4 and slowly mix into flour/salt.
• In a small bowl, combine egg, Vinegar and water and beat until foamy.
• Combine Egg mixture to flour and Mix with a fork.
• Once the mixture is completely Incorporated you can use your hands to form dough. Once it is sturdy place onto a floured surface and roll into a triangle. Using Plastic wrap cover and place in fridge for 1 Hour.
• Bake:.
• Pre Heat Oven 400.
• Place each Empanada onto Pan and brush with Egg Yolk.
• Sprinkle each Empanada with Chili Powder/Salt mixture.
• Place in over for 12 to 14 minutes.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°. In a small bowl, combine the first 8 ingredients. On a lightly floured surface, roll each pie crust into a 15-inch circle. Cut with a floured 3-in. round biscuit cutter., Place about 1 teaspoon filling on 1 half of each circle. Moisten edges with water. Fold pie crust over filling. Press edges with a fork to seal., Transfer to greased baking sheets. Bake until golden brown, 12-15 minutes. Remove to wire racks. Serve warm.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400F degrees.
• Heat oil over med-high heat in a large skillet.
• Saute onions and garlic about 4 minutes, until onions are translucent.
• Add cumin, cayenne pepper, chili flakes and dried oregano. Make sure to mix well and cook for 2-3 minutes.
• Add black beans, chicken and green chilies. Salt and pepper to taste. Cook for around 2 minutes until incorporated and heated through.
• Add chicken stock a little at a time, just to moisten the mixture. You may not need to use the entire 1/4 Cup. You want to make sure that the mixture is moist but not soupy. Simmer for about 5-7 minutes.
• Take mixture off burner and let cool to room temperature.
• Add cheese and mix thoroughly.
• Roll out dough onto floured surface.
• Cut 4" circles out of the dough (I like to use a medium sized cereal bowl to cut the circles, but you can make yours smaller or larger).
• Fill the middle of each circle with about 1.5 - 2 Tbl of the mixture. Don't overfill. Fold each circle in half (sealing in the mixture) and crimp the ends with a fork to close the dough.
• Brush tops with egg yolks and sprinkle with chili powder.
• Cook for 12-14 minutes at 400°F.
• Enjoy!

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Melt butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Add chicken, corn, Hatch chile, and adobo seasoning. Cook until mixture is warmed through, about 5 minutes. Remove filling from heat.
• Set out empanada discs and place 2 tablespoons filling onto each disc. Sprinkle with 1 1/2 tablespoons Oaxacan cheese. Brush edge of discs with water and fold over to create half circles. Crimp to seal. Arrange on a baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove empanadas and sprinkle Cheddar cheese on top. Continue baking until cheese is melted and golden brown, about 5 more minutes.

Steps:

• Mix chicken with Mexican cheese blend, pimentos, green chiles, onion, mayonnaise, and jalapeno.
• Place about 1 tablespoon of the mixture into the center of each empanada disc. Run a wet finger around the rim of each disc. Fold into a half-moon shape and press edges together with a fork to seal well.
• Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large saucepan to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Fry 1 to 2 empanadas at a time in the hot oil until brown, 1 to 2 minutes per batch.

Steps:

• FILLING:.
• Sift the flour into a bowl. Stir in the salt and the sugar.
• Blend the butter and shortening into the flour mixture with a pastry cutter or with two knives, until fairly well blended.
• Whisk the egg yolks with 3/4 cups water. Stir in the 1/2 cup of water/egg mixture, a little at a time until the dough starts to come together smoothly. Keep kneading the dough, adding more water/egg a little bit at a time as necessary (you made need a few tablespoons extra of water), until the dough is smooth. The dough will seem a bit shaggy until it has thoroughly chilled.
• Cover the dough with saran wrap and refrigerate for about an hour. (Dough can also be kept overnight (or a couple of days) in the refrigerator) Dough should be soft and smooth, and not elastic - if you poke a hole in it with your finger, the indentation should remain.
• FILLING.
• Prepare empanada dough and chill.
• Poach the chicken: Place the chicken breasts in a pot with the bouillon and bay leaf, and cover with water or chicken broth.
• Bring to a boil, and simmer over low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, until chicken is cooked through. Let cool in the broth.
• Shred chicken into small pieces, and moisten with 1 or 2 tablespoons of the broth. Set aside.
• Heat oil in a skillet. Add chopped onions, paprika, cumin, chile powder, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste.
• Cook over low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, until onions are soft and clear, and mixture is golden brown.
• Remove from heat and stir in the chicken. For best flavor, refrigerate filling until the next day.
• Stir chopped hard boiled egg and olives into filling mixture.
• Separate empanada dough into golf ball size pieces, and roll each one into a smooth ball. Let rest 5 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 220°C.
• On a floured surface, roll each ball of dough into a circle about 6 inches in diameter.
• Spoon 2-3 tablespoons of filling in the middle of the circle. Brush the edges of the dough along the bottom half of the circle lightly with water.
• Fold the top half of the circle of dough over the filling to form a semicircle, and press edges together firmly to seal.
• Brush the pressed edge with a little bit of water, and fold the edge over itself, pinching and crimping as you go to make a braid-like effect. Place empanadas on a baking sheet.
• Mix egg yolk with water and brush mixture lightly over entire surface of each empanada.
• Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until golden brown and slightly puffed.
• Serve warm or at room temperature.

Steps:

• The Chicken.
• - Place chicken thighs in a large pot with 8 cups of boiling water.
• - Add the celery, onion, garlic, Kosher salt and cumin.
• - Boil over medium heat for approximately 1 hour (or until chicken is cooked).
• - With a slotted spoon, carefully remove chicken from the pot, place it in a bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Allow it to cool until safe to handle.
• - Cover the pot and continue to cook the stock on low heat.
• - Once the chicken has cooled, remove the skin and the bones. Drop the bones and skin into the stock pot, cover and continue to cook. With your fingers, pull the chicken meat apart so it resembles shredded meat. Put into a bowl, cover and refrigerate.
• - Allow the chicken stock to boil on low heat for another hour. Using a sieve, separate the broth from all the rest of the ingredients and allow it to cool for about 30 minutes. Discard the stock ingredients.
• The Dough.
• - Mix all the dry ingredients together (corn meal, brown sugar, yuca starch and optional cumin) in a large bowl and begin to add the chicken broth until you have a smooth, humid, easy to work dough. I usually add two cups and work the dough with my hands. Then, I add the chicken stock 1/2 cup at a time until I get the consistency I need.
• - Cover the bowl and let the "masa" rest for about one hour in the refrigerator.
• The Filling.
• - In a frying pan, heat the butter, margarine or oil over medium heat and saute the onions and tomatoes. (Here you can add cumin to taste).
• - In a large bowl, combine the chicken, potatoes, chopped cilantro, garlic powder and pepper.
• - Add the sauteed onion-tomato mixture and stir until well blended. Check for salt and adjust spices to your liking.
• The Empanada.
• - Now, if you have a tortilla press, you're sitting pretty for the next step. If you don't have one, two pieces of 1" wood about 8" square will do just fine. Lacking that, anything flat and a counter top will work. Or, if you feel adventurous, you can use your own two little hands!
• - Roll the "masa" (dough) into little balls about 1" in diameter. Cover the bottom part of the tortilla press with a piece of plastic wrap. Place the masa ball on top of the plastic wrap. Cover with another piece of plastic and press it into a flat circle (depending on the size of the original masa ball, the flat circle will turn out to be about 3 to 4 inches in diameter). Remove the top piece of plastic. Now add about one rounded tablespoon of the filling to the middle of the circle leaving about 1/2" of space on the sides. Using the plastic, fold the circle in half and press the edges together so it forms a half-moon. While still in the plastic, press the edges firmly together between your thumb and middle finger so the empanada is sealed. I like to make them pretty so, after the empanada is sealed, I remove it from the plastic and use the tip of my finger to fold the edges at small intervals so that the empanada has a "scalloped" look to the edges.
• - Cook them in bunches but don't prepare too many at a time and let them sit while the others cook since this tends to dry out the masa too much. Also, as you are cooking, keep the bowl of masa covered with a humid towel to keep it from getting too dry.
• Cooking.
• - The traditional method, of course, is to fry the empanadas in a large, iron cauldron (approximately 50 years old), on top of a wood fire, outdoors, in about twenty pounds of pork lard that was used to fry the empanadas for the last month and a half.
• - However, tradition does not always mean that it is right. Much of the time tradition simply means "lack of technology and alternate methods.".
• - I use a deep-fat fryer filled with Canola or Peanut oil. For even healthier empanadas, they can be baked in the oven at 350 degrees F on a greased cookie sheet. Baking them, of course, takes longer and you will have to turn the empanadas once. Bake or fry until golden brown.
• - If you fry them (the best method because they turn out nice and crunchy), make sure you place the finished empanadas on a cookie sheet whose bottom you have lined with a thick layer of paper towels. This will allow the excess oil to drain.
• - The tradition in Colombia is to have an empanada in one hand and a wedge of lemon in the other. As you take a bite, you squeeze a few drops of lemon juice inside. A bowl of your favorite salsa and a teaspoon will also do the job quite well. This recipe should yield approximately 4 to 5 dozen empanadas.