Cheesy Chorizo Empanadas
Dip these delectable crisp envelopes of savory cheesiness in the cool creamy dipping sauce for a flavor explosion in your mouth.
Equipment
- Food processor
Ingredients
Empanada Filling:
- 1 tbsp butter
- ½ large onion, finely diced
- 1 lb. fresh Chorizo sausage
- 1 tbsp Achiote, finely ground
- 1½ cups Mozzarella cheese, grated
- 1½ cups Monterey Jack cheese, grated
- 4 oz queso fresco, crumbled
- 1-2 sliced Jalapeños, optional
Creamy Guacamole Dipping Sauce:
- 2 Avocados, pitted and diced
- 1 bunch Cilantro, roughly chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 Jalapeños, chopped
- 4 limes, juiced
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp Cumin
- ¼ cup olive oil
Empanada Dough:
- 3 cups flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 stick butter, cut into pats
- ¾ cup sparkling water or tap water, add more if needed
- oil for frying
Instructions
Make the filling:
- Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Add onion and cook until translucent, about five minutes.
- Once onions are soft, add Chorizo sausage and break apart with a spatula as it cooks.
- Add ground Achiote and stir to combine.
- Once Chorizo is cooked through, remove from heat. Set meat mixture aside and allow mixture to come to room temperature.
- In a large bowl combine Mozzarella, Monterey Jack and Queso Fresco cheeses. Set aside.
Make Empanada Dough:
- Place flour, baking powder and salt in food processor and pulse to combine.
- Add pats of butter and pulse to combine.
- Add sparling water, a little at a time until dough starts to come together.
- Once a dough ball starts to form, remove from the bowl of the food processor and knead dough inot a smooth ball.
- Coat dough with olive oil and place in a bowl. Cover and allow dough to rest at room temperature for 1 hour.
Make Creamy Guacamole Dipping Sauce:
- Place avocados, lime juice, cilantro, jalapeños, garlic cloves, cumin, and salt in food processor. Pulse and add olive oil. Continue to pulse until mixture is smooth and creamy.
- Place sauce in an air tight container and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Assemble & Cook Empanadas:
- Divide dough into 2 equal pieces. Roll out ½ the dough and cut out 4 inch circles.
- Flatten dough with rolling pin and place a tablespoon of the meat mixture and a tabblespoon of the cheese mixture in the center of each circle of dough.
- Fold circle of dough in half.
- Using your fingers, pinch edges of dough firmly together.
- Roll edges up and over all along the pressed edge, seal by pinching dough together.
- Refrigerate empanadas for 1 hour before cooking. This helps prevent empanadas from leaking out filling while being fried.
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Use enough oil so that it comes up at least half way up the sides of the empanadas.
- Once oil is hot, fry empanadas, a few at a time until golden brown, about a minute per side. Fry them in small batches; don't crowd them in the pan.
- Drain cooked empanadas on a wire rack while you fry up the remaining empanadas.
- Serve empanadas hot with the creamy guacamole dipping sauce.