These plump, fried hors d’oeuvres, a seafood variation on Chile’s signature baked onion-and-meat-filled empanadas, are hot and juicy. Have plenty of napkins ready.
Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup hot water
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 cup lard at room temperature
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
- About 3 cups vegetable oil for frying
- 1 1/2 pounds small hard-shelled clams (about 2 inches across), scrubbed
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1 1/2 pounds cultivated mussels
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 1 cup chopped scallions
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 fresh serrano or jalapeño chile, seeded and finely chopped
- 1/2 tablespoon paprika (not hot)
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and finely chopped
- 1/2 pound sea scallops, tough ligament from side of each discarded and scallops finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
- Equipment: a 4-inch round cookie cutter; a deep-fat thermometer
- 1 deep-fat thermometer
- Accompaniment: tomato salsa
Instructions:
- Stir salt into hot water until dissolved.
- Sift flour, baking powder, and sugar into a large bowl, then make a well in center and add lard and butter. Stir salted water into well with a wooden spoon, melting lard and butter, then stir flour into liquid, adding a little water if necessary, to form a soft and pliable dough. Knead dough on an unfloured surface until smooth and glossy, 3 to 5 minutes (dough will be soft and slightly sticky).
- Cover dough with a kitchen towel (not terry cloth).
- Cook clams in wine in a medium saucepan, covered, over medium-high heat until just opened wide, about 5 minutes (discard any that remain unopened). Transfer clams to a bowl with a slotted spoon, then cook mussels in same liquid, covered, stirring once or twice, until opened, 3 to 5 minutes (discard unopened ones). Add mussels to clams and strain cooking liquid through a paper-towel-lined sieve into a bowl.
Seafood Empanaditas • Yield: 30 servings
Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup hot water
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 cup lard at room temperature
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
- About 3 cups vegetable oil for frying
- 1 1/2 pounds small hard-shelled clams (about 2 inches across), scrubbed
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1 1/2 pounds cultivated mussels
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 1 cup chopped scallions
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 fresh serrano or jalapeño chile, seeded and finely chopped
- 1/2 tablespoon paprika (not hot)
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and finely chopped
- 1/2 pound sea scallops, tough ligament from side of each discarded and scallops finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
- Equipment: a 4-inch round cookie cutter; a deep-fat thermometer
- 1 deep-fat thermometer
- Accompaniment: tomato salsa
Seafood Empanaditas Nutrition Facts:
• Diet:
• Calories: 394.68
• Fat: 567.23
• Carbs: 116.01
• Protein: 304.85
• Cholesterol: 330.20
• Calcium: 116.17
• Sodium: 396.65* E.g. 137.29 = 137mg or 137g – 29%
Nutrition Facts labels are not always factual.