Chilean pino empanadas

Curious name they have the Chilean pino empanadas, don't you think? El pino is the name of the very traditional filling of onion, beef, olives, egg and raisins, which apparently derives from the Mapuche word pirru and that has nothing to do with the tree.

Besides the typical pino filling, Chilean empanadas are distinguished by their particular seal. In this article we used the Chilean method, but also the easier method with the empanadilla press that can save us time and, let's be honest… we'll devour them anyway.

In this tasty recipe we make all components from scratch: from the famous pino for the filling to the delicious empanada dough. For that we have all the proper utensils and a legendary skill.

Tellier empanadilla press

Ingredients

For the pino filling:

• 1 kg of beef, cut by knife, not minced
• 1 large onion
• ½ tsp. sweet paprika
• ½ tsp. dried oregano
• ½ tsp. cumin
• Olive oil
• 1 tbsp. flour
• ½ cup water
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 20 black olives
• a good handful of raisins
• 2 hard-boiled eggs

For the empanada dough:

• 120 ml milk
• 120 ml water
• 2 tsp. salt
• 500 g all-purpose flour
• 2 egg yolks
• 80 g lard
• 1 egg to brush the empanadas

Preparation

1. We prepare the pino first: heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Sauté the finely chopped onion over high heat, until it just begins to soften. Add the chopped meat and brown it.
2. Add the spices and mix, sautéing them just enough so the paprika doesn't turn bitter.
3. Then add the flour and sauté to remove the raw taste. Add the water, season with salt and cook 30 minutes over low heat.
4. Add the olives and the raisins.
5. Taste the seasoning and adjust if necessary. Let cool.
6. To make the dough, place all the ingredients, including the softened lard, in a food processor and set to knead (with the dough hook if using the KitchenAid or with the dough program if using the Magimix Cook Expert).
7. When the dough is well combined, remove it from the machine, wrap it in plastic and let it rest for at least 1 hour, so the gluten relaxes and it stretches well.
8. To form the Chilean empanadas divide the dough into portions of 50-55 g for the medium press (relative to the Tellier empanadilla molds), into portions of 85-90 g for the large press, or you can roll out the entire dough and cut round disks of the size you want, as is traditionally done in Spain and as we did in this recipe.
9. Fill each empanada with a good spoonful of pino and a small piece of hard-boiled egg.
10. To make the traditional Chilean seal brush the edge of the empanadas with a little water, close them trying to expel all the air, press the edge together and then fold it as seen in the photos (lower empanadas on the tray).
11. To make the seal with the empanadilla press, place the empanada inside the mold, wet the edge in the same way and close it, pressing gently.
12. Place the empanadas on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
13. When they are all ready, brush with the beaten egg and put the tray in the oven. Bake them about 30-35 minutes at 180°, until nicely golden.

Tellier empanadilla press and Pallarès Solsona knives

These Chilean empanadas have a deli-cious spicy flavor. Or maybe I'm just addicted to cumin. Also, they have the advantage of being almost as good cold as they are freshly made. Watch out for that bikini operation.