Guisell Harith Osorio has been selling her empanadas for 24 years — and before it closed in December, her South American restaurant, Sabores del Sur, was the spot in the East Bay for Chilean handheld savory pies, her world-famous alfajores and bottomless sangria.
This chicken empanada recipe, from “We Are La Cocina: Recipes in Pursuit of the American Dream” (Chronicle Books, $30), is the star of that menu, and continues to sell out via Osorio’s new Sabores de Sur location in Lafayette, a pandemic-born commercial kitchen open for takeout and delivery only. Her tip: Take your time slow-cooking the onions. That’s the base for the empanadas’ flavor.
Empanadas de Pollo
Makes 12 empanadas
Dough:
3 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces and frozen
½ cup lard, cut into 1-inch pieces and frozen
¾ to 1 cup cold water, added in small increments
Chicken filling:
3½- to 4-pound cooked or rotisserie chicken
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
½ cup diced onions
½ cup diced red bell pepper
1 yellow Peruvian pepper (aji amarillo), diced, with seeds
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup chicken stock
¼ teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
3 hard-boiled eggs, quartered
24 golden raisins (about ½ cup)
12 black olives, pitted
Egg wash: 1 whole egg plus 2 tablespoons water
Directions
To make the dough: Combine the flour and salt and whisk to incorporate. In the bowl of a food processor, add the butter, lard and flour mixture and pulse to break up the fat pieces. The mixture should be crumbly and have small pieces of fat evenly distributed.
Add the water to the flour mixture, ¼ cup at a time, and pulse until a ball of dough forms. You should need only ¾ cup, but if the dough is still crumbly, add a couple of tablespoons more, mixing after each addition. The dough should be easy to handle and not sticky, so don’t add more water than needed. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, flatten and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
To make the filling: Pull the meat off the cooked chicken, discarding the bones and skin. Chop the meat and set it aside.
Heat the oil over medium heat in a large sauté pan. Add the onions, peppers and garlic and cook, stirring often using a wooden spoon, until the vegetables have softened and any liquid is reduced, about 3 minutes.
Add the oregano and tomato paste, spreading and cooking until the mixture is brick red, about 1 minute. Reduce the heat to low and add the cooked chicken. Add the stock, stirring and scraping up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Allow to come to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid is slightly reduced and the chicken is heated through, 3 to 4 minutes. Season with the ¼ teaspoon salt and remove from the heat. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Allow the filling to cool completely. This can be sped up by spreading it on a baking sheet or shallow baking dish and placing it in the refrigerator.
Whisk together the egg and water for the egg wash.
To assemble and bake the empanadas: Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
Flour a work surface and rolling pin. Cut the dough in half and roll out one piece to 1/8-inch thick. Cut rounds using a 6-inch round pastry cutter. Put 2 tablespoons of the meat filling onto half of each round. Top the filling with a quarter of a hard-boiled egg, 2 raisins and 1 olive. Brush the edges of the dough with water. Fold the dough over the filling to make a half-moon shape. Press the edges together and finish by pinching little crimps or pleats.
Repeat the entire process for the remaining dough and filling. Place the shaped empanadas on the prepared baking sheet and brush the tops with the egg wash. Bake until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Serve warm.
— Courtesy Guisell Harith Osorio and Sabores del Sur, reprinted from “We Are La Cocina” by Leticia Landa and Caleb Zigas (Chronicle Books, $30)
