Mini Chicken Empanadas

Empanadas are one of my kid's favorite dishes! These homemade empanadas can be stuffed with ground beef, pizza (pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese, and pepperoni) mofongo, or corn beef. In Puerto Rico, we even stuff them with white frying cheese and guava paste!. These are the best empanadas you will ever taste!

(Easy Empanada Dough)

Ingredients

4 cups all-purpose flour

¾ cup cold unsalted butter

1 cup of water

1 egg

¼ teaspoon salt

Add flour and salt to a food processor, and pulsé to combine.

Cut the butter into small pieces. Add to the flour and pulse the food processor to combine. You get a crumbly structure.

Add the egg and water in a steady stream while the food processor pulses. It will turn into a consistent flaky dough.

Take the dough out of the food processor and wrap it in foil. Rest in the fridge for 1 hour.

Divide the dough in half and roll the dough into a rectangle of about ¼ inch thick (a bit over ½ centimeter)

Cut the empanadas using a small plate, or empanada cutter, or in my case, I used the top of a cookie jar because I wanted to make mini empanadas.

Filling

Ingredients

2 medium boneless chicken breast

2 tbsp of tomato sauce

1 seasoning with color (Sazon con Achiote)

1 chicken powder bouillon

1/4 tsp cumin

1 garlic, minced

1/2 cup of mixed bell peppers red, orange, and yellow, diced

2 tbsp of white onion

1/2 tsp of oregano

1 tbsp of Sofrito

1 small potato, diced

2 tablespoons of cilantro

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tbsp of vegetable oil

In a large skillet set over medium, heat the oil, and sauté the sofrito, peppers, and onion for 3-4 minutes. I add the garlic and sauté then add the chicken. Cook the chicken covered for 5 minutes.

Add the oregano, tomato sauce, Sazon with color, chicken powder, cumin, and potatoes. Mix everything together and cover with a lid for 15 minutes or until the potatoes are soft. Add the cilantro and set aside.

Now you can place filling (about 1 tbsp) on each circle and fold it in half, crimp the edges with a fork.

Add oil to a pan so that it reaches 1 inch in depth. Heat oil to between 350 and 375 degrees.

Fry 3 at a time, 2-3 minutes per side, or until golden brown.

Serve immediately with salsa or your favorite dipping sauce.

Store leftover empanadas in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. (Mango Jalapeño Salsa recipe on this website)

(If you want you can bake the empanadas at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until golden brown. I like to add a quick egg wash to them before going in the oven. It helps them to get perfectly golden brown!)

Enjoy!