What Are Chicken Curry Empanadas?
Empanadas are turnovers that are made with pastry dough and stuffed with filling. These emapanadas can be baked or fried and can have a variety of fillings, like different meat fillings or even all-veggie fillings. In this empanada recipe, we used a creamy and flavorful chicken curry filling with finely chopped green bell peppers that offer a little crunch to every bite.
Empanada is from the Spanish word empanar, meaning “to coat with bread.” They are assembled by adding filling to a piece of flattened pastry dough, and then folding the dough over itself.
These delicious chicken curry empanadas are usually sealed by pleating the edges, but if you’re new to making empanadas and want an easier way to assemble these savory turnovers, you can also use an empanada press.
Another thing that this chicken curry empanada has going for it is its crumbly, buttery empanada crust. Try this version or if you want to keep it simpler, use our tried-and-tested easy empanada dough recipe. Either version is a versatile crust recipe so you can make great make-ahead merienda snacks that will leave you full and satisfied.
Tips to Make Chicken Curry Empanada:
1 Marinate the chicken overnight.
You can make the chicken tastier by marinating it with 1/2 teaspoon salt the night before you plan to cook it. If you want the curry flavor to be stronger, you can also add the curry powder at this point and adjust to taste when you cook the chicken the next day.
2 Make the empanada dough ahead, too.
Empanada dough handles better when it’s been rested, and you can prepare it and let it chill in the refrigerator overnight. If you’re making a big batch, you can even keep it in the freezer for several weeks until you need it; just don’t forget to defrost it the night before you need it!
3 For a flaky empanada crust, don’t use your hands.
What makes empanada dough flaky and crunchy is the fat (aka the margarine or butter) in the dough, so the more you handle the dough with your warm hands, the faster this fat will melt. You don’t want this to happen. You want the fat to melt while the empanadas are frying or baking, and not before. We suggest using a food processor to mix the dough, or if you don’t have one, use two forks or two knives instead.
4 Ensure the filling isn’t wet.
We’re used to making chicken curry with a lot of sauce (Who doesn’t love sauce over rice?) but in this case, too much sauce can make the empanadas soggy and hard to wrap. Instead, focus on getting the seasonings just right to add a burst of flavor and spice to your chickent curry empanadas!
Chicken Curry Empanada Recipe
Ingredients
Chicken Curry Empanada Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose flour more for kneading
- 1 teaspoon Baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 Cup unsalted butter cold, cubed
- 4 large egg yolks
- 10-12 tablespoons cold water
- water as needed
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil for sauteing
- 1 Cup Potatoes cubed
- 3 cloves Garlic minced
- 1/2 Cup Onions minced
- 1 Cup chicken fillet (breast or thigh) cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- Salt to taste
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- 1/2 teaspoon betsin (MSG)
- 3 teaspoons Fish sauce divided
- 1/2 piece green bell pepper finely diced
- 2 tablespoons evaporated milk
- Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Make the dough: In a large bowl, sift together all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add in the butter and egg yolks. Cut the butter into the flour until the dough has a grainy texture without large chunks of butter. Add in cold water, and mix. Place dough onto a clean kitchen surface and knead until the dough is smooth. Divide the dough into two. Cover with a kitchen towel and set aside.
- Make the filling: In a large frying pan over medium heat, add two tablespoons of oil, and fry potatoes until cooked. Transfer cooked potatoes to a bowl. Add more oil, and sauté garlic and onions. When onions are softened, lower heat to its lowest setting and add chicken. Season with a pinch of salt, 1 teaspoon fish sauce, curry powder, MSG, black pepper, and green bell pepper. Let cook, without stirring, until chicken is cooked on one side. Stir until all the chicken is cooked through. Add evaporated milk, and stir for half a minute then turn off heat. Add remaining fish sauce. Season the filling to taste, and set aside to cool completely.
- On a floured surface, roll out the dough ball into a rectangle shape until about 1/8-inch thick. Cut out nine 4 ½-inch circles with a cookie cutter or a large bowl. Pile the circles together, and set aside. Knead the leftover dough together, adding a drop of water as needed if too dry, and roll out again to cut out more circles. Repeat with the other dough ball.
- Once ready to fill, place around 2 tablespoons filling at the center of the dough circle, leaving at least 3/4-inch on all sides. Lightly wet the edges of the dough with water. With both hands under the dough, bring the edges together while pushing in the filling. Place the dough on the surface so that it can stand, edges up. Pinch the edges with your fingers and seal together. Tilt to one side and crimp edges with a fork. Repeat with all the remaining circles.
- In a large frying pan, heat 2 inches of oil on high heat. While the oil is heating, in a bowl, lightly whisk a large egg for your egg wash. Brush on both sides of formed empanadas. Once oil is smoking hot, lower the heat. Fry empanadas, flipping occasionally until evenly golden brown. Serve hot.
