Empanadas Tucumanas

Ingredients

• •Beef
• •Onion
• •Hard-boiled egg
• •Scallions
• •Cumin
• •Paprika
• •Beef broth
• •Empanada dough

Steps

1. 1Start by hand-chopping a cut of beef into very small pieces rather than mincing it, since the uneven texture is part of what defines this style.
2. 2Sauté finely diced onion in beef fat or lard until soft and translucent, then add the chopped beef along with cumin, sweet paprika, salt, and a splash of beef broth, cooking it down until the meat is tender and the mixture is slightly juicy but not soupy.
3. 3Let this filling cool completely, then stir in chopped hard-boiled egg and the green parts of scallions so they stay fresh rather than cooking through.
4. 4Roll out discs of empanada dough, place a generous spoonful of the cooled filling just off-center on each one, and fold the dough over to form a half-moon.
5. 5Seal the edge with a traditional repulgue, a rope-like fold made by pinching and folding the dough over itself along the curved edge, which also helps keep the juicy filling sealed in during cooking.
6. 6Traditionally these are baked in a very hot clay or wood-fired oven until the dough is golden and slightly blistered, though a home oven or deep fryer also works well.
7. 7Serve them hot, ideally within minutes of coming out of the oven, so the filling is still steaming when bitten into.