Beef empanadas and Mexican-style corn
The spicy, zesty sweetcorn salsa is a great addition to these smoky beef parcels.
Ingredients
For the braised beef cheek
- 1 x 300–400g/10½oz–14oz beef cheek
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, roughly chopped
- 1 carrot, roughly chopped
- 1 stick celery, roughly chopped
- 1 bay leaf
- 200ml/7fl oz red wine
- 400ml/14fl oz beef stock
For the empanadas
- 350g/12oz plain flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 175g/6oz salted butter, chilled
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- ½ onion, roughly chopped
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- 1 dried red chilli, finely chopped
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp tomato purée
- 1 tbsp capers, drained
- 2 free-range eggs, beaten
For the corn
- 4 heads sweetcorn, husk and silk removed
- 2 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 tsp ground chipotle pepper
- 150g/5½oz cotija or feta cheese, crumbled
- ½ garlic clove, crushed
- 1 lime, juice only
- 2 spring onions, chopped
- 30g/1oz sliced jalapeños, to serve
Method
Preheat the oven to 160C/180C Fan/Gas 3.
To braise the beef cheek, heat the oil in an oven-proof dish, add the beef cheek and sear on all sides to seal. Remove from the pan and set aside
Add the vegetables and the bay leaf and cook for 3–4 minutes until soft. Place the beef cheek back in the dish, add the wine and cook until the liquid has reduced in volume by half. Add the stock, season with salt and pepper and place in the oven for 2–3 hours or until the meat falls off the cheek easily.
For the empanadas, blitz the flour, baking powder and butter in a food processor, adding a little water to bind. Wrap the dough in cling film and rest in the fridge for 1 hour.
Heat the oil in a pan over a medium heat and gently fry the onion, garlic, spices and tomato purée. Stir in the cooked beef cheek and capers. If the mixture is too dry, add some cooking jus to loosen. Cook until hot through.
To assemble the empanadas, remove the pastry from the fridge, and roll out to the thickness of a pound coin (3mm). Cut circles from the pastry, using a 10cm/in saucer or pastry cutter. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
Put 2 heaped teaspoons filling on one half of each pastry circle. Wet the edges of the pastry with a little water, fold the non-filled half of each pastry over the filled half, and crimp the edges or use a fork to seal. Brush with the egg, place on the baking tray and bake for 25 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat a large griddle pan over a high heat and grill the sweetcorn, turning occasionally, until all sides are chargrilled and browned.
Cut the kernels from the cob by holding the corn on its base and running a sharp knife down from top to bottom. Mix the kernels with the mayonnaise, chipotle, cotija, garlic, lime juice, spring onions and jalapeños. Serve with the empanadas.
