“Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. . . ” 1 Corinthians 4:2
Chipotle Chicken Empanadas are a smokey, meat filled pastry that is the perfect appetizer or on the go meal.
Life can get so hectic sometimes. You may work beaucoup hours in a week, or maybe you do not work the normal 9-5 job. Perhaps, you watch children all day and don’t have a lot of time on your hands. It may be that everyone in your family has somewhere different to go to in the late afternoon/evening hours and you just need something fast and easy and possibly be able to eat it on the go—Chipotle Chicken Empanadas are your meal!
Why Chipotle Chicken Empanadas?
What is absolutely perfect about Chipotle Chicken Empanadas are 1) they are pretty quick to make. 2) You can double or triple the batch so you can have extras. 3) You can make them at the beginning of the week and warm them up 30-45 seconds each and have a quick filling meal or snack in no time. Oh! I can’t forget the most important of all—They are delicious!
I made these one evening for my extended family just last week to go with the tacos and rice I had for dinner. Well, if you want to be honest, I needed some taste testers since I made them for the first time that night. I get a little nervous when new people taste my creations for the first time. I was being quite brave and it could go well or be a disaster. Obviously, since I am posting this recipe on this blog, it went well. Whew! And what was really great, I was able to see how it would hold out by not eating it right away. I had to travel, what should have been 25 minutes, 45 minutes to my husband’s family house (South Florida afternoon traffic is insane!) I wanted to make sure everything was hot so we could put all the food in a warm oven until dinner. As I am used to catering dinners and such, I put all the food into aluminum trays and hoped that it would all make it okay. It all did and the Chipotle Chicken Empanadas were excellent.
Fix some black beans and rice to accompany Chipotle Chicken Empanadas for a complete meal.
Mama Fawn’s Tips. . .
- These empanadas are baked but if you’d rather you can fry them. The empanada dough I use is for baking, so if you are going to fry them make sure you get the dough for frying.
- Empanada dough can be found in the frozen aisle of your store with the ethnic foods.
- Keep the dough frozen until an hour before you are ready to use it. It thaws out fast.
- Like ground turkey instead, go for it!
- Have all your ingredients measured and chopped because once you start cooking, it goes rather quickly.
- You can substitute any melty cheese for this empanada.
- Usually I would tell you to omit the olives if you don’t like them, but they really make this dish.
- It’s important to let the filling cool before stuffing them into the empanada dough or you could definitely end up burning yourself.
- If you don’t want to crimp the dough with your fingers, feel free to use a fork. Make sure the dough is completely sealed.
Chipotle Chicken Empanadas
Course: DinnerCuisine: LatinDifficulty: Easy12
servings20
minutes20
minutesIngredients
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 small onion, diced
1 lb ground chicken
½ tsp salt
2 garlic cloves, minced
5 tbsp chipotle sauce
½ cup chicken broth
¼ cup green olives, minced
1 cup shredded monterey jack cheese
1 package (12) empanada dough rounds (for baking)
1 egg + 1 tbsp water, beaten
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- In a skillet, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat. Add the diced onions and cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly, until the onions are translucent.
- Add the ground chicken and salt; cook until the chicken is no longer pink and most of the liquid has evaporated. Add the minced garlic and cook for an additional minute.
- Add the chipotle sauce and chicken broth and simmer uncovered for about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the green olives and the shredded cheese and mix well.
- Remove from the heat and let cool for about 10 minutes.
- With a rolling pin, roll out the individual dough a little so it is a little thinner and larger in diameter.
- Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the filling into the center of each of the empanada dough. Fold the dough over the filling and press together. With your fingers and thumb pinch the dough together folding over the edges (crimp). You can also take a fork and pinch the dough together.
- Place the empanadas on a parchment lined baking sheet and lightly brush with the egg wash.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy!
They were extra special, the whole dinner was amazing, family time is special. Thank you. 💖