Smoked Snoek Empanadas

📝 Ingredients

• For the Dough
• 450 g flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 50 g lard
• 200 ml water
• 1 teaspoon vinegar
• 2 egg yolks
• For the Filling
• 2 potatoes (peeled and cut into 1cm dice and boiled until tender, drained and kept warm)
• 1 onion (diced)
• 1 clove garlic (mashed)
• 200 g smoked snoek (flaked and all bones removed)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 2 tablespoons chopped pickled jalapeno peppers (optional)
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 4 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
• sea salt flakes
• black pepper
• Other Ingredients
• 50 ml apricot jam
• 1 beaten egg
• smoked paprika

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1Make the Dough
2. 2Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl.
3. 3Add the lard and rub into the flour with your fingertips until it is evenly incorporated.
4. 4Mix the water, vinegar and egg yolks in a cup.
5. 5Add the mixture to the flour mixture and stir with a fork until it comes together.
6. 6Bring the mixture together with your hands and turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface.
7. 7Knead for a few minutes until it a smooth dough.
8. 8Roll into a ball, cover with cling wrap and leave to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
9. 9Make the Filling
10. 10Fry the onion and garlic over a low heat until soft and slightly caramelised.
11. 11Add to all the other filling ingredients in a large bowl and gently mix until combined.
12. 12To make the Empanadas
13. 13Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Set aside.
14. 14Divide the dough into 16 even portions.
15. 15Roll each portion into a ball and on a light floured work surface, use a rolling pin to roll each ball out into a 12cm or so diameter circle.
16. 16Soften the apricot jam (pop in the microwave for 20 seconds if needed) and spoon about ½ teaspoon of the jam in the middle of the disk of each dough.
17. 17Top with a spoonful of filling.
18. 18Brush the edges with beaten egg and fold the dough over the filling to create a semi-circle.
19. 19Press the edges together firmly and cut off any excess dough with a cookie cutter or pizza wheel.
20. 20Lay the empanadas onto the prepared baking tray and brush with the rest of the beaten egg and sprinkle with some more smoked paprika.
21. 21Bake for 20 - 25 minutes, until the pastry is golden and cooked.
22. 22Serve immediately
23. 23Adapted from Jennifer Rodda