Salteñas (Bolivian Baked Empanadas)

• Prep1 h 15 min
• Cook1 h 30 min
• Total8 h 45 min
• Serves12

Ingredients

For the filling (the day before)

• 14 g unflavored powdered gelatin (2 envelopes)
• 100 g cold water (scant 1/2 cup)
• 200 g yellow onion, in pieces (1 medium)
• 4 green onions, in pieces
• 2 garlic cloves
• 40 g vegetable oil (3 tbsp)
• 30 g ají panca paste (2 tbsp), or 1 tbsp sweet paprika plus 1/4 tsp cayenne
• 1 tsp sweet paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 500 g beef sirloin or top round, in 1 cm cubes (1 lb 2 oz, 1/2 in cubes)
• 350 g beef broth (1 1/2 cups)
• 15 g sugar (1 tbsp)
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 250 g potatoes, peeled, in 1 cm cubes (1 large, 1/2 in cubes)
• 100 g frozen peas (2/3 cup)
• 10 g fresh parsley leaves, chopped (1/4 cup)

For the dough

• 120 g butter (1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp)
• 1 tsp ground annatto (achiote) or sweet paprika
• 180 g warm water (3/4 cup)
• 80 g sugar (1/3 cup plus 1 tbsp)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 large egg
• 500 g all-purpose flour (4 cups), plus extra for rolling

To fill and finish

• 2 hard-boiled eggs, each cut in 6 pieces
• 12 pitted olives, black or green
• 24 raisins, optional
• 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tbsp milk

Instructions

1. The day before, sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water in a small bowl and let it soften. Place the onion, green onions and garlic in the mixing bowl, chop 4 sec/speed 5 and scrape down. Add the oil, ají paste, paprika, cumin and oregano and sauté 6 min/120°C (250°F)/speed 1.
2. Add the beef, broth, sugar, salt and pepper. Place the simmering basket on the mixing bowl lid instead of the measuring cup and cook 25 min/100°C (212°F)/reverse/speed soft.
3. Add the potatoes and peas and cook 12 min/100°C (212°F)/reverse/speed soft, until the potatoes are tender. Add the softened gelatin and the parsley and cook 2 min/90°C (195°F)/reverse/speed soft, until the gelatin dissolves.
4. Pour the filling into a shallow dish, let it cool, cover it and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight, until the juices set like jelly.
5. On baking day, place the butter and annatto in the mixing bowl and melt 4 min/70°C (160°F)/speed 2. Add the warm water, sugar, salt and egg and mix 10 sec/speed 3, then add the flour and knead 2 min/dough mode. Cover the dough and let it rest for 15 minutes.
6. Preheat the oven to 220°C (425°F) and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Divide the dough into 12 balls of about 75 g and roll each one into a 15 cm (6 in) round, 3 to 4 mm (1/8 in) thick.
7. Working with the filling straight from the fridge, place about 80 g (3 heaping tbsp) in the center of a round with an olive, a piece of egg and 2 raisins. Brush the edge with water, fold the dough over into a half-moon and press the edges together.
8. Stand each salteña upright with the seam on top, then pinch and fold the seam over itself all along, like a braid, to seal it well. Place them on the baking sheets and brush them with the egg wash.
9. Bake in the oven, one sheet at a time, for 18 to 22 minutes, until deep golden. Let them rest 5 minutes, then eat them upright: bite off one end and sip the juices first.

Tips

• Take only a few spoonfuls of filling out of the fridge at a time. Once the jelly melts, the filling is hard to wrap.
• Ají panca paste, a mild Peruvian red chili paste, is sold in the Latin aisle. Bolivian cooks use ají colorado; paprika with a pinch of cayenne also works.
• If the braided seam feels tricky, press the edges firmly with a fork instead. What matters is a tight seal, so the juices stay inside.
• Freeze baked, cooled salteñas in a freezer bag up to 2 months. Reheat them from frozen in the oven at 180°C (350°F) for 20 to 25 minutes.