Empanadas with queso blanco, Venezuelan style

I've already gave up to my Polish food craving the other day and it proved to be very easy to find the ingredients in Dublin. Now I want to show you how to make empanadas de queso, a recipe from Venezuela, my country of origin, that I haven't had the chance to make because I couldn't find the right cheese.

You'll see, even though I loooove the many types of cheeses you can find here in the supermarket; the fresh, semi-hard, salty cheese from Venezuela that I used to take for granted seemed to be non-existent in the emerald island. That was, until I met the guys from Queso Blanco Dublin the other day. A small group of young Venezuelans that decided to make the type of cheese not only missed by their countrymen, but by lots of South Americans as well, because with one name or another, this ingredient appears in many Latin  American cuisines.

So, I contacted them through their Facebook and we agree to met by Saint Stephen's Green for the delivery. The guys were punctual and friendly and with a price of 10 euros per kilo, I think it's good value for artisan cheese. 

Before I move on to the recipe, I want to talk about the cheese: it was definitely fresh, and with a good level of salt. A bit on the softer side, but hard enough to grate it comfortably. The most similar thing I've had encountered here before was mozzarella balls, but they are too watery for empanadas and you'll see why...

Ingredients (4 empanadas)

250 gr. cornmeal (you can find it in many international food shops in City Centre

500 ml of water

1 teaspoon of salt

200 gr of queso blanco (white cheese)

4 tablespoons of oil (for the dough)

Enough oil to fry them

Directions

Put the cornmeal in a bowl. Add the salt, mix and add half the water. 

Add the oil and mix everything, we normally do it with our (very clean) hands.

Knead the dough and add the rest of the water gradually. When it feels like Playdough, it's ready (if it's too crumbly, add more water and oil, if it's too wet, add more flour). 

Divide the dough in four pieces the size of a small orange.

Put on ball of dough on a silicon mat (or a cutting board covered with plastic film), and press with your fingers until you get a 0,5 cm thick circle. You can use a dough roll if you prefer but it's not necessary. 

Put one quarter of the cheese on one side of the circle. Avoid covering the borders because you'll need them clean to close the empanada properly.

Carefully, fold the circle in half, without pressing the centre. Press very gently on the borders and uncover. You'll get a moon-shaped empanada.

Make sure the borders are well closed (if they're not, the water from the cheese will get out and when it touches the hot oil, it will be very dangerous).

Sometimes I use a plate as a cutter just to perfect the shape but this is optional. Repeat with all the empanadas. You can spread a bit of oil on the mat or plastic film so it's easier to fold the empanadas.

Pour enough oil in a pan, so it can cover at least half the empanada. Use medium-high flame, if it's too hot they'll burn outside and won't cook inside. If it's too low, they will cook very slowly and absorb too much oil. Fry the first side of the empanada. 

When the sides are getting golden, you can flip it. Be very gently, because if you squeeze them, the juice from the cheese will come out to the hot oil and you may get burned.

You can let them rest in absorbent paper before serving, most people do that, but I prefer not to.

Eat them hot.

Tips: If you don't find queso blanco, a firm type of mozzarella will be a decent substitute. Just add a bit of salt to it.

You can make empanadas with chicken, meat and even fish. 

You can make mini-empanadas and serve as finger food.