Baked tuna and olive empanadas — a Ravinder Bhogal recipe

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On a trip to Barcelona, we planned our accommodation so that we were no more than a brisk walk away from Mercat de Santa Caterina. Set under a rainbow-hued, rippling canopy in the old town, it’s smaller than the vast and more famous food market La Boqueria nearby, but it’s full of locals rather than the droves of tourists who flock to the latter to sit, elbow to elbow, at crowded counters to eat tapas.

Even before breakfast the market was already bustling. The vendors here hawk everything from local cheeses and fish to fruit, vegetables, bread and pastries. One of them, wearing a spotless white overcoat, proudly held up a silver hulk of turbot with crystal clear eyes that would no doubt feed a well-heeled crowd for dinner later that day.

Weaving around the market is hungry work and luckily there’s a variety of snacking options, my favourite of which are empanadas. They are little savoury pies, cousins of other pastry-wrapped morsels like pasties and samosas. The dough is an edible container for fish, meat or vegetables. They can be eaten morning, noon or night and appear in various manifestations all over Spain and the Latin world, either baked or fried.

I watched two women making them, deftly holding the open empanada with one hand, and using the other hand to crimp the outer edge so it looked like a braid. The less dexterous might just seal them with the prongs of a fork. Whatever the filling, fried or baked, they make a highly portable handheld snack, importantly leaving one hand free to drink wine or coffee, carry shopping bags, point at a bargain or haggle.

Baked tuna and olive empanadas

Makes 10-12

For the pastry

For the filling

1. To make the pastry, put the butter, salt, plain flour and turmeric in a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. With the motor running, pour in the warm milk until the mixture clumps together. Turn out on to a lightly floured surface and knead gently for a minute or so. Shape into a disc, wrap in clingfilm, then rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

2. Meanwhile make the filling. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat, add onion and fry over a low heat until very soft and then add garlic, oregano, paprika and lemon zest and fry until fragrant.

3. Add the chopped tomatoes and simmer until thick (10-15 minutes). Pour in the vinegar, add the sugar, season to taste and set aside. When cool, stir in tuna, olives, capers, chopped egg and parsley, and set aside.

4. Preheat the oven to 190C/Gas Mark 5. Divide the pastry in two and then roll out each piece on a lightly floured surface to the thickness of a £1 coin. Cut out 14cm diameter circles using a cookie cutter or a small bowl as a guide, rerolling the pastry offcuts as necessary.

5. Place the cooled filling in the centre of each circle and brush the edges with water. Fold the pastry over the filling to enclose and squeeze the edges to close. Crimp the edges (like a Cornish pasty) to seal, or simply press with the tines of a fork.

6. Put the empanadas on two baking sheets lined with non-stick baking paper, then brush with the beaten egg. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the pastry is golden and crisp.

Ravinder Bhogal is chef-patron of Jikoni. Follow Ravinder @cookinboots/@cookinboots

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