Air fryer cheese empanadas (Empanadas de viento)
Recipe for air fryer cheese empanadas with a homemade empanada dough.These empanadas are inspired by the traditional Ecuadorian empanadas de viento (empanadas de queso).
Servings 12 to 15 medium size empanadas or up to 25 small empanadas
Ingredients
For the empanada dough:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour 3 cups = 375 grams (1 cup = 125 grams)
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tablespoon of sugar
- 115 grams of butter 4 oz or 1 stick, cut in 8 pieces, can be cold or room temperature
- ¼ cup or 4 tablespoons of orange juice ¼ cup = 60 ml
- 2/3 cup sparkling water or still water add more if needed, 2/3 cup =158 ml
For the cheese filling:
- 2 ½ cups grated cheese you can use mozzarella, quesillo, monterey jack, Oaxaca or any other cheese that melts well or a combination of your favorites - you can also add a bit salty crumbled cheese (queso fresco or feta)
- 1 cup finely chopped white onion optional but recommended
For cooking and sprinkling:
- Oil for brushing
- ¼ to ½ cup sugar for sprinkling adjust to taste
Instructions
To make the empanada dough for the air fryer:
- Combine the flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder in a mixer or food processor and mix well.
- Add the pieces of butter and continue mixing until you have a coarse mix.
- Add the orange juice and sparkling water – start with ½ cup of water and then add more as needed, pulse and mix until clumps of dough start to form.
- To make the empanada dough by hand, follow the same instructions, but use your hands to mix the ingredients together.
- Form a ball with the dough and knead lightly until smooth.
- Place the dough in a bowl, coat with small amount of oil, cover and let rest at room temperature for 15 minutes.
- To make the empanada discs or rounds, there are a couple of ways to do this.The first option is to roll out the dough into a thin layer and cut out round disc shapes for empanadas (use round molds or a small bowl/plate).
- The second method is to form the dough into several small balls of dough, about 1.5 oz to 2 oz in weight depending on the empanada size you want.
- Then use a tortilla press or a rolling pin to roll them out – they don’t need to be perfectly round. It’s really important to get the discs very thin since they cook very quickly, if after cutting out the round shapes or pressing them with a tortilla press, they are still thick, use a rolling pin to roll out each disc a little more until it is very thin.
- These empanada discs can be used immediately or stored in the refrigerator or freezer to use later.
To fill, assemble, and air fry the cheese empanadas:
- Mix the grated cheese and chopped onions together.
- Spoon the cheese filling on the center of each empanada disc.
- Fold the empanada discs and seal the edges, first pressing gently with your fingers until the edges are sealed, next twist and fold the edges of the empanadas to make a little curl like closure (called repulgue or churito). You can also use a fork to seal the empanadas; however, the fork method does not seal them entirely and you might have leaks.
- If you have time, chill the empanadas for at least an hour, this will also help them seal better and prevent leaks.
- When ready to cook them, preheat the air fryer to 375 F (190 C).
- Brush the empanadas with oil and sprinkle a little bit of sugar on top. If you prefer to not sprinkle sugar on top you can omit that part.
- Place the empanadas on the air fryer rack or in the basket, do not overcrowd them. Air fry them at 375 F (190 C) for 10-12 minutes. You do not need to flip them over, but you can rotate them if needed.
- The empanadas will be done when they are golden on top, a bit of cheese might leak out.
- Place the warm cheese empanadas on a plate, sprinkle with additional sugar and serve immediately.
