Natchitoches Meat Pies with Pepper Dipping Sauce
- 1 1/2 cups sour cream
- 1/3 cup buttermilk
- 1 1/2 teaspoons thyme
- 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 scant teaspoon granulated garlic
- Tabasco sauce
- Kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons diced onion
- 2 tablespoons diced celery
- 2 tablespoons diced green bell pepper
- 1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
- 2 large garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 pound ground pork
- 1/2 pound ground beef
- Freshly ground black pepper
- All-purpose flour, for dusting
- 16 frozen empanada wrappers (see Note), thawed
- Vegetable oil, for frying
- In a medium bowl, whisk the sour cream with the buttermilk, thyme, cracked pepper and granulated garlic.
- Season with Tabasco and salt.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight.
- In a large skillet, heat the olive oil.
- Add the onion, celery, bell pepper, jalapeno and garlic and cook over moderate heat until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Raise the heat to moderately high, add the pork and beef and cook until no trace of pink remains, about 5 minutes.
- Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
- Transfer to a baking sheet and refrigerate until chilled, at least 20 minutes.
- Arrange the empanada wrappers on a very lightly floured work surface.
- Spoon 2 tablespoons of the meat filling onto the lower half of each wrapper.
- Lightly moisten the edge of each wrapper with water, fold it over the filling and press the edges together to seal.
- Crimp decoratively with a fork.
- In a large, deep skillet, heat 1 1/2 inches of oil to 375.
- Line a baking sheet with paper towels.
- Working in batches, fry the meat pies, turning once, until golden, about 2 minutes.
- Transfer to the prepared baking sheet to drain, then serve hot with the black pepper dipping sauce.
sour cream, buttermilk, thyme, freshly cracked black pepper, garlic, tabasco sauce, kosher salt, extravirgin olive oil, onion, celery, green bell pepper, jalapeno, garlic, ground pork, ground beef, freshly ground black pepper, flour, empanada wrappers, vegetable oil
Taken from www.foodandwine.com/recipes/natchitoches-meat-pies-with-pepper-dipping-sauce (may not work)