Tuesday, March 3, 2009

The Role of Empanadas in Mexican Food Culture

By KC Kudra

The word empanada means "wrapped in bread" and these little snacks are created by wrapping a rough dough patty in half over a filling. This makes them semicircular in shape. Empanadas are very tasty and they make great snacks at any time of the day.

The History of Empanadas

Mexican empanadas are thought to derive from Galicia in Spain and they arrived in Latin America when the Galician colonists did. A Galician empanada is a large round or square pie, which is served in slices, making it a hearty and portable lunch for workers. Variations of this kind of portable snack include Italian calzone, Indian samosas, and Cornish pasties. Actually most cultures have a kind of "pocket" or meat pie type dish because they are handy to carry around.

Galician empanadas are often made with chicken, pork loin, or cod. Empanadas are considered a national dish in both Uruguay and Argentina and Galician empanadas are very popular in Latin America because of the high number of Galician immigrants who have made Latin America their home.

Empanadas, which have many different regional names, can be stuffed with poultry, meat, fish, vegetables, or cheese. You can also get sweet ones stuffed with cream and fruit. Ground beef sauted with different seasonings is a popular empanada filling. These delicious snacks are shallow fried, deep-fried or oven baked and they are a Mexican typical meal. Baked empanadas can be eaten hot, cold, or reheated but the fried ones are usually served hot.

These pastries are made all over Latin America and the empanada crust is normally made from wheat flour, water, salt, and a fat like shortening, butter or lard. The crust might be plain or seasoned.

Popular Mexican Empanada Varieties

Mexicans enjoy empanadas for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, as an appetizer, snack, or dessert. What a versatile treat they are!

Mexican fillings can include guava, pumpkin, cream, sweet potato, yam, fruit, cheese, seafood, meat, and chicken. The dough is either wheat or corn based depending on the Mexican region. In Chiapas, chicken or cheese empanadas are popular. In the Hidalgo region, empanadas are particularly famous.

If you are interested in Mexican food culture, these delicious pastry snacks cannot be overlooked and if you want to make your own Mexican dishes, you will find them fun and rewarding to create. Empanadas are especially good eaten hot from the oven and the whole family will love these tasty little Mexican treats. It is also possible, of course, to buy readymade frozen empanadas from the store but everyone knows the homemade ones are a hundred times better!

Empanadas are a tasty treat at any time of the day and they make a welcome change from sandwiches in packed lunches. They have evolved throughout Mexican food history to become one of the most popular and well-known Mexican food staples enjoyed in modern times.

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