Napo's Empanadas Tucumanas

Tucumán-style empanadas, or empanadas tucumanas, are known for their characteristic filling: matambre de vaca cortado a cuchillo (knife-cut veal flank), onion, cumin, paprika, green onion, and hard-boiled egg. The dough is customarily made with wheat flour and lard, and then baked in a horno de barro, a clay oven, or fried in lard, and accompanied with a lemon wedge. 

Enrique Napoleón Castellote Posse, or Napo, spent much of his childhood in the countryside of Tucumán, near Famaillá, a small town famous for its empanadas. There, he has fond memories of its empanada culture which has put a profound impact on his life's path.

“I would watch Vicenta, the wife of the man in charge of the farm we’d visit, make empanadas. She was an incredible cook. Those types of flavors stay with you your entire life.”  

When Napo moved to Buenos Aires to work as a cook in kitchens, he began a personal search to make his own traditional Tucumán-style empanadas. He ventured across all of Tucumán and Buenos Aires, eating hundreds of empanadas, and taking mental notes in order to perfect his empanadas tucumanas. He shared his special recipe with us. 

Empanadas tucumanas call for matambre de vaca, which is the thin area between the ribs and skin of the cow. Matambre means “mata hambre” in Spanish, and translates to “hunger killer”. Many say that this cut was originally thrown away and not used, so it was very cheap to stuff inside empanadas. The matambre needs to be boiled for two hours in salted water, then, both the piece of boiled meat and cooking liquid is saved for the recipe. 

Mix together flour and salt and make a well, slowly adding the melted pork fat and warm water. Napo uses a wooden cuenco or batea, a bread bowl used especially for making dough. 

Knead the dough so that it is incorporated together. Let the dough rest, covered or sealed, for at least 25 minutes. 

Cut the matambre with a knife into cubes. Set aside. Chop the onions and fry it in lard. Add salt and stir until brown. In another pan, heat up the matambre cooking liquid, turn off the heat and add all the spices and mix well. Let it cool. Pour the cooking liquid with the spices into the matambre and onion mixture and stir well. 

Add the chopped hard boiled egg and place it into a serving dish. Sprinkle with chopped green onions and set aside. This will be the filling for the empanadas.

After the dough has rested, cut into equal pieces and make balls with the dough, about 35 g per ball. Flatten with hands and roll out with a rolling pin into discs about 10 cm in diameter. 

Place the empanada dough in the palm of your hand and pinch both ends. Add a spoonful of filling, and carefully, fold the empanada dough to seal. This is called the repulgue, and in of itself is an artform. 

“Tucumán-style empanadas must have 13 repulgues, just like the Last Supper, to honor Jesus and the 12 Apostles.”

“The question isn’t fried versus baked empanadas,” Napo explained. “It’s fried empanadas in pork fat versus baked empanadas in a horno de barro, or clay oven. The clay oven gives the empanada more flavor, it’s the most delicious thing in the entire world, it also gives the empanada an added color and texture.”

Since Napo didn't have access to a clay oven, he prefers to fry the empanadas in hot oil (280 degrees C) or lard (200 degrees C) until golden brown. 

Napo says a great empanada might be messy, juices spill out when you take a bite, one sign of a well made empanada. In Tucumán, unlike other parts of Argentina, they eat empanadas with a squirt of fresh lemon juice. “The acid really accentuates the flavors."

Napo runs his own empanada delivery business, called Napo Cocinero, selling over 120 dozen frozen empanadas every week for clients to fry or bake in their own homes. And many tucumanos (people from Tucumán) agree, reigning him the King of Empanadas because he makes the best empanadas tucumanas in all of Buenos Aires.