Best Shrimp Empanadas Recipe from Spain

Everyone loves to eat empanadas: you can eat them with your hands and a napkin (less time cleaning dishes), and you can also play and innovate with the different types of fillings.

In this article, we will introduce you to the shrimp empanadas recipe, a type of empanada that has shrimp and cheese as its main star, as well as a flaky dough on the outside.

Keep reading this article to learn how to make these delicious Spanish tapas, some tricks to store and serve them, plus some cool history facts.

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Background of the Dish

The recipe for empanadas had its origins centuries ago when travelers from all over the world had the habit of preparing any type of filling with dough on the outside to be able to take it on their trips.

For that reason, there are hundreds of versions with all sorts of fillings, and each one is related to the favorite foods of each region.

The Shrimp empanadas recipe comes from the coastal area of southern Spain, where shrimp is extremely popular and you can find it everywhere.

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Things You’ll Need for Shrimp Empanadas Recipe

To make these homemade empanadas you need shrimp, cheese, flour, milk, and water.

However, in the same way, that it happens with other empanadas recipes, there are plenty of ingredient replacements that you can make.

Ingredients

• 3 cups (360g) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1/2 cup (120ml) warm milk
• 2 tablespoons melted butter
• 1/2 cup (120ml) warm water
• 4 cups (500gr) raw shrimp
• 2 1/4 cups (500gr) butter cheese (mozzarella, butterkase, fontina, Monterey Jack, Pepper jack, etc.)
• Vegetable oil for frying (if you choose that cooking method)

How to Make Shrimp Empanadas Recipe – Step by Step Guide

1. The first step in this shrimp empanadas recipe is to grab a large bowl and put the flour in. You have to give it the shape of a volcano, which is a circle with the inside empty.

2. On the outside (the edge of the flour volcano) place the salt and in the center the baking powder, warm milk, and butter. Mix the dough and gradually add the warm water. Form a soft and elastic dough that does not stick to your fingers.

3. Then continue kneading fish empanadas dough until it gets a homogeneous dough. Then let it rest while covered for about 10 minutes.

4. In the meantime, cut squares of cheese (bitesize or smaller size) and the shrimp.

5. The next step in the empanadas recipe is to stretch the dough with the help of a rolling pin until it is thin.

6. After that, cut the dough into circles with an empanada dough cutter, or you can also use entree plates (small size) to cut the dough.

7. Place a little water around the circle with your fingers (this will help it to stick), then place pieces of shrimp and cheese in the center (it should have more cheese than shrimp).

8. Then, close the empanada by folding it, and with the help of a fork seal the edge so that the filling doesn’t come out of the shrimp empanadas.

9. In this shrimp empanada recipe, there are two ways of cooking them: you can do it in the oven, and you should preheat it to 400°F (200°C) for 15 minutes. If you choose to fry them, heat the oil over medium heat for 5 minutes.

10. If you are going to cook the empanadas in the oven, cook them for 15 minutes. If it is by frying them, do it for 5 minutes on each side and remove the excess oil with kitchen paper.

11. After the empanadas are cooked let them rest for 10 minutes at room temperature and serve them.

Substitution of Ingredients

If you want to make this shrimp empanadas recipe but you don’t have all the ingredients don’t worry, there are a few changes that you can make.

For example, you only need the oil if you choose frying as the cooking process for this empanada recipe, if not then you can skip it.

You can make this shrimp empanadas recipe with gluten-free flour, though they will be a little bit harder on the outside (and we don’t recommend frying them in that case).

As well as other empanada recipes, it calls for a buttery cheese since it melts better and it is the right one for the empanadas fillings, however, you could use a vegan one or your favorite type.

The milk in the dough of this shrimp empanadas recipe has the purpose of giving it a softer texture, but you could replace it with the same amount of water.

Also, you can make a big pie and inspire yourself with the Spanish chicken chorizo pie.

If you aren’t a fan of seafood, you can follow recipes with other empanada filling ideas such as the Spanish beef empanadas, and the chicken empanadas from Spain.

Go for the sweet version and make Spanish apple empanadas or the fruit empanada recipe with strawberries.

You can even make Spanish vegetarian empanadas and cheese empanadas if you want to stay away from meat completely.

But if you love seafood, take a look at the best Spanish seafood recipes and inspire your next meal from Spanish cuisine.

Get a hold of this easy-to-make Spanish shrimp and chorizo recipe because it’s incredibly delicious.

Tips on Serving Shrimp Empanadas Recipe

Once you finish making this easy empanada recipe, you should let it at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving, because otherwise, it would be too hot.

You could serve these seafood empanadas for lunch or dinner, as an appetizer, or main dish.

If you want to serve them as an appetizer, then you should calculate 1 per person, now if they are the main dish then you should have to serve 3 per person.

This shrimp empanadas recipe lets the flavor of the shrimp stand out, but you could use some dipping sauces to take it to the next level, such as Spanish romesco sauce or the famous Spanish garlic aioli sauce.

How to Store Shrimp Empanadas Recipe

This is the best empanada recipe because you can either store it in the fridge or the freezer.

In the fridge, the empanadas last up to 4 days, and in the freezer, they can last up to 30 days.

In both cases, you should let them cool to room temperature and store them in a covered container (with a lid, plastic wrap, or a clean plastic bag).

Recipe Card: Shrimp Empanadas Recipe

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