Empanada Rápida de Atún
Empanada Rápida de Atún·(em-pah-NAH-dah RAH-pee-dah deh ah-TOON)
El Domingo y La Sobremesa
The smell of slowly poaching onions and peppers is the universal beacon of a Spanish kitchen. The traditional empanada gallega is a weekend project, but this is the rápida version—the weeknight secret weapon of working families across Spain. The magic isn't in a yeasted dough, but in the zaragallada, a heavily caramelized pepper and onion base. The ultimate trick is draining the fragrant, orange-tinted oil from those vegetables and painting it directly onto an all-butter puff pastry crust. Combined with the classic hack of hitting olive oil-packed tuna with a splash of vinegar to replicate the bright tang of Spanish escabeche, it transforms a Tuesday night in Ohio into a proper Sunday table.
Before you start
Thaw the pastry.
Allow the puff pastry to thaw overnight in the refrigerator rather than on the counter so the butter stays cold and maintains its structure.
Ingredients
- extra-virgin olive oil1/4 cup
- yellow onion2 large
- red bell pepper1 large
- Cubanelle pepper1 large
- garlic2 med clove
- sweet paprika1 tsp
- smooth marinara sauce1/2 cup
- solid white albacore tuna in olive oil15 oz
- sherry vinegar1 tbsp
- egg2 large
- pitted green Manzanilla olives1/4 cup
- kosher salt1 tsp
- black pepper1/2 tsp
- all-butter puff pastry2 large sheet
- egg1 large
Method
- 01
Build the zaragallada.
Heat the extra-virgin olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat, add the onions, red bell pepper, Cubanelle pepper, and kosher salt, and poach slowly for 20 to 25 minutes until deeply sweet and completely collapsed.
- 02
Fortify the base.
Stir in the minced garlic and sweet paprika, cooking for one minute until fragrant, then add the marinara sauce and simmer for 5 minutes until the mixture is thick and jammy.
- 03
Harvest the infused oil.
Transfer the vegetable mixture to a fine-mesh strainer set over a bowl and press gently to extract the orange-red oil; reserve this liquid gold and allow the vegetables to cool completely to room temperature.
- 04
Mix the filling.
In a bowl, toss about 5 ounces of the drained tuna with the sherry vinegar to simulate the sharp bite of traditional Spanish escabeche, then gently fold this, along with the remaining tuna, chopped hard-boiled eggs, olives, and black pepper, into the cooled vegetables.
- 05
Assemble the base.
Unroll one sheet of puff pastry onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and spread the cooled tuna filling evenly over it, leaving a strict 1-inch bare border around all edges.
- 06
Seal and vent the empanada.
Drape the second sheet of pastry over the top, roll the bottom edge up and over the top edge, and firmly twist and crimp to seal. Cut a dime-sized hole in the dead center of the top crust to act as a chimney, allowing steam to escape so the bottom crust doesn't become a soggy mess.
- 07
Paint and bake.
Whisk one tablespoon of the reserved vegetable oil into the beaten raw egg and brush this mixture entirely over the pastry. Bake at 400°F for 30 to 35 minutes until puffed, deeply golden brown, and crisp.
- 08
Cool and serve.
Let the empanada rest on the baking sheet for at least 15 minutes before slicing into large squares; it is meant to be eaten warm or at room temperature.
Notes
Respect the cool down.
Never spoon warm filling onto raw puff pastry, or the butter will prematurely melt and destroy your flaky crust.
The escabeche trick.
Authentic recipes mix standard oil-packed tuna with a can of vinegar-marinated tuna (escabeche); hitting one can of albacore with a splash of sherry vinegar replicates this crucial acidic bite perfectly.
From Cook Spanish in America.