The empanada de pino is Chile's national turnover, and on the 18th of September, Independence Day, the whole country seems to eat one at the same moment, with a glass of red wine or chicha. The pino is the filling: beef and an almost equal weight of onion, cooked slowly with paprika, cumin and oregano until sweet and juicy. Each empanada also holds a wedge of hard cooked egg, a black olive and, for most families, a raisin or two. They are baked, not fried, in a sturdy, slightly flaky dough, and folded into a distinctive rectangular parcel.

Bakeries sell them on Sundays, when queues form for the first trays, and every family has a view about raisins. Our version is generous and practical: the pino is best made the day before, which leaves the race morning for folding and baking. Eliseo Salazar, Chile's one Formula 1 driver in our records, raced for four teams in three seasons; the empanada, by contrast, has never changed its line.

The pino

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) vegetable oil
• 3 large yellow onions
• 1 lb (450 g) beef chuck or round
• 2 teaspoons ají de color (sweet paprika)
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fine salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) beef stock or water
• 1 tablespoon all purpose flour

Method

1. Heat the oil in the skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook gently, stirring every few minutes, for 15 minutes.
2. Add the beef, paprika, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring and breaking up any clumps, for 8 to 10 minutes.
3. Sprinkle over the flour and stir for 1 minute, then add the stock. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes, stirring now and then.
4. Spread the pino in a shallow dish, cool for 30 minutes, then cover and refrigerate for at least 1 1/2 hours, or overnight.

The extras

Ingredients

• 3 large eggs
• 12 black olives
• 2 tablespoons raisins

Method

1. Cover the eggs with cold water in the small saucepan, bring to a boil, turn off the heat, cover and leave 10 minutes. Cool in cold water, peel and cut each into quarters.

The dough

Ingredients

• 4 cups (500 g) all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fine salt
• 1/2 cup (100 g) lard or butter
• 1 cup (240 ml) warm milk

Method

1. Mix the flour and salt in the bowl. Pour in the warm fat and stir with a fork until the flour looks crumbly. Add the warm milk gradually, mixing with your hand until a dough forms.
2. Knead on a lightly floured counter for 5 minutes, then cover and rest for 20 minutes.

Shaping and baking

Ingredients

• 1 large egg

Method

1. Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C) with racks in the upper and lower thirds.
2. Divide the dough into 6 pieces. Roll each on a floured counter into a round about 1/8 inch (3 mm) thick, then cut around the plate with the knife to make a neat 7 inch (18 cm) circle.
3. Spoon about 1/2 cup of cold pino onto the lower half of a circle, leaving a 1 inch (2.5 cm) border. Add two egg quarters, two olives and a few raisins.
4. Brush the border with water. Fold the top half over to make a half moon and press the edges firmly. Fold the curved edge over itself toward the filling to make a straight side, then fold in the two corners at each end so you have a rectangle with a squared top. Press all the folds firmly.
5. Set the empanadas on the baking sheets, brush with the egg glaze and prick the top of each twice with a fork. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, swapping the sheets halfway.

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