In Ecuador, you can find empanadas, fried dough stuffed with sweet or savory fillings, wherever you go. They serve them in almost any restaurant, and you can buy frozen ones in the grocery store. If you go to the park, you can find vendors with carts and mini restaurants in tents that serve a whole variety of foods, and they always have empanadas. If you’re taking the bus to another town, someone will even come on with empanadas for sale!
I’ve tried three different flavors of empanadas: de camarón (shrimp), de pollo (chicken), and de queso (cheese).
Empanadas have become a comfort food for me. When I first tried them, I was impressed by how warm and flavorful they were. They are like eating a delicious pillow! They’re a casual food too, because you can eat them with your hands. It makes me feel like a little kid, carrying my hot empanada around the park. They’re very hot when you get them. It’s a bit of a game trying to eat them before they cool but not too quickly that they burn your mouth.
