Good eats to take home

River Heights

Exchange District

St. Vital

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 24/07/2024 (597 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Chef Alfonso Maury is all for using real ingredients.

Whether at either of his La Pampa Empanadas Gourmet locations — at 10-1604 St. Mary’s Rd. and 1549 Grant Ave. — or in Corrientes Argentine Pizzeria (137 Bannatyne Ave.), the sit-in South American restaurant he also owns with his wife, Roxana, Maury is set on giving people a healthy, authentic taste of food right from the kitchens he loves to spend time in. So, it’s only natural that he has expanded to creating products for people’s shelves and fridges.

Maury, 58, recently introduced La Pampa crust shells — take-home packages of a dozen empanada shells for cooking at home. They contain the same ingredients as the shells of the empanadas at his stores, and can be used for practically anything.

Eating out is expensive, Maury explained, and not always healthy if people frequent chains and fast-food joints. He thought a do-it-yourself take on the food he sells could address both issues.

“We encourage people to cook at home,” said Maury, who was born in Argentina. “I mean, we’re still a business. And we want to sell. But cooking at home… this is going to give you a lot of options.”

People can make their own empanadas out of anything. Leftovers, eggs, any food that can be wrapped in a breaded item — like a sandwich, Maury continued.

The empanadas at La Pampa are baked, but the shells can also be pan- or-deep-fried. The last of those three options is popular way of preparing the “ultimate finger food” at other businesses.

Although empanadas are generally served full of meat, cheese, and vegetables — give or take — there’s no wrong way to use the shells, which Maury compared to tortillas.

“A mom has a party. There are kids. You buy two dozen of these shells. Add cheese, tomato sauce for everyone — You didn’t do anything. Very cheap. And everyone is happy,” he said.

La Pampa’s shells are created using a machine that can produce more than 200 dozen shells an hour. Originally, the shells were made by hand but, as popularity rose, it became difficult to keep up with demand. The dependability of the machine was a big factor when it came to the crust shell packs, Maury said.

“Worst-case scenario, if it doesn’t work, great — we have the machines to just make our own empanadas. That already works, so we don’t have too much to lose, but I think, if it works, that can generate a lot of business for us and for more people, because we can start to think about franchising the brand.”

Because the shells are vegan and all-natural, they may eventually appear in grocery stores outside of Manitoba, depending on the level of success.

“We had the chance to use a couple of chemicals that can make these empanada shells live longer in the fridge,” Maury explained. “I mean, if I use some chemicals, you can put those shells in the fridge for 30 days and they’re going to be fine. But we don’t want that. We prefer to keep it natural.”

Still, these shells can be stored in a freezer for six months and still be fine, he said.

”Food is so expensive. I mean, we see that in the industry,” Maury continued. “I care about my money, so I will not pay $9 for coffee and a sandwich at a chain … I think that people need to see and realize how much money they can (save) every month, (as well as) just taking care of themselves. You don’t need a lot of skills to learn to cook.”

La Pampa crust shells are $6 per dozen and can be purchased at either location.

For more information about the shells, the restaurants, or La Pampa’s pasta line, Tuco, visit www.lapampaempanadas.ca