Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: The beef empanadas are positively rich and oh so savory.
Texture: The crust is ridiculously buttery, flaky, and tender. The meaty filling inside with chunks of soft potatoes is to die for.
Ease: Assembling is the most involved part. Luckily, every step can be done ahead of time!
What You’ll Love About This Recipe: It’s SO tasty, completely customizable, and freezes beautifully.
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Oh am I excited to share how to make empanadas with you! What is better than savory goodness encased in pastry that you don’t even need a fork and knife to eat?
These baked beef empanadas are filled with a savory beef-and-potato filling and wrapped in my surprisingly easy homemade dough that bakes up buttery and flaky.
You could totally use chicken or veggies only. These empanadas are completely customizable!
Reader Love
Outstanding. Perfect dough, perfect filling. Loved by all! Thank you for this great recipe!
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This is my favorite way to make homemade beef empanadas. There are SO many ways to make them, and practically every Latin country has its own variation.
Sprinkle of Science
Homemade Empanada Dough (Easy Method)
- This dough recipe is very similar to a basic French choux pastry, but without the eggs.
- Start by heating water + butter until melted.
- Pour into the dry ingredients.
- Mix until combined. The dough will feel greasy and may have some visible streaks of butter. Don’t add extra flour!
- Chill for at least 2 hours (this is truly the hardest part!).
Beef Empanada Filling Tips
Feel free to omit or change practically anything, from the veggies to the spices – it’s meant to be customized!
- The empanada filling recipe makes a generous amount. If you have leftovers, store them in the fridge and serve in a bowl over rice, in wraps, scramble with eggs, or fill a burrito.
- I’m not a big fan of olives, but feel free to add in about 1/2 cup pitted chopped rinsed green olives.
Not into the beef filling?
- Leftovers from other meals (like cooked meat or even mashed potatoes) also make great empanada fillings.
- Check out my other recipes for Breakfast Empanadas and Chorizo Empanadas!
How to Assemble Empanadas (Filling & Sealing Tips)
This is definitely the most time-consuming part of making empanadas, so get your friends and family involved in the process to make it fun and fast!
- Tear off golf-ball-sized pieces of the chilled dough and roll into balls.
- On a lightly floured work surface, use a rolling pin to roll out the balls into 1/4-inch thick, 5-inch diameter circles.
- Place 2 heaping tablespoons of filling in the center of each dough circle. Add ½ teaspoon scallions to each circle, and sprinkle lightly with cheese, if using.
- Important: Be sure not to overfill your empanadas as you assemble, which is easy to do. Use a little less than you think, to prevent any holes or tears in the dough and to prevent them from bursting open as they bake.
- To seal the filling and prevent leaks, brush a small amount of egg wash lightly over one half edge’s border. Fold over the dough to create a half-moon shape and press edges firmly to seal. Crimp edges with the back of a fork (I prefer this over a rope crimp, which is more time consuming).
- Brush with an egg wash and bake on a rimmed baking sheet.
What to Serve with my Beef Empanada Recipe:
- Salsa
- Sour cream
- Guacamole
- Pickled red onions
- Mexican street corn
Make Ahead & Storage
Refrigerate leftovers either plastic wrapped or stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat in a 400°F oven until the crust has re-crisped and the filling is warmed through, about 5 to 7 minutes.
To Make Ahead of Time:
- The dough can be wrapped in plastic and stored in the fridge for two days before using.
- The filling can also be cooked and stored in an airtight container in the fridge for a day.
- The assembled unbaked empanadas can also be covered in plastic and stored in the fridge for up to 2 days. Brush with egg wash before baking, no need to change the baking time.
To Freeze:
Fully baked empanadas can also be frozen, though they lose a bit of their flaky texture. To prevent freezer burn, wrap them individually in plastic wrap. To reheat, unwrap as many empanadas as you want and warm in a 300°F oven or toaster oven, about 10 minutes.
Freeze the sheet of unbaked empanadas until solid, then transfer into a freezer bag. Frozen empanadas will keep for up to three months and can be baked straight from the freezer. Add a few extra minutes to the cooking time.
FAQs
What is an empanada?
An empanada is a crescent-shaped pastry filled with your choice of savory or sweet filling, popular throughout Latin America. Super customizable and easy to make ahead of time. It makes a delicious party appetizer but is also a great dinner idea!
Is it better to bake or fry empanadas?
I prefer baking for ease but also for perfectly crispy and flaky empanadas. Plus, you don’t have to worry about stinking up your kitchen with the aroma of frying oil. No cleaning up the mess of deep frying!
Can I air fry this recipe?
I haven’t tried that, but some readers have tried and reported success with this. You may need to experiment a little with bake times and temperatures, as this will vary based on your air fryer.
Can I double this recipe?
Yes! Simply double all ingredients, but use a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment to combine the wet and dry dough ingredients. Combining such a large amount of flour by hand results in an uneven dough that won’t roll out or hold its shape as nicely. If you don’t have a stand mixer, simply make two batches of the dough as written separately.
What country are empanadas from?
I’m certainly not the person to settle this debate! Most Latin American countries have some variation of an empanada. My dad is Dominican, and in the Dominican Republic, empanadas are often called pastelitos.
Every country has their own way of filling, shaping the empanadas, and cooking. I’m not a big fan of olives or raisins, which are often included in many savory empanada fillings. Nor do I have much time to hard boil eggs, another ingredient you’ll frequently find. However, if you prefer to add those ingredients, then feel free to!
Can I use store-bought empanada dough?
Yes, feel free to use a product like Goya discos frozen empanada wrappers. Prepare according to the back-of-the-package instructions, being sure not to overfill.
Can I use ground chicken or turkey instead?
You can, but note the filling will taste less rich and savory.
Beef Empanadas
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Ingredients
For the Dough:
- 1 cup water
- 1 1/2 sticks (170 grams) unsalted butter
- 2 3/4 cups (349 grams) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons fine sea salt
- Pinch of paprika
For the Beef Filling:
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 pound ground beef (85-90% lean)
- 1 small yellow onion, peeled and minced
- ½ red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and finely diced
- ½ green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and finely diced
- ½ cup frozen peas
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ cup beef broth
- 1-2 tablespoons tomato paste, to preference
- 1 small russet potato, peeled, finely diced, and boiled*
- 3 scallions, trimmed and chopped
- 1/2 cup shredded monterey jack cheese (or “Mexican blend” cheese), optional
For the Egg Wash:
- 1 egg
- 3 tablespoons water
Instructions
For the dough:
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the water and butter, heating until butter has fully melted. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and paprika and make a well in the center. Pour a little of the warm butter mixture in and mix with your fingertips to make a wet paste. Pour in remaining liquid, and work the dough with your hands until you get a wet, oily dough. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
For the filling:
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute the beef, cooking until browned, about 10 minutes. Remove the beef with a slotted spoon and set aside. Reserve 2 tablespoons of drippings.
- With the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and 2 tablespoons of drippings, sauté the yellow onion until translucent, 10-15 minutes. Then add the bell peppers, peas, garlic and seasonings.
- After a few minutes, deglaze the pan with ¼ cup of beef broth, then add 1-2 tablespoons of tomato paste (to preference).
- Once the tomato paste has dissolved, mix in the beef and potatoes. Remove from heat.
To assemble:
- Tear off golf-ball sized pieces of the chilled dough and roll into balls. On a lightly floured work surface, use a rolling pin to roll out the balls into 1/4-inch thick, 5-inch diameter circles. Once your dough has been rolled out, place 2 heaping tablespoons of filling in the center of each dough circle. Add ½ teaspoon scallions to each circle, and sprinkle lightly with cheese, if using. Brush a small amount of egg wash lightly over one half edge’s border. Fold over the dough to create a half-moon shape and press edges firmly to seal. Crimp edges with the back of a fork.
- Place empanadas onto the prepared baking sheet. Lightly beat together the egg and water. Brush the empanadas gently with the egg wash.
- Bake empanadas until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Serve warm.
- Refrigerate leftovers either plastic wrapped or stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days. You can also freeze cooked empanadas plastic wrapped in a resealable freezer bag or airtight container for up to 3 months. To reheat, unwrap as many empanadas as you want and warm through in a 300°F oven or toaster oven for about 10 minutes.
Recipe Notes
This post was originally published in 2015 and updated with new photos and recipe improvements in 2022. Photos by Joanie Simon.
So delicious!
So happy you enjoyed these empanadas, Kaija!! 🙂
A little time consuming but very easy to make! The dough is super easy to roll out and work with! I didn’t have peas so subbed corn, and I also added a habanero to give it some spice. They were delicious! I will definitely be trying the other versions.
Sounds so delicious, Laurie!! So happy you enjoyed these empanadas!
These were delicious. We made 20 of these from the recipe – and the filling to dough ratio was spot on. I think we would have had an easier time with sealing them if we mixed in the cheese to the beef mixture instead of topping it. We would have had more cheese included that way too. It took about 30 minutes with two people working together to assemble the empanadas. These reheated very well.
Hi Tanya! So happy to hear you loved these empanadas! Great tip about the cheese, too! Thanks for the comment! 🙂
Love this recipe. So easy to make and my family
Loved them!
Yay! So happy to hear that, Shea!!
Dough and filling super easy to make and delicious. The empanadas themselves take more time (and patience) to put together.
Totally worth it and so delicious.
The beef was the crowd favorite!!
So happy to hear these beef empanadas were enjoyed so much, Kiersten!
Ok, so I didn’t think this recipe would turn out the way they did. I loved them! The dough was so easy to manipulate, the filling so flavorful!
Hi Susana! So happy you loved these empanadas!! 🙂
They are my favorites! They are so good!
Yay! So happy to hear that, Cristina!
Amazing empanadas! So delicious, my whole family loved them!
So happy to hear that, Susana!!
These empanadas are super delicious! I’m so sad we are out of leftovers! The dough is so unique and was really tender and flaky after baking. We omitted the peas but followed the recipe otherwise. We’ll for sure be making these again! Thanks!
So wonderful to hear you loved these empanadas, Ashley!!
I made the beef empanadas (my first empanada ever) yesterday and they are super delicious!
The recipe is easy to follow and made 20 empanadas.
I had some filling left over and I used it to fill two wraps (folded them into little packages, brushed them with egg wash and but them in the oven with the empanadas).
Thank you for this nice recipe!!! Will definitely make them again.
P.S.:
Just an idea: it would be easier for your european followers if the units were also in centimetres, Celsius etc.
So happy to hear you loved these empanadas, Katrin! I will also pass along your suggestion of metric measurements to our team! Thanks for the feedback! 🙂
The dough is easy to handle and the filling is good, we upped the spices a bit for our personal preference, overall we would make again.
So happy to hear that, Candace!
These savory beef empanadas are so delicious. The filling is fabulous and the dough is tender. Will definitely make these again!!!!!!
So wonderful to hear that, Belinda!!