Stuffed pastries are universal. Every culture has their own version, from Chinese
dumplings to Polish pierogies to Indian samosas. I grew up eating empanadas, but by contrast, they weren’t traditional to a specific cuisine. Depending on where you are, empanadas can vary in their filling and dough. This recipe draws from my grandma’s recipe, which boasts a cheesy ground beef filling and a golden brown crust. While I made some adjustments to her dough recipe to make it more classic, these empanadas still feature her iconic (and top-secret!) filling. Looking to try your hand at these handheld dreams? Keep reading on for everything you need to know:
How to make the empanada dough:
While empanadas from Mexico are usually made with masa, my grandma—a woman who grew up in Culiacán, a city in northwestern Mexico—made hers with pot sticker wrappers! During the creation of this dish, we figured that if you’re searching for an empanada recipe, you’re probably not looking to fry them in pot sticker wrappers, so we developed an amazingly easy and flaky homemade dough that comes together in no time.
If you’d like to go the pot sticker route, fill each wrapper with about 1 teaspoon of meat (if you add too much filling, the wrapper will break). Dip a finger in water and run alongside the edges of the wrapper, then fold and seal with tines of a fork. Heat an inch of vegetable oil in a deep pan (or a wok, like my mom), and fry in batches until empanadas are deeply golden and bubbly on the surface.
How to make the filling:
This filing is loosely based on my grandma’s very traditional Mexican recipe. It’s delicious as is, but if you want to give it even more pizazz, we highly recommend adding a splash of red wine vinegar, finely chopped capers and green olives, and a good squeeze of yellow mustard. Feel free to adjust the filling based on preferences. Not a jalapeño fan? Feel free to leave them out!
We’ve gone for a blend of cheddar and Monterey Jack because they melt beautifully, while letting the flavor of the spices, tomatoes, and jalapeños shine. If you want to experiment with other types of cheese, you could try mozzarella, provolone, or fontina. You could even go with pepper jack, for a little extra kick.
Make them ahead:
If you’re planning on making these empanadas ahead of time, we’d recommend going ahead and baking them. Then, on the day you’re ready to serve, you can simply reheat them in an oven set to 300° until warm. Exposing the raw empanada dough to the moisture-rich filling overnight will cause it to absorb a lot of the liquid, which will make your dough soggy and your filling unpleasantly dry.
While they’re best fresh, you can keep these cooked empanadas in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days. If you want them to last longer, we recommend freezing them.
Freezing:
You can freeze already-baked empanadas, or (our personal preference) you can freeze the filled, unbaked empanadas. Either way, freeze the empanadas on a parchment-lined baking sheet until solid before transferring them to an airtight bag or container. This ensures they don’t get squished and will come out of your freezer as beautifully shaped as when you put them in. To bake the frozen, uncooked empanadas, let them sit at room temperature for 5 minutes before egg-washing and baking until golden and heated through (you’ll need to add a few extra minutes to the bake time). To reheat frozen cooked empanadas, let thaw completely and then pop into the oven at 400º to crisp up.
Have you made this recipe? Let us know how you liked it in the comments below.
Stuffed pastries are universal. Every culture has their own version, from Chinese
dumplings to Polish pierogies to Indian samosas. I grew up eating empanadas, but by contrast, they weren’t traditional to a specific cuisine. Depending on where you are, empanadas can vary in their filling and dough. This recipe draws from my grandma’s recipe, which boasts a cheesy ground beef filling and a golden brown crust. While I made some adjustments to her dough recipe to make it more classic, these empanadas still feature her iconic (and top-secret!) filling. Looking to try your hand at these handheld dreams? Keep reading on for everything you need to know:
How to make the empanada dough:
While empanadas from Mexico are usually made with masa, my grandma—a woman who grew up in Culiacán, a city in northwestern Mexico—made hers with pot sticker wrappers! During the creation of this dish, we figured that if you’re searching for an empanada recipe, you’re probably not looking to fry them in pot sticker wrappers, so we developed an amazingly easy and flaky homemade dough that comes together in no time.
If you’d like to go the pot sticker route, fill each wrapper with about 1 teaspoon of meat (if you add too much filling, the wrapper will break). Dip a finger in water and run alongside the edges of the wrapper, then fold and seal with tines of a fork. Heat an inch of vegetable oil in a deep pan (or a wok, like my mom), and fry in batches until empanadas are deeply golden and bubbly on the surface.
How to make the filling:
This filing is loosely based on my grandma’s very traditional Mexican recipe. It’s delicious as is, but if you want to give it even more pizazz, we highly recommend adding a splash of red wine vinegar, finely chopped capers and green olives, and a good squeeze of yellow mustard. Feel free to adjust the filling based on preferences. Not a jalapeño fan? Feel free to leave them out!
We’ve gone for a blend of cheddar and Monterey Jack because they melt beautifully, while letting the flavor of the spices, tomatoes, and jalapeños shine. If you want to experiment with other types of cheese, you could try mozzarella, provolone, or fontina. You could even go with pepper jack, for a little extra kick.
Make them ahead:
If you’re planning on making these empanadas ahead of time, we’d recommend going ahead and baking them. Then, on the day you’re ready to serve, you can simply reheat them in an oven set to 300° until warm. Exposing the raw empanada dough to the moisture-rich filling overnight will cause it to absorb a lot of the liquid, which will make your dough soggy and your filling unpleasantly dry.
While they’re best fresh, you can keep these cooked empanadas in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days. If you want them to last longer, we recommend freezing them.
Freezing:
You can freeze already-baked empanadas, or (our personal preference) you can freeze the filled, unbaked empanadas. Either way, freeze the empanadas on a parchment-lined baking sheet until solid before transferring them to an airtight bag or container. This ensures they don’t get squished and will come out of your freezer as beautifully shaped as when you put them in. To bake the frozen, uncooked empanadas, let them sit at room temperature for 5 minutes before egg-washing and baking until golden and heated through (you’ll need to add a few extra minutes to the bake time). To reheat frozen cooked empanadas, let thaw completely and then pop into the oven at 400º to crisp up.
Have you made this recipe? Let us know how you liked it in the comments below.
- Yields:
-
15
serving(s)
- Prep Time:
- 20 mins
- Total Time:
- 2 hrs
- Cal/Serv:
- 319
Ingredients
Dough
- 3 c.
(360 g.) all-purpose flour, plus more for surface
- 1 tsp.
baking powder
- 1 tsp.
kosher salt
- 1/2 c.
(1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
- 1
large egg
Filling & Assembly
- 1 tbsp.
extra-virgin olive oil
- 1
yellow onion, chopped
- 2
cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 lb.
ground beef
- 1 tbsp.
tomato paste
- 1 tsp.
dried oregano
- 1 tsp.
ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp.
paprika
-
Kosher salt
-
Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 c.
chopped pickled jalapeños
- 1/2 c.
chopped tomatoes
-
All-purpose flour, for surface
- 1 1/4 c.
shredded cheddar
- 1 1/4 c.
shredded Monterey Jack
- 1
large egg
-
Chopped fresh cilantro and sour cream, for serving
Directions
-
Dough
- Step 1
In a large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut butter into dry ingredients with your hands or a pastry cutter until pea-sized pieces form. Add egg and 3/4 cup water and mix with a wooden spoon until a dough forms.
- Step 2Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth, about 5 minutes.
- Step 3Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to overnight.
- Step 1
-
Filling & Assembly
- Step 1Preheat oven to 400°. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment. In a large skillet over medium heat, heat oil. Add onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 7 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute more. Add beef and cook, breaking meat up with a wooden spoon, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Drain fat.
- Step 2Return pan to medium heat and stir tomato paste into beef. Add oregano, cumin, and paprika; season with salt and pepper. Add jalapeños and tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until warmed through, about 3 minutes. Let cool slightly.
- Step 3Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide in half. Roll one half to 1/4″ thick. Using a 4.5″ round cookie cutter, cut out rounds. Repeat with remaining dough. Reroll scraps once to cut out more rounds.
- Step 4Lightly moisten outer edge of a dough round with water. Place about 2 tablespoons filling in the center. Top with cheddar and Monterey Jack. Fold dough in half over filling. Using a fork, crimp edges together. Repeat with remaining filling and dough.
- Step 5In a small bowl, beat egg with a splash of water. Place empanadas on prepared baking sheets and brush with egg wash.
- Step 6Bake empanadas until golden brown and filling is warmed through, about 25 minutes.
- Step 7Top with cilantro and serve with sour cream alongside.
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