EMPANADAS RECIPE

Level

Medium

Time

5 hrs

SERVES

4-6

Empanadas – Central American staple food

When you travel through Central and South America, there is no way around them: Empanadas! Whenever we feel nostalgic, we take out this recipe and reminisce about our time traveling.

Sold in buses and on the streets this typical “fast food” is not just cheap and easy to eat to the go but comes literally millions of variations. They can be filled with all kinds of meat, seafood, or vegetables.

We actually had some of the best empanadas ever in San Andres, Colombia! Filled with fresh crab meat, they make our mouths water just thinking about it!

Below you’ll find the recipe to prepare a empanada dough yourself. However, please feel free to experiment with the filling. We want to inspire you to create your own personal favorite empanada!

P.S. In El Salvador, you often find the desert version of empanadas. Stuffed with sweet platanos they make up for a delicious dessert!

Ingredients

For the Empanada dough:

  • 3 cups of all-purpose flour
  • 1 large egg
  • 6 z of butter (unsalted)
  • 1/4 cup milk or water
  • a pinch of salt
  • a smaller pinch of sugar

For the filling:

  • 7 oz of cheese
  • 8 cooked potatoes
  • 2 cans of black beans
  • a pinch of salt
  • some pepper
  • little garlic powder

Instructions

For the filling

  1.  Cook potatoes and peel
  2. Mash them lightly
  3. Add corn, beans, and cheese
  4. Season with salt, pepper, garlic powder

How to prepare the dough:

  1. First mix salt, flour, and sugar in a large bowl
  2. Add butter and water and start creating a smooth mixture
  3. Split the dough in two
  4. Roll out one part and use a small plate to cut out disc-shaped empanadas

How to assemble the empanadas

  1. Separate an egg, you’ll need the egg white to seal the empanadas
  2. Place about one spoon of filling in the middle of the empanada disc
  3. Brush the insight of the empanada (around the filling) with a little egg white
  4. Assemble and use a fork to press the sides together
  5. Use the rest of your egg wash and brush over the outside of the empanada
  6. Refrigerate for at least an hour before preparing for best results
  7.  Bake for about 25-30 minutes (depending on the size of the empanada) at 190 degrees Celsius or 375 F
empanada

My favorite Latin American cook books

cookbook

The Latin American Cookbook

Rarely has the incredible range of cuisines from Mexico’s tropical coasts to the icy islands at the foot of South America been documented as comprehensively as in this collection. Global star chef and Peruvian sensation Virgilio Martínez curates, with a personal deep dive into each region’s food culture, culinary delicacies, and local ingredients. 

Buy Now
Central american cookbook

The Central American Cookbook

Come take a journey with us into the delights of easy cooking. The point of this cookbook and all our cookbooks is to exemplify the effortless nature of cooking simply.

In this book we focus on Central American cooking. The Central American Cookbook is a complete set of simple but very unique Central American recipes. You will find that even though the recipes are simple, the tastes are quite amazing

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Latin american recipe book

Gran Cocina Latina: The Food of Latin America

Gran Cocina Latina unifies the vast culinary landscape of the Latin world, from Mexico to Argentina and all the Spanish-speaking countries of the Caribbean. In one volume it gives home cooks, armchair travelers, and curious chefs the first comprehensive collection of recipes from this region.

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