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Lunch Dinner Appetizers Side Dishes Beef Mexican
4.6 from 153 votes

Beef Empanadas

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By: Joanna Cismaru 80 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

Baked Beef Empanadas made with puff pastry, so easy and so delicious. Don’t underestimate puff pastry, it’s quite versatile and makes some delicious empanadas.

beef empanadas stacked and cut in half with a bowl of salsa verde

Beef Empanadas

Beef Empanadas are  perfect little appetizers and great for any occasion which is why I like to make them as much as possible! The key to a flavorful juicy filling is to use a bit of beef broth and some heat, brought to the dish through chili powder or hot sauce. I wrapped these morsels in puff pastry to achieve flaky buttery layers!

What Are Empanadas?

Empanadas are a baked or fried Latin American savory pastry. They’re even popular in the Philipines too! They’re stuffed full of veggies, cheese, and sometimes beef, so feel free to get creative with this hand held delicacy.

What Is Puff Pastry?

This is a light and flaky pastry that involves placing butter within the dough, rolling out the dough and folding it over itself repeatedly. This achieves thin light layers sandwiched with lots of melty butter once it has cooked. If you like pastry dough that is crisp, flaky, and melt in your mouth good then puff pastry is for you.

a beef empanada dunked in salsa verde and cut in half

Ingredients In Beef Empanadas

Detailed measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page.

  • Olive oil – We want a nice neutral tasting oil for this dish.
  • Beef – We want extra lean ground beef so that we don’t have to drain the fat out of it.
  • Spices – Cumin, smoked paprika, and chili powder.
  • Onion – We want an onion that cooks down well such as white or yellow.
  • Garlic – Use as much or little as you like.
  • Oregano – I used dried today as I want something that holds up to heat well and packs a great herby flavor concentrate.
  • Seasoning – Salt and pepper to taste.
  • Liquid ingredients – Beef broth that is low sodium and any hot sauce of your choice.
  • Sugar – Yes we need some sugar in this recipe. I used brown sugar today as the molasses notes cooks down and add complexity to our dish.
  • Puff pastry – Believe me you’ll want to use store bought for this recipe, it’ll save you time and energy.
  • Egg – We’re using an entire egg for an egg wash to top our Beef Empanadas.
finished beef empanadas on a baking sheet

How To Make Beef Empanadas

Detailed measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page.

  • Brown the beef: In a medium skillet heat the olive oil and add the ground beef. Saute the ground beef until no longer pink, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Add the onion and garlic to it and continue sautéing until the onion is soft and translucent.
  • Create the flavor base: Add the oregano, cumin, smoked paprika, chili powder, salt, pepper, beef broth, brown sugar and hot sauce to the skillet and stir. Cook for a couple more minutes then remove from heat and let the meat mixture cool until it comes to room temperature.
  • Preheat the oven: To 425 F degrees.
  • Prepare the puff pastry: Working with one puff pastry sheet at a time, roll it out so that it’s long enough to cut 6 circles, 2 on each row, see video. Using a 4 inch cookie cutter or bowl, cut 6 circles, 2 per row.
  • Assemble the empanadas: Fill each with about a tablespoon of meat mixture in the middle of each pastry round. Brush half of the pastry round edge with egg wash, then fold the dough over into a half-moon shape so the edges meet and then press them together with your fingers to seal. Use a fork to crimp the edge. Place it onto a baking sheet and repeat with remaining ingredients. You should get around 40 empanadas.
  • Finish the empanadas: Poke holes in each empanada using a fork then brush the empanadas with the egg wash and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve warm with salsa or salsa verde.

What Else Can I Fill My Empanadas With?

There’s many things that can go in your delicious empanadas, whether it be traditional or not these Spanish delicacies work great with lots of flavors!

  • Ground beef and cooked cubed potato.
  • Cooked shredded chicken.
  • Browned mushrooms and cheese.
  • Argentinian style with ground beef, olives, and hard boiled eggs.
  • Beans and corn for a vegetarian style empanada.
  • Chocolate, dulce de leche, and cinnamon.
  • Blueberries and goat cheese.
finished beef empanadas with a bowl of salsa verde garnished with cilantro

Want To Make Your Own Puff Pastry?

For the sake of keeping things easy I used store bought puff pastry for this recipe which tastes just fine. If you’d like to make every element of this recipe from scratch however check out my Blueberry Goat Cheese Empanadas, which details how to make your own for this dish!

How To Make Salsa Verde

This is a perfect bright and acidic accompaniment for our little hand held treats, here’s how to make it!

  • Roast veggies: Roast tomatillos (little green tomatoes from Mexico) and jalapeños under the broiler for about 5 minutes. Flip them over with tongs and broil for another 4 – 6 minutes.
  • Combine salsa ingredients: Place diced white onion, cilantro, 1/2 teaspoon, and 2 tablespoons of lime juice in a food processor and combine. Place the roasted peppers and tomatillos and their juice in the food processor and blend all ingredients together. Place in the fridge to allow to thicken and you have your own salsa verde!
beef empanada

What To Serve With Empanadas

These meaty morsels pair well with lots of side dishes and sauces, although if you’re an empanada purist feel free to eat these treats all on their own!

Salad
  • Mexican Chicken And Rice Salad
  • Mexican Street Corn Salad
  • Kale And Quinoa Salad With Lemon Vinaigrette
  • Avocado Salsa Shrimp Salsa
Sauce
  • Salsa verde, store bought is fine but the recipe up further is fresh and delicious.
  • Queso Dip
  • Enchilada Sauce
  • Strawberry Salsa
  • Homemade Salsa

Want To Make Empanadas Ahead?

Fridge

This dish can be stored in an airtight container and placed in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Freezer

If you’d like to make these empanadas a few months ahead of time, arrange them unbaked on a baking sheet and place in the freezer till frozen through. Place them in a freezer bag or in an airtight container and this dish will keep for up to 3 months. When ready to eat just pop these on a baking sheet and bake straight from frozen!

a beef empanada cut in half

More Delicious Mexican Inspired Dishes To Try:

  • Chicken Enchilada Quesadillas
  • Taco Lasagna
  • Pork Carnitas
  • Shrimp Avocado Salsa
  • Tres Leche Cake
  • Albondigas Soup
  • Chicken Tortilla Soup

Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.

beef empanadas surrounding a bowl of dip
4.61 from 153 votes

Beef Empanadas

Prep 10 minutes minutes
Cook 45 minutes minutes
Total 55 minutes minutes
40
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Baked Beef Empanadas made with puff pastry, so easy and so delicious. Don't underestimate puff pastry, it's quite versatile and makes some delicious empanadas.
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Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 pound ground beef (extra lean)
  • 1 large onion (chopped)
  • 3 cloves garlic (minced)
  • 1/2 teaspoon oregano (dry)
  • 1 teaspoon cumin (ground)
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper (or to taste)
  • 1/2 cup beef broth
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar (packed)
  • 2 tablespoon hot sauce (I used Sriracha)
  • 4 sheets puff pastry ((2 packages, 2 sheets per package))
  • 1 egg (for egg wash)

Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.

Instructions 

  • In a medium skillet heat the olive oil and add the ground beef. Saute the ground beef until no longer pink, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Add the onion and garlic to it and continue sautéing until the onion is soft and translucent. 
  • Add the oregano, cumin, smoked paprika, chili powder, salt, pepper, beef broth, brown sugar and hot sauce to the skillet and stir. Cook for a couple more minutes then remove from heat and let the meat mixture cool until it comes to room temperature.
  • Preheat oven to 425 F degrees.
  • Working with one puff pastry sheet at a time, roll it out so that it’s long enough to cut 6 circles, 2 on each row, see video. Using a 4 inch cookie cutter or bowl, cut 6 circles, 2 per row. Fill each with a about a tablespoon of meat mixture in the middle of each pastry round. Brush half of the pastry round edge with egg wash, then fold the dough over into a half-moon shape so the edges meet and then press them together with your fingers to seal. Use a fork to crimp the edge. Place it onto a baking sheet and repeat with remaining ingredients. You should get around 40 empanadas. See notes.
  • Poke holes in each empanada using a fork then brush the empanadas with the egg wash and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve warm with salsa or salsa verde.

Equipment

  • 4-inch Cookie Cutter
  • 12-inch Cast Iron Skillet
  • 11×17-inch Cookie Sheet

Notes

After cutting rounds from each pastry sheet, re-roll the leftover dough and cut it into more rounds, you should get about 10 rounds in total from each pastry sheet.
This dish can be stored in an airtight container and placed in the fridge for up to 3 days.
If you’d like to make these empanadas a few months ahead of time, arrange them unbaked on a baking sheet and place in the freezer till frozen through. Place them in a freezer bag or in an airtight container and this dish will keep for up to 3 months. When ready to eat just pop these on a baking sheet and bake straight from frozen!
Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
 

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1empanadaCalories: 175kcal (9%)Carbohydrates: 11g (4%)Protein: 3g (6%)Fat: 12g (18%)Saturated Fat: 3g (19%)Cholesterol: 12mg (4%)Sodium: 129mg (6%)Potassium: 59mg (2%)Vitamin A: 50IU (1%)Vitamin C: 0.8mg (1%)Calcium: 7mg (1%)Iron: 0.9mg (5%)
© Author Joanna Cismaru

Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.

beef empanadas surrounding a bowl of dip

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Joanna Cismaru

Joanna Cismaru

I’m Joanna (Jo for short) and this is my blog where I share with you my culinary adventures. Through Jo Cooks, I invite you to join me in my kitchen as we explore delicious recipes from around the globe, celebrate the joy of cooking, and make every meal a memorable one. Happy cooking!

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80 Comments
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Stacy
Stacy
Posted: 21 days ago

5 stars
Really good! I didn’t have full sheets of puff pastry, but the squares, so I just made triangles. They’re great with salsa but also sweet chili sauce. Garlic sauce isn’t bad but I didn’t care much for ketchup 😂 yes, we tested several sauces to see which we liked best! But this recipe will definitely be made more often.

20230901_185636.jpg
0
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Joanna Cismaru
Joanna Cismaru
Author
Reply to  Stacy
Posted: 21 days ago

They look great! So glad you liked it!

0
Reply
Chris
Chris
Posted: 2 months ago

The recipe says to re-roll leftover dough to make more. Since it’s puff pastry dough, how can I do that?

0
Reply
Joanna Cismaru
Joanna Cismaru
Author
Reply to  Chris
Posted: 2 months ago

Puff pastry can indeed be re-rolled, though you want to be careful not to overwork it, as that could make it tough. Just gently gather the leftovers together, press them into a ball, then roll it out again with a rolling pin. Keep in mind, re-rolled dough may not puff as much as the first roll, but it will still be tasty!

0
Reply
Chris
Chris
Reply to  Joanna Cismaru
Posted: 2 months ago

Thank you!

0
Reply
Gwen
Gwen
Posted: 3 months ago

5 stars
Gonna make it looks great

0
Reply
Natalie
Natalie
Posted: 1 year ago

Can I add a bit of grated cheese to these?

0
Reply
Joanna Cismaru
Joanna Cismaru
Author
Reply to  Natalie
Posted: 1 year ago

Yes, absolutely!

0
Reply
Pam
Pam
Posted: 2 years ago

5 stars
Just made them.. Followed recipe and they turned out great and delicious!

0
Reply
Gloria
Gloria
Posted: 3 years ago

5 stars
I made this recipe tonight and it was delicious! My husband and I both loved it.

0
Reply
Ashly
Ashly
Posted: 3 years ago

5 stars
These were easy to make and delicious!! Thank you!

0
Reply
E A
E A
Posted: 3 years ago

5 stars
This was delicious! Served it with techina.

1
Reply
Julie L.
Julie L.
Posted: 3 years ago

5 stars
This recipe is very good! I used pastry puff dough for the first batch and for the remaining meat I ate it with some naan bread I had on hand, both ways were really good. The meat mixture is seasoned just right, I didn’t need to tweak the ingredients. Thank you!

0
Reply
Carol
Carol
Posted: 3 years ago

Does the pastry sheet have to thawed before using?

0
Reply
Jo Cooks Team 2
Jo Cooks Team 2
Reply to  Carol
Posted: 3 years ago

Yes!

0
Reply
Chuck
Chuck
Posted: 3 years ago

Can i make these the day before and keep them in the fridge till I amready to bake them?

0
Reply
Joanna Cismaru
Joanna Cismaru
Author
Reply to  Chuck
Posted: 3 years ago

Yes, for sure!

0
Reply
Malisa
Malisa
Posted: 3 years ago

5 stars
This is the exact same puff pastry technique my mom use to do and I’ve been trying to find it all over the internet! We made it using a Thai curry filling. It never occurred to me that I could make these in advanced. I do have a question about the cooking process. When baking them from frozen, what temperature did you use to cook them? Does it alter the cooking time/temperature when baking them fresh verses frozen? Would love to hear your thoughts, I’m definitely wanting to make this for my company potlock!

0
Reply
Jo Cooks Team
Jo Cooks Team
Reply to  Malisa
Posted: 3 years ago

You can use the same temp! Every oven is different so add time in 5 minute intervals until they turn nice and golden brown.

0
Reply
Sam
Sam
Posted: 4 years ago

Excited to try this for a baby shower! Question, did you have a video for this? Would like to see the cutting process. Thanks!

0
Reply
Jo Cooks Team
Jo Cooks Team
Reply to  Sam
Posted: 4 years ago

We do have a video! It’s right in the recipe card below the instructions. If you have an ad blocker enabled on your browser you’ll have to pause it on our site- they block the recipe instruction videos.

0
Reply
Sam
Sam
Reply to  Jo Cooks Team
Posted: 4 years ago

Ah it was definitely ad blocker, couldn’t see it before. Thanks so much!!

0
Reply
LaVonda Like
LaVonda Like
Posted: 4 years ago

5 stars
Wow. This just popped up on my news feed. I guess my phone is listening-or reading my mind.😱

0
Reply
LaVonda Like
LaVonda Like
Reply to  LaVonda Like
Posted: 4 years ago

Great recipe. Thanks for sharing.

0
Reply
Tash
Tash
Posted: 4 years ago

If your allegric to eggs what is an alternative I can use?

0
Reply
Nicole Beaulieu
Nicole Beaulieu
Reply to  Tash
Posted: 4 years ago

You can use milk instead 🙂

0
Reply

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I’m Joanna (Jo for short) and this is the place where I share my passion for easy and delicious recipes. From comforting classics to global flavors, I believe that cooking should be fun, approachable, and most importantly, rewarding. Join me on this culinary journey and let’s get cooking!

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