About this Dish
Half-moon pastries filled with spiced beef, chicken, ham and cheese, or spinach and ricotta — Argentina's most beloved snack. Each province has its own empanada tradition: Salta's are small and spiced with cumin; Mendoza's use potatoes; Tucuman's use spring onion. The crimp pattern on the edge traditionally identified the filling — a system still used by empanada shops.
IngredientsServes 4
🌾Plain flour, 500g
🧈Unsalted butter, 125g cold and cubed
🧂Salt, 1 tsp
💧Warm water, approximately 150ml
🥩Beef mince, 400g
🧅White onion, 2 large finely diced
🫑Red capsicum, 1 finely diced
🥚Hard boiled eggs, 2 roughly chopped
🫒Green olives, 80g pitted and sliced
🌿Ground cumin, 1 tsp, smoked paprika 1 tsp, dried chilli flakes half tsp
Method
1
Make the dough by combining flour and salt in a large bowl, then rub in the cold butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add warm water gradually and mix until a smooth, firm dough forms — it should not be sticky. Wrap in cling film and rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.2
While the dough rests, heat a splash of oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and sauté the onion and capsicum for 8 minutes until softened. Add the beef mince and cook, breaking it up, until browned all over — about 6 minutes.3
Stir in the cumin, paprika and chilli flakes, season generously with salt and pepper, then remove from the heat. Fold through the chopped boiled eggs and olives, then spread the filling on a tray to cool completely — a warm filling will make your pastry soggy.4
Roll the rested dough out on a lightly floured surface to about 3mm thickness and cut out circles roughly 12–14cm in diameter using a bowl or large cutter. Re-roll the scraps to use all the dough.5
Place a heaped tablespoon of filling onto one half of each pastry circle, leaving a 1cm border clear. Fold the pastry over to form a half-moon shape, press the edges firmly together, then crimp by folding and twisting the edge in a rope pattern — this is the traditional repulgue seal.6
Arrange the empanadas on a lined baking tray and brush generously with a beaten egg for a golden glaze. Bake in a preheated oven at 200°C for 20–25 minutes until deep golden brown and the pastry is cooked through.7
Let the empanadas rest for 5 minutes before eating as the filling will be very hot. Serve with chimichurri or a simple salsa criolla of diced tomato, onion and vinegar on the side.User Reviews
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