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Home » All » By Theme » Empanadas » Beef empanadas

Beef empanadas

By Layla Pujol 10 Comments

Simple beef empanadas

These homemade beef empanadas are made with a delicious meat picadillo filling. The empanada filling is very simple and contains ground beef, onions, garlic, oregano, cumin, achiote (annatto), salt, and pepper. I have quite of few empanada recipes posted, but realized that I was missing a simple basic beef empanada recipe.

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Beef empanadas {Empanadas de carne}
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Category: Achiote or annatto, All, Appetizers, Beef, Comfort food, Ecuador, Empanadas, Latin America, Meat, Parties and events, Recipe videos, Snacks, Street food

Author: Layla Pujol

Servings: 12 - 15 medium size empanadas

Meat empanadas

Easy and delicious recipe for homemade beef empanadas, made with a meat picadillo filling of ground beef, onions, garlic, oregano, cumin, and achiote (annatto).

Ingredients

    Homemade empanada dough (or use about 12-15 store bought empanada discs):
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • ¼ to ½ teaspoon of salt
  • 6 ounces (170 grams) of unsalted butter (1 ½ sticks)
  • 1 egg
  • ¼ to ½ cup of water, adjust as needed
    Beef empanada filling:
  • 4 tablespoons of butter or oil
  • 1 white onion, diced
  • 2-3 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 tablespoon of dry oregano
  • 2-3 teaspoons of ground cumin
  • 2 teaspoons of annatto or achiote powder
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 egg, whisked – to be used as egg wash
    To serve:
  • Quick chimichurri sauce

Instructions

    Homemade empanada dough preparation:
  1. Use a food processor to mix the flour and salt. Add the butter, cut in small chunks, and pulse until mixed.
  2. Add the egg and the water (in small increments) and continue pulsing until a clumpy dough forms. To make the empanada dough by hand, follow the same process, but use your hands to mix the ingredients together.
  3. Split the dough into 2 large balls; flatten slightly into the shape of disks. The dough can be used immediately or refrigerated until ready to use (1-2 days max).
  4. To make the empanada disks, roll out the dough into a thin sheet and cut out round disc shapes for empanadas (use round molds or a small plate). You can also make small individual balls with the dough and roll out each individual ball to a round shape (doesn't need to be perfectly round) - if you have a tortilla press you can use it to flatten the dough balls.
  5. You can also see more detailed step by step photos and video preparation of the empanada dough.
    Beef empanada filling preparation:
  1. Heat the butter in a large frying pan, add the diced onions and crushed garlic. Cook until the onions are soft.
  2. Add the oregano, ground cumin, ground achiote or annatto, and salt/pepper.
  3. Add the ground beef, stir and cook until the meat is fulling cooked. Taste and adjust salt/pepper and any seasonings to your personal preference. Let the beef filling cool down completely before using to fill the empanadas.
    Beef empanada assembly:
  1. Place a generous amount of the beef picadillo filling on the center of each empanada disc.
  2. Fold the empanada discs and gently seal the edges with your fingers. Then twist and fold the edges of the empanadas with your fingers. For extra sealing you can use a fork to press down on the edges.
  3. If you have time, refrigerate the empanadas for 30 minutes to an hour, this will help them seal better and prevent them for leaking. You can also prepare them the day before and bake them right before serving.
  4. Pre-heat the oven to 400F (200C) for medium sized empanadas, or 375F (190F) for smaller empanadas.
  5. Place the empanadas on baking sheet, lightly greased or lined with parchment paper.
  6. Brush the empanadas with the whisked egg mix; this will give a nice golden glow when baked.
  7. Bake at the empanadas at 400F for ~20 minutes, or until golden on top.
  8. Serve warm, alone or with your choice of dipping sauce.
6.3.6
©Laylita.com

Beef empanadas

There’s something so satisfying about a simple beef empanada. Don’t get me wrong, I love coming up with different creative filling ideas for empanadas. Sometimes I even dream about an amazing new idea for an empanada filling. Then I wake up and write it down before I forget. Of course I don’t always get around to making all of them – but if you just need a bunch of random (and maybe genius) ideas for empanada fillings let me know.

Empanadas filled with meat or beef

The beef filling reminds me of Ecuador, especially because it’s so simple, yet has the flavors of the garlic, oregano, cumin, and achiote that are used in so many dishes. I didn’t add any hot pepper to the filling, but you can feel free to adjust the spices to suit your preferences. Or serve the empanadas with a spicy aji hot sauce on the side. You can make the empanada dough from scratch or also use the store bought discs.

Meat filled empanadas

 

Step by step preparation photos for beef empanadas:

Making empanada dough in the food processor

See more step by step photos and video preparation of empanada dough

Onions, garlic, and spices for the beef empanadas

Cooking onions for the beef empanada filling Ground beef empanada filling preparation

Beef empanadas preparation

Beef empanadas with chimichurri sauce

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Filed Under: Achiote or annatto, All, Appetizers, Beef, Comfort food, Ecuador, Empanadas, Latin America, Meat, Parties and events, Recipe videos, Snacks, Street food

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. brianna houser says

    February 28, 2019 at 5:39 am

    Hello, these sound amazing!! I’m thinking of making them this Saturday but I’m having trouble finding annatto. Any ideas where I can look or substitutes?

    Reply
    • Layla Pujol says

      February 28, 2019 at 6:08 am

      You can find it a Latin/Mexican stores, even some regular supermarkets carry it (in the spice section). If you can’t find it you can use paprika as a substitute.

      Reply
  2. Brie says

    February 1, 2019 at 6:30 pm

    Thank you for all of the empanada recipes! I went to Spain last summer, and trying to find a true empanada in the Midwest is next to impossible, so I really appreciate all of your recipes and can’t wait to try them!

    Reply
  3. Kimberly says

    January 5, 2019 at 6:38 pm

    These are soooooooooooooooooooooo good and I also used your Chipotle dipping sauce recipe.. AMAZING!!! I actually bought an empanada maker to make these. :-)

    Reply
  4. Steph says

    December 16, 2018 at 12:12 am

    I’m Guatemalan-American; our empanadas are totally different! I have been in love with these type of empanadas since moving to Chicago and making friends from all over Latin America– and since finding this recipe less than a week ago, have made this recipe four times! So tasty and adaptable. Thank you!

    Reply
  5. Megan says

    October 15, 2018 at 12:03 pm

    Late to the party here, but we just got back from Ecuador and I have been craving empanadas! I cheated and bought the pre-made dough, but they still turned out very tasty. I plan to make them again and will try making my own dough. The folding tutorial was great and I had no empanada leaks! So glad I found this recipe–thank you!

    Reply
  6. Jennifer says

    October 12, 2018 at 8:25 am

    What is the sauce you are using on these?

    Reply
    • Layla Pujol says

      October 12, 2018 at 10:08 am

      It’s the quick chimichurri recipe: https://www.laylita.com/recipes/quick-chimichurri-sauce/

      Reply
  7. 2pots2cook2 says

    May 6, 2017 at 6:41 am

    Oh dear ! Simple ingredients always give the best result! Thank you so much !

    Reply
  8. kcurnes says

    March 18, 2017 at 12:55 pm

    These are so beautiful Layla! I love that you use annatto in the filling, yum!!

    Reply

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 Layla Pujol is an Ecuadorian modern-day nomad who loves to cook and travel. She lives in Seattle and is currently working on her first cookbook, which will focus on delicious Ecuadorian and Latin recipes (adapted to her style). More

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