Easy Beef Empanadas
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These crispy, cheesy, 30-minute Easy Beef Empanadas are so simple to make with refrigerated pie crust and a savory beef and cheese filling. Whip up these yummy empanadas and serve with creamy, authentic Mexican guacamole for a delicious meal!
Want more recipes to try? My Chipotle Barbacoa Beef, Churros, and Mexican Chicken and Rice Casserole are just a click away.
Looking for more Mexican recipes? Check out my popular posts for Instant Pot Chicken Taquitos, Super Easy Mexican Rice, and Fiesta Lime Shrimp Salad.
This post is in partnership with HERDEZ®. All opinions are my own.
I’m always on the lookout for easy recipes to make that can double as an app/snack or as part of a meal. That way, I always have an arsenal of recipes that I can make for guests, take for picnics or potlucks, or have on hand when we want to have a snacky dinner in front of the latest new animated film.
These Mexican empanadas check alllll the boxes: budget-friendly, easy and fun to make (even more so if you have little helpers like I did), filling, and delicious to eat, especially when topped with HERDEZ® authentic Mexican guacamole or dipped in salsa.
Here’s How You Make It
- First, brown the meat in a pan for about 4-6 minutes or until the pink is completely gone and the meat is cooked through. (photo 2)
- Add in the spices and stir in the chilis, pimentos, and tomato paste. Allow this to all cook together for 2-3 minutes, then stir in the cheese and remove the meat mixture from the heat. (photos 3-4)
- Next, preheat the oven to 400 degrees and, using 3-inch round biscuit or cookie cutters, cut the thawed refrigerated pie crust into circles. (photo 1)
- Add 2-3 tablespoons of the beef mixture to each dough circle. Fold in half and use a fork to seal the edges. (photos 5-7)
- Put the empanadas on a prepared baking sheet and brush each with whisked egg. (photo 8)
- Bake for 10 minutes or till golden brown. (not pictured)
- Serve with HERDEZ™ Traditional Guacamole. (not pictured)
Why This Recipe Works
Herdez™ Traditional Guacamole — Made with only high-quality, simple ingredients (like real Hass avocados), HERDEZ™ Traditional Guacamole is available in mild and spicy and carefully crafted using an authentic Mexican recipe that was handed down for generations.
Versatile — I used beef in this recipe, but you can easily substitute any ground meat you love. Chicken and turkey are wonderful, and pork empanadas would be delicious too!
Refrigerated pie crust — I can’t tell you how many times refrigerated pie crusts have come in handy when I need a recipe shortcut. I keep at least two packages in my fridge at all times, just in case. If you want really authentic empanadas and want to make your own crust that’s great too, but I tend to rely on the ease of thawing and rolling these babies out for all my crust needs.
Portable — Make them, bake them, and take them, or make them and pop them in the fridge before taking them to bake somewhere else (like that unexpected cookout where you were asked to bring an app). That way, they’re fresh and toasty right out of the oven.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you’re looking for a new go-to guacamole brand, look no further than HERDEZ®. Take it from me, I’ve made my own and tried just about every pre-packaged guacamole brand out there (I am a semi-professional taco eater, afterall), and HERDEZ® is IT.
Why? Well, first of all it’s made with fresh, real Hass avocados, and you can tell. The avocados are then seasoned to perfection with Serrano peppers, cilantro, garlic, onion, and salt. Plus, it’s available in two varieties: mild and spicy.
If you’re looking to bring the authentic flavors of Mexico straight home, then you need to add HERDEZ™ Traditional Guacamole to your grocery list! You can easily find it in the deli section at select grocery stores nationwide.
Expert Tips
- After opening, HERDEZ™ Traditional Guacamole will keep in the fridge for up to 1-2 weeks, or in the freezer for 6-8 months.
- If you have leftover empanadas, first of all, I’m shocked. But secondly, you can store them in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to one week. I prefer to reheat them in the oven rather than microwave, but you can do either.
- If you want to make up a big batch of beef empanadas ahead of time and freeze them, work through the step of sealing them with a fork. Put them in the freezer on a sheet pan in a single layer until frozen all the way through. Then, stack them in a Ziplock bag with wax paper in between each empanada. That way, you can take out as many as you need without them sticking together. Thaw completely in the fridge before adding egg white and baking.
More Easy Dinner Recipes
- Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Tacos
- Best Mexican Salsa Recipe for Canning
- Black Bean Enchilada
- Cilantro Lime Rice
Did you make this recipe for easy homemade empanadas? YAY! Please rate the recipe below!
Beef Empanada Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound ground beef
- 1/4 onion, diced
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder, or chipotle chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 ounces diced green chiles
- 4 ounces diced pimento peppers
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese, or Mexican blend
- 2 refrigerated pie crusts
- 1 egg, whisked
- HERDEZ™ Traditional Guacamole, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with a nonstick baking mat or parchment paper.
- Unroll pie crusts on a clean, flat surface. Use a 3-inch round pastry cutter to cut circles from the dough. (If desired, combine scraps, roll out, and cut again.)
- In a skillet over medium-high heat, brown the ground beef.
- Stir in onions, cumin, chili powder, salt, green chiles, and pimento peppers. Saute 2-3 minutes.
- Stir in tomato paste, followed by the cheese. Remove from heat.
- Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the beef mixture into the center of each pie crust circle.
- Fold dough over and use a fork to seal the dough all along the curved edge.
- Arrange in a single layer, not touching, on prepared baking sheet. Brush empanadas with egg wash.
- Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown.
- Allow to cool slightly before serving with HERDEZ™ Traditional Guacamole. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
When you make this recipe, snap a photo and tag me on social – I love connecting with you and seeing what you’re up to in the kitchen!
How long should the refrigerated pie crust thaw on the counter for before baking? Hoping to make tonight.
So sorry I am just getting to answer your question. They don’t really need to thaw but having them sit on the counter while you prepare the filling should be fine 🙂
The receipt is ok. I did find the measurements to be off. 3′ is too small for 2 tablespoons. I added garlic and green olives to make it a little more authentic and savory.
I noticed there is an error in one of the sub-titles. Before the step by step photos, it says “How to Make Homemade Cheesecake” 😂
Thanks for helping point that out. The typo is fixed!
My first time making Empanadas, and this was a hit! I wanted an quick easy recipe that wouldn’t take me hours in the kitchen. Everyone loved these. I made no substitutions but I did use a cereal bowl to cut out my crust rather than a 3″ cutter. They just wouldn’t be big enough at that size. I also double the recipe for a family of 5. Perfect introduction to Empanadas and I may add potato next time around!
I love the recipe but also think the measurements are a bit off. I was able to cut out (24) 3″ circles, but that size cannot hold 2 tbsp of filling. They are also quite small when folded, so I think this size is more tapa/appetizer intended and if you’re looking at entree sized I’d say 6″ round, which I presume you’d get 12 out of the two pie crusts seems more realistic. Otherwise spot on!
Hi, Tiffany – have tried many of your delicious recipes and making these Empanadas as an appetizer for guests in two days. When you say it serves 8 as an appetizer, is that based on one empanada per person for a party of 8? Thank you!
So i like the recipe you have, but it gave me a whole idea & i came up with my own. I was inspired really. My gaming has a lot of nationalities so seasoning &cooking is everything. I browned the beef & added chopped onions & mushrooms, tossed in some onion powder &garlic powder. A little chili powder, adobo also. I cut some green olives in halves & tossed those in too, more of a sofrito flavor. It was fantastic! Tasted it, great flavor, flavor conquers ! Thank you!
Hi, Tiffany – When you say it serves 4 as a main dish or 8 as an appetizer, how many empanadas represents a serving? Just one per person as a main, or 2 each as an appetizer? Thank you.
You will get about 12 using this recipe- so it would be 3 for each person as a main serving.
Oops, I just asked a question that I’d posed previously and missed that you’d already answered. Thank you so much!
These were really good! Out of chance, I found some pre-cut empanada discs in the frozen foods section at the grocery store, so I was in search of an easy recipe to them try them out for the first time. I couldn’t find pimiento peppers at the store, so I substituted some chopped poblano and jalapeno peppers that I had from the garden. I’m definitely going to make more and try variations with chorizo and potatoes. I want to make some chimichurri sauce to dip them in, since when my cousin made these, the sauce added a lot of flavor.
Great recipe but the directions are definitely off. There’s no way 2 Tblsp of meat fit into a 3″ cut out crust. You need way less than that otherwise it will not fit.