Colombian Empanadas hold a special place in my heart—crispy on the outside, tender and flavorful on the inside, and always served with a side of ají. While nothing beats the original deep-fried version, I’ve also figured out how to make them in the air fryer for a quicker, slightly healthier option that still brings the crunch.
What are Colombian empanadas?
Empanadas are very popular among all Latin American countries, but Colombia does them a little bit different! So, what makes Colombian empanadas so special? The difference between Colombian empanadas and other empanadas can be found in the dough. The empanada dough in this empanada recipe is made with corn, making them totally gluten-free! They are fried to golden, crispy perfection. There is truly nothing quite like a Colombian empanada!
I made beef empanadas here, but you can totally switch it up if you prefer. I have some recipe variations listed below! Let's get started!
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Ingredients
You just need a handful of ingredients to make this Colombian beef empanadas recipe. Here's what you'll need:
For the Dough
- Precooked Cornmeal: This is an essential ingredient for creating the corn dough. It has to be the PAN brand, specifically the yellow corn meal.
- Water: Water is used to hydrate the flour!
- Vegetable Oil: Or any of your favorite cooking oil.
- Salt: For added flavor in the dough.
For the Filling
- Ground Beef: The main protein in the filling. You can also substitute with ground chicken or ground pork if desired.
- Vegetables & Aromatics: You will need onion, garlic, tomato, green bell pepper and potato for the filling. You can use green onions instead of white onion if you prefer.
- Spices: To spice the filling up to perfection, I used a combination of cumin, oregano, paprika, and salt & pepper!
- Chicken Broth: I used broth as the liquid to add some extra flavor, but you can use water with some extra salt if you prefer.
- Cilantro: Stir in freshly chopped cilantro at the end for an herbaceous flavor.
To Assemble & Serve
- Oil: To fry the Colombian empanadas, you need a high smoke point oil like canola oil, vegetable oil, or avocado oil. Avoid olive oil as it can burn at a high temperature.
- Colombian Ají: Serve these empanadas hot with a side of homemade Colombian ají!
See recipe card for quantities.
How to Make Colombian Empanadas
Step 1 - Make the Dough & Filling
Combine the 4 cups yellow corn flour, 3 cups water, 1 tablespoon oil and 1 teaspoon salt in a large mixing bowl. Mix until combined and knead in the bowl for a few minutes to ensure all of the water is absorbed. Cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and set aside.
Place a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil and the ground beef into the skillet to brown. Break up the meat as it cooks with a spatula or wooden spoon.
Once the beef is mostly browned, add in the diced onion, tomato, minced garlic, and green bell pepper. Stir to combine and allow to cook for a few minutes while the vegetables soften.
Add the spices: 1 teaspoon ground cumin, ½ teaspoon dried oregano, ¼ teaspoon of paprika. Add a bit of salt here too, about ½ tsp. Stir to combine.
Next, add in the chicken broth and the diced potato. Cover and allow the filling to simmer on low heat until the potatoes are fork tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the chopped cilantro and set the filling aside.
Step 2 - Assemble
With wet hands, roll a portion of the empanada dough into a ball. It should be larger than a golf ball, but smaller than a tennis ball.
Take a large gallon-sized ziplock bag and cut along the sides, leaving one side of the bag in tact.
Place the empanada dough ball in between the ziplock back, so it is covered in the plastic. Use a cutting board or flat object to flatten the ball into a disk. Don't flatten it out to be super thin, or else they might break before frying.
Pull back the plastic bag and spoon about 2 tablespoon of filling into the middle of the empanada dough disk. Fold over the empanada using the plastic bag, then use a round bowl to seal the empanada and create a perfectly round edge.
Step 3 - Fry
Repeat with the rest of the dough and filling. When you are almost done assembling, start to heat up the oil for frying them.
In a large pot, heat up the oil on medium-high heat. I like to add enough oil so that at least half of the empanada will be covered.
Fry 2 to 3 empanadas as a time, gently placing them in the pot of oil with a large metal spoon. Fry on one side for about 5 minutes, until golden and firm. Then flip and fry on the other side for another 5 minutes. Repeat with all of the empanadas.
Serve hot with a side of Colombian hot sauce!
How to Make Colombian Empanadas in the Air Fryer
Place the empanadas in a single layer in the air fryer basket. Spray some cooking oil on top.
Cook at 380 F for 15 minutes or until nice and crispy!
Tips
- Give it a try with a few empanadas to start! At first, you will have a few that don't turn out. It takes practice and a gentle hand to fill and assemble without them cracking! Once you get them in the hot oil or in the air fryer, they will harden up quickly.
- Instead of smashing the dough with with a cutting board or tortilla press, you can place it in between the ziplock bag or plastic wrap and use a rolling pin to flatten it into a disk.
- Adjust the dough consistency as needed. After kneading the dough, if it feels dry you can adjust the consistency slightly by adding a little bit more water if needed. If you end up adding too much water, add another sprinkle of corn meal. Once you make your first empanada, you will see if it is the right consistency to hold together!
- Don't overfill! Especially your first few times making empanadas, try not to overfill them. It can lead to breakage which is dangerous when you are frying the empanadas!
- Colombian empanadas are traditionally served with an herby hot sauce like my Colombian aji sauce recipe. However, you can serve it with chimichurri or a cilantro jalapeño sauce if you prefer!
Recipe Variations
Besides beef fillings, there are the two other common fillings of empanadas that you can find in Colombia:
- Chicken Empanadas: You can make a ground chicken filling in the same way that I made this ground beef filling. Or, you can opt to add in shredded chicken instead!
- Vegetarian Empanadas: To make vegetarian empanadas, simply fill them with a mild, melty cheese like mozzarella. Or, replace the ground beef in this recipe with a variety of vegetables like diced mushrooms, red bell pepper, zucchini and some extra potatoes to make vegan empanadas!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Instead of deep frying the empanadas in oil, you can opt to use the air fryer instead. I don't think they are quite as delicious, but they are definitely healthier this way.
Just pop them into the air fryer at 380 degrees F for about 15 minutes. Once they are hard on outside and piping hot, they are good to go! You can see here the air fried version gets a little darker, and aren't as moist. But they are still delicious!
You can store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. I like to reheat them in the air fryer or toaster oven until heated through!
To freeze, place the fried and cooled empanadas in a freezer-safe container in the freezer for up to 2 months. I recommend allowing them to thaw overnight in the fridge and then reheating them in the air fryer or toaster oven before serving.
More Recipes to Try
- Ecuadorian Bean Stew
- Air Fryer Yuca Fries
- Ecuadorian Seco de Pollo
- Patacones (Fried Green Plantains)
- Llapingachos
Colombian Empanadas
Ingredients
For the Empanada Dough
- 4 cups pre-cooked yellow cornmeal PAN brand
- 3 ½ cups water
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoon salt
Filling
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 small white onion diced
- 1 tomato diced
- 2-3 garlic cloves minced
- ½ green bell pepper diced
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ cup chicken broth or water with a little extra salt
- 1 medium-sized potato peeled and diced into small pieces
- salt & pepper to taste
- fresh cilantro stirred in at end
For Assembly
- vegetable or canola oil for frying
- Colombian ají for serving
Instructions
For the Dough
- Combine the 4 cups yellow corn flour, 3 cups water, 1 tablespoon oil and 1 teaspoon salt in a large mixing bowl. Mix until combined and knead in the bowl for a few minutes to ensure all of the water is absorbed.
- Cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and set aside.
For the Filling
- Place a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil and the ground beef into the skillet to brown. Break up the meat as it cooks with a spatula or wooden spoon.
- Once the beef is mostly browned, add in the diced onion, tomato, minced garlic, and green bell pepper. Stir to combine and allow to cook for a few minutes while the vegetables soften.
- Add the spices: 1 teaspoon ground cumin, ½ teaspoon dried oregano, ¼ teaspoon of paprika. Add a bit of salt here too, about ½ tsp. Stir to combine.
- Next, add in the chicken broth and the diced potato. Cover and allow the filling to simmer on low heat until the potatoes are fork tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the chopped cilantro and set the filling aside.
Assemble the Empanadas
- With wet hands, roll a portion of the empanada dough into a ball. It should be larger than a golf ball, but smaller than a tennis ball.
- Take a large gallon-sized ziplock bag and cut along the sides, leaving one side of the bag in tact.
- Place the empanada dough ball in between the ziplock back, so it is covered in the plastic. Use a tortilla press or flat object like a cutting board to flatten the ball into a disk. You can also use a rolling pin! You want it to be thin, but not so thing that it will break open.
- Pull back the plastic bag and spoon about 2 tablespoon of filling into the middle of the empanada dough disk. Fold over the empanada using the plastic bag, then use a round bowl to seal the empanada and create a perfectly round edge.
- Repeat with the rest of the dough and filling. When you are almost done assembling, start to heat up the oil for frying them.
- In a large pot, heat up the oil on medium-high heat. I like to add enough oil so that at least half of the empanada will be covered.
- Fry 2 to 3 empanadas as a time, gently placing them in the pot of oil with a large metal spoon. Fry on one side for about 5 minutes, until golden and firm. Then flip and fry on the other side for another 5 minutes. Repeat with all of the empanadas.
- Serve hot with a side of Colombian hot sauce!
Notes
To freeze, place the fried and cooled empanadas in a freezer-safe container in the freezer for up to 2 months. I recommend allowing them to thaw overnight in the fridge and then reheating them in the air fryer or toaster oven before serving.
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