Traditional Dishes: How to Prepare Empanadas Criollas

Empanada is the food that is the perfect manifestation of the diversity of Argentinian gastronomy. This is expressed by its many different versions: tucumanas, riojanas, salteñas, cordobesas, chaqueñas … While they are essentially the same, they have notable differences.

The most common filling in Argentina is based on beef, minced or cubed, accompanied by onion, olives, and hard-boiled egg, and seasoned with cumin, which is very important for the general flavor of the empanada.

Once filled, the empanada tapas are sealed with pastry twists—folds in the dough with variations that allow you to tell the flavors apart. It is important that this is done well so that the filling does not fall out of the empanada during cooking, whether fried or oven-baked.

There are many versions of empanadas across the country, and each one highlights the typical flavors and traditions of its place of origin. This is expressed, for example, by southern empanadas with fillings with characteristic Patagonian lamb.

From colonization up to the present day, the empanada has become one of Argentina’s favorite foods, demonstrating different aspects of our cuisine. The step-by-step recipe and ingredients needed to prepare empanadas criollas are shown below.