Puerto Rican-style Empanada Dough is a 5-ingredient recipe that produces a flaky pastry shell to make recipes like empanadillas, pastelillos, and empanadas. The neutrality of this dough makes it a versatile pastry shell for many different recipes, Puerto Rican or not.
What Are Puerto Rican-Style Empanadas?
Puerto Rican empanadas are called pastelillos or empanadillas and fried instead of baked.
The most common filling in Puerto Rican empanadas is beef picadillo, guava and cream cheese, or pizza.
Where Do Empanadas Originate?
Empanada comes from the Spanish word “empanadar,” which means to bread something. The “bread” on the empanada is this dough.
Empanadas are a Spanish recipe that’s made its way to Spanish colonies and countries with a Spanish influence. Argentina and Venezuela are the countries that are widely known for their empanadas.
What Do I Need To Make Empanada Dough?
To make empanada dough, you need all-purpose flour, baking powder, kosher salt, lard or vegetable shortening, a large egg, and ice water.
You may be thinking, “You said it was a 5-ingredient recipe, wit’ ‘cho lyin’ a–!” Hold on!! I don’t count water as an “ingredient,” but if you do, then I apologize. And watch your mouth.
You’ll also need a rolling pin and, if you have one, a tortilla press. The tortilla press isn’t a must, but it’s super helpful. Wax paper is another “special” tool that you will need for this recipe.
Can I Make This Empanada Dough Gluten-Free?
Add the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and kosher salt to a large mixing bowl. Use your hand or a whisk to combine the dry ingredients.
To make gluten-free empanada dough, replace the all-purpose flour in this recipe with Gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour.
Add the lard to a bowl and use your hands or a pastry cutter to cut the fat into the flour mixture until it resembles a coarse meal.
You can replace the lard in this empanada dough with vegetable shortening if you abstain from pork. Avoid using butter to make empanada dough since it’s temperamental and makes the dough hard to work with. You can use a butter-flavored shortening if you want a butter flavor.
Why Is It Necessary To Rest The Dough?
Combine the beaten egg and the ice water in a separate bowl or pitcher. Add the liquid ingredients to the mixing bowl. Add 1 cup of water to the mixture initially. After mixing, you can add a minimal amount of water to bring a very dry dough together, but avoid adding too much water since the dough will continue to hydrate as it rests.
Use your hands to knead the mixture until it comes together in a scraggly dough.
Form the dough into a disc and wrap it in plastic or put it into a food storage bag. Refrigerate the dough for 20-30 minutes. It’s important to allow empanada dough to rest before forming it into balls. The kneading developed strong gluten strands. Attempting to form and roll the dough now will result in the dough shrinking back on you.
Make any fillings you plan to stuff your empanadas while resting the empanada dough.
How Do I Roll Perfect Circles?
Use a bench scraper to divide the dough equally into 12 pieces. The specific weight of each ball will be about 2.2 ounces or 62 grams. A kitchen scale that allows you to weigh out empanada dough is helpful, so every piece is the same.
To make perfectly round discs of empanada dough:
- Wrap the top and bottom plates of a tortilla press in a layer of plastic wrap.
- Use a cupped hand to form the dough into balls, then press empanada dough into a circle in the tortilla press.
- Use a rolling pin to thin out the dough the rest of the way, and you have a perfect circle of empanada dough. You can also roll the ball of empanada dough into a 6-inch circle using only a wooden rolling pin.
The tortilla press method gives you a headstart forming a perfectly-shaped empanada disc. It presses the dough into a circle and provides you with a guide to roll it out the rest of the way.
How Do I Keep The Dough From Sticking Together?
As you roll out each disc of empanada dough, lay a 7-inch square of wax paper on top to separate it from the next disc of dough. Wax paper is non-stick, which keeps it from sticking to the empanada discs and keeps them from sticking to each other.
In a pinch, parchment paper, plastic wrap, or aluminum foil can be used to separate the empanada dough, but because they’re not non-stick, they can be cumbersome.
How Long Can I Keep It Refrigerated?
Wrap the stack of empanada dough in plastic wrap or into a freezer storage bag.
The empanada dough is ready to use now, but I recommend resting again for 10-15 minutes. You can refrigerate the empanada dough after forming it into circles for 3-4 days. If you don’t use the empanada dough within 4 days of making it, freeze it to maintain its flavor.
How Do I Store Empanada Dough?
It’s best to store empanada dough in the refrigerator until you use it. The dough is easier to work with when it’s rested and chilled.
The longer the empanada dough is refrigerated, the greyer it will become due to oxidization. It’s still fine for 1-2 more days, but the appearance will be off.
Freezing the empanada dough after you form it into circles is the best way to store it. Be sure to wrap it well to keep it from oxidizing, and freeze the dough for up to 6 months.
How Can I Use It?
Fill this empanada dough with meat, poultry, seafood, legumes, or fruit fillings.
Here are my tips for using this empanada dough:
- Roll the circles out just before filling them, focusing the pressure of the rolling pin on the outer edges.
- Try not to roll the center of your empanada discs too thin. The thinner the middle is, the more it will break when you fry it. Thin edges are fine since you’ll be pressing two halves together a fluting them, thus making a thicker layer of dough.
- Keep the discs of empanada dough covered as you work to keep them from drying out.
- Only fill the empanada dough circles with room-temperature or cold filling to keep the fat in the dough from melting and becoming gummy.
- This dough has never required me to flour my rolling pin or countertop, but if you find it’s sticking as you roll it out, lightly dust your pin and countertop with all-purpose flour.
- If the dough circles shrink back on you as you roll, cover it and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for 20 minutes. The gluten is working against you.
This simple recipe for Puerto Rican-style empanada dough is handy for making last-minute snacks, lunches, or as an entree. You can fill empanada shells with any number of fillings, so think creatively.
Let me know what you think of this empanada dough recipe in the comments, and don’t forget to pin it and share!
Empanada Dough (Puerto Rican-Style)
at Sense & EdibilityEquipment
- rolling pin
- tortilla press not required, but helpful
- wax paper
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 cups (460 grams) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons (12 grams) kosher salt or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon (4 grams) baking powder
- 3 1/2 tablespoons (50 grams) lard or vegetable shortening
- 1 cup (240 milliliters) ice water plus more if needed
- 1 large egg beaten
Instructions
Mix the Empanada Dough
- Add the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and kosher salt to a large mixing bowl. Use your hand or a whisk to combine the dry ingredients.
- Add the lard to a bowl and use your hands or a pastry cutter to cut the fat into the flour mixture until it resembles a coarse meal.Combine the beaten egg and the ice water in a separate bowl or pitcher. Add the liquid ingredients to the mixing bowl.
- Use your hands to knead the mixture until it comes together in a scraggly dough. After mixing, you can add a tablespoon or two (15-30 milliliters) of water to bring a very dry dough together, but avoid adding too much water since the dough will continue to hydrate as it rests.
Rest the Empanada Dough, Then Form It
- Form the dough into a disc and wrap it in plastic or put it into a food storage bag. Refrigerate the dough for 20-30 minutes. Make any fillings you plan to stuff your empanadas while resting the empanada dough.
- Use a bench scraper to divide the dough equally into 12 pieces. Each piece will be about 2.2 ounces or 62 grams.
- Wrap the top and bottom plates of a tortilla press in a layer of plastic wrap.Use a cupped hand to form the dough into balls, then press the ball into a circle in the tortilla press.
- Use a rolling pin to roll out the dough the rest of the way until it's 6-inches. You can also roll the ball of empanada dough into a 6-inch circle using only a wooden rolling pin.
- As you roll out each disc of empanada dough, lay a 7-inch square of wax paper on top to separate it from the next disc of dough. Wrap the stack of empanada dough in plastic wrap or into a freezer storage bag.
Use or Freeze the Empanada Dough
- The empanada dough is ready to use now, but it's helpful to rest the dough for another 10-15 minutes. Fill this empanada dough with room temperature or cold meat, poultry, seafood, legumes, or fruit fillings. See "Storage Instructions" in the Notes below for tips on how to freeze this empanada dough.
Notes
Swaps and Substitutions:
- To make gluten-free empanada dough, replace the all-purpose flour in this recipe with Gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour.
- You can decrease the kosher salt in this recipe to 1 teaspoon (6 grams).
- You can replace the lard in this empanada dough with vegetable shortening if you abstain from pork.
- Avoid using butter to make empanada dough since it's temperamental and makes the dough hard to work with. You can use a butter-flavored shortening if you want a butter flavor.
- Begin with 1 cup (240 grams) of ice water. Add more water if the dough mixture is crumbly and not holding together.
- In a pinch, parchment paper, plastic wrap, or aluminum foil can be used to separate the empanada dough, but because they're not non-stick, they can be cumbersome.
Tips and Techniques:
- The tortilla press method gives you a headstart forming a perfectly-shaped empanada disc.
- Roll the circles out slightly just before filling them, focusing the pressure of the rolling pin on the outer edges. Try not to roll the center of your empanada discs too thin. The thinner the middle is, the more it will break when you fry it.
- Keep the discs of empanada dough covered as you work to keep them from drying out.
- Fill the empanada dough circles with room-temperature or cold filling to keep the fat in the dough from melting and becoming gummy.
- If you find the dough sticking to the countertop as you roll it out, lightly dust your pin and countertop with all-purpose flour.
- If the dough circles shrink back on you as you roll, cover it and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for 20 minutes to allow the gluten to relax.
- You can fill empanada shells with any number of fillings, so think creatively.
- The dough is easier to work with when it's rested and chilled.
Storage Instructions:
- You can refrigerate the empanada dough after forming it into circles for 3-4 days.
- It's best to store empanada dough in the refrigerator until you use it. The longer the empanada dough is refrigerated, the greyer it will become due to oxidization. It's still fine for 1-2 more days, but the appearance will be off.
- If you don't use the empanada dough within 4 days of making it, freeze it to maintain its flavor.
- Freezing the empanada dough after you form it into circles is the best way to store it.
- Be sure to wrap it well to keep it from oxidizing, I also put it in a storage bag, and freeze the dough for up to 6 months.
loved these fried but could you bake them?
Yes, you can! I often use this dough to make baked sweet empandas.
I’ve was always too intimidated to make empanada dough! Marta’s recipe was so easy to follow and she provided helpful tips to make the flakiest dough! Thanks for the education where empanadas originated – I always learn so much history through your posts!
Thank you & enjoy, Geo!
Very easy to follow recipe. I’ve already made two batches and stored one for later using your freezing tips. Came out perfectly. Thank you!
Keeping a batch on deck is a great idea, Jazz. Enjoy!