Pork Empanadas

  4.0 – 39 reviews  • Mexican

The whole family is sure to enjoy these wings with honey garlic sauce. Compared to jarred sauce from the store, the homemade sauce is much superior. Although you can fried chicken wings, I recommend baking them because it uses less fat. Serve alongside stir-fried vegetables and rice.

Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 2 hrs 50 mins
Additional Time: 5 mins
Total Time: 3 hrs 15 mins
Servings: 16
Yield: 16 empanadas

Ingredients

  1. 2 pounds pork butt roast
  2. 1 onion, quartered
  3. 2 cloves garlic
  4. ½ teaspoon salt
  5. 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  6. 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  7. 2 bay leaves
  8. 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  9. ¾ cup masa harina
  10. 1 teaspoon baking powder
  11. ¼ teaspoon salt
  12. ½ cup lard
  13. 1 egg, beaten
  14. ½ cup milk
  15. 1 cup chipotle salsa

Instructions

  1. To make the filling: Place pork in a large pot and cover with water. Add onion, garlic, salt, oregano, cumin, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1 1/2 hours. While pork is cooking, prepare dough.
  2. To make the dough: Sift together flour, masa harina, baking powder, and salt. Add shortening to dry ingredients and mix well. In a separate bowl, beat together egg and 1/2 cup milk. Make a well in the center of dry ingredients. Add egg mixture and stir with a fork until dough comes together in a ball. Divide dough into 16 even pieces and roll each piece into a ball. Place in a container, cover, and refrigerate.
  3. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
  4. After pork has simmered for 1 1/2 hours, remove from liquid. Place pork in a baking dish and bake for 1 hour or until meat shreds easily with a fork. Remove from the oven (keep the oven turned on) and shred into small pieces. Add salsa to shredded pork.
  5. Lightly grease a baking sheet.
  6. On a lightly floured surface, flatten a piece of dough with the palm of your hand. With a rolling pin, roll out the dough to make a 5-inch circle about 1/8-inch thick. Place 2 to 3 tablespoons of filling in the center of the dough circle. Brush edges of dough with milk. Fold dough over filling. Pinch edges together. Crimp with a fork to seal.
  7. Place on the prepared baking sheet and repeat with remaining empanada dough. Leftover filling can be frozen or used in tacos, tamales, or burritos.
  8. Bake in the preheated oven until golden, about 20 minutes. Remove to rack and cool for about 5 minutes. Serve warm.
  9. You may substitute vegetable shortening for the lard, if you prefer.
  10. These pastries can be frozen, baked or unbaked. If baking raw empanadas directly from the freezer, do not thaw. Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 25 to 30 minutes. Reheat baked frozen ones at the same temperature for 15 minutes.

Nutrition Facts

Calories 209 kcal
Carbohydrate 15 g
Cholesterol 41 mg
Dietary Fiber 2 g
Protein 9 g
Saturated Fat 5 g
Sodium 270 mg
Sugars 1 g
Fat 13 g
Unsaturated Fat 0 g

Reviews

Phyllis Summers
Loved the recipe.
Charles Patterson
Was good. Dough needs a little more flavor.
Candace Smith
The dough came together nicely and was easy to work with. It had a very good flavor. It was kind of dry though and much improved when topped with sour cream. Perhaps if I had really used it to wrap pork, it would have been better, but I had leftover chili so that is what I wrapped.
Kathy Bass
The dough came together nicely and was easy to work with. It had a very good flavor. It was kind of dry though and much improved when topped with sour cream. Perhaps if I had really used it to wrap pork, it would have been better, but I had leftover chili so that is what I wrapped.
William Ponce
I used the leftovers from a smoked shoulder stewed in enough water to barely cover until it was falling apart. Added a lovely smoked flavor. Did not change anything else. The dough was easy to work and the empanadas came out flakey, savory, and delicious. We will make these again.
Thomas Logan
I’ve made this recipe several times now. My only adjustments are scaling up and using a slow cooker. I usually get big pork shoulder from Costco so I double or triple the recipe. I get the best flavor if I mix together the seasonings and then rub it around the outside of the roast before placing in the crock pot. I bag the finished shredded meat into smaller portions to freeze for future use. I weigh my balls of dough to get uniform sizes then use my cast iron tortilla press lined with plastic bag to get perfect circles every time. I agree that the empanadas turn out dry when baked but when I deep fry they turn out perfectly moist (pan-frying produced uneven doneness). I prefer to make lots of empanadas at once and then bag and freeze meal sized portions. I don’t thaw before frying. The meat also works well for green enchiladas and tacos.
Kathleen Baxter
A little dry but my kids attacked the meat before I could put in to the dough.
Mrs. Hannah Villanueva DDS
The filling was good but I was never successful in making the dough. I did it twice but it was crumbly so I ended up putting the filling on a pizza dough, thanks to a quick recipe from this website.
Edward Ramirez
I had a pork roast that was intended for tamales, but changed my mind when I came across this recipe and it is an easy alternative to the tamale. Not a burrito, not a tamale. My spouse and I will put this one in our favorites for Mexican food night.
Rebecca Holden
Great empanadas shell recipe
Roger Acosta
The flavor is very dependent upon the salsa you choose. The filling was a little dry. I will be making this again. but I think I will try a chili verde sauce mixed with sour cream next time.
Kimberly Cooper
The filling was great! I had a little trouble with the dough… probably my fault. I made 8 small ones and the used the other half of the dough aand made one large one ( like a calzone ) turned out great!
Lindsey Vazquez
Here’s the problem – the timing is ALL wrong. The pork has to simmer for 1 1/2 hours, bake for 1 hour, and bake in the filling for 20 minutes. Yet the recipe claims they will be READY in 1 1/2 hours. VERY misleading, esp. when planning for a party. You’re looking at 3 hours +.
Jose Lewis
I had left over pulled pork that wanted to do something with. So, I tried these pork empanadas. Took my pulled pork (slow cooked pork butt) and added seasonings and cooked a little while longer. The dough was easy to make, but VERY bland. Felt like it was a waste of my good pulled pork.
Cathy Holt
This is a great recipe and actually really easy! I cooked my pork in the crock pot overnight and it still came out tasting really good. I also used cheese, corn, and green chiles without the pork to make a second batch. I agree with the other post regarding the dryness of the dough. I quick fry my empanadas instead of baking them, and they turn out moist and delicious ; )
Matthew Andrews
The filling was really good. Only i cooked it in a slow cooker and added some hot peppers to it. The filling was a little dry. But i think that it will be fine with a little more butter or less flour. Overall. Really Good!
Lisa Poole
I’m giving this 4 stars because I only made the filling. I used the Goya discos and served them with homemade guacamole and homemade salsa and brown rice. The pork filling is excellent. I actually put the roast in a crock pot with all of the seasonings and onion and garlic. I’d like to try it with the actual empanada recipe, just didn’t have time.
Nicole Collins
I’m giving this 4 stars because I only made the filling. I used the Goya discos and served them with homemade guacamole and homemade salsa and brown rice. The pork filling is excellent. I actually put the roast in a crock pot with all of the seasonings and onion and garlic. I’d like to try it with the actual empanada recipe, just didn’t have time.
William Williams
After reading another review I reduced the shortening to about 1/3 cup. I would NOT recommend reducing the shortening at all- the dough was difficult to work with and cracked easily. I thought the overall product turned out so-so, but my husband said it was one of the best meals he’s ever had!
Manuel Salas
Good; would like the filling a bit more flavorful, and the crust was dry (perhaps a high altitude issue). We will make them again with larger crusts and perhaps a bit of water added to the dough during mixing.
Dr. Anthony Barnes
I wanted to give this a five star rating but the filling was bland I made this as the recipe stated, tasted it half way through the cooking time, it was bland so I added more of the spices to suit my tastes.

 

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