It seems just about every culture has some sort of hand pie. The filling and the dough may vary, and they may be baked or fried, but they all seem to be a favorite food of whatever country they’re from. Empanadas are the Spanish version of a hand pie and since it’s Tapas Tuesday, ours will be filled with tuna and potatoes, a common filling from Galicia.
There are references to empanadas dating back to the 16th century (Wiki). Spanish colonization helped spread the empanada to Latin America and the Caribbean where there are many variations both sweet and savory. I see them in just about every bakery in Valladolid where you can buy the small, hand held empanadas (sometimes called empanadillas) or slices of larger empanadas. Some of them can be as large as a baking tray and they can be filled with tuna, mushrooms, beef, jamon or even sweet fillings like dates and manchego cheese. I want to try those next!
We used this recipe from Directo al Palador as a starting point. The website is in Spanish but Google Translate does a great job. The empanada demonstrated is more like an actual pie and looks awesome, but I was more interested in what was used for the filling. We purchased a pre-made empanada shell that’s available everywhere, including the US (look in the refrigerated section with the other Latin foods). It’s circular about 4 1/2 inches in diameter. Other options for the crust include: homemade pastry, store bought pastry (pie dough, pizza dough or crescent rolls) or puff pastry. In Spain you’ll see containers of empanada filling for sale next to the shells.
Use a good quality canned chunk tuna, it can be packed in oil or water as you prefer. The important thing is that you like the flavor. Leftover cooked tuna is also an option.
This recipe made enough to fill 10 empanada shells. It’s easily increased if necessary.
Ingredients:
- 6 ounces tuna
- 1 medium potato, diced small
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 medium onion, minced
- 1/2 red pepper, diced small
- 2 – 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 – 2 tablespoons tomato sauce (optional)
- 1/4 cup grated cheese (optional)
- 1 – 2 tablespoons olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Method:
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet and saute the onion and garlic.
- Add the potato and red pepper and cook until all the veggies are tender. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add the tuna and tomato sauce, if using, and allow to heat through.
- Stir in the parsley and cheese, if using, and remove from the heat. Let cool.
- When ready to fill the empanadas, preheat the oven to 400ยฐ
- Lay a few shells out, assembly line style.
- Put a generous tablespoon or so of filling in the middle of each shell and fold the edge over. Crimp the edges tightly using any method you like.
- Arrange on a baking sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Check about halfway and turn the tray.
- Empanadas can be eaten hot or cold.
If you prefer to pan fry the empanadas, make sure the edges are sealed tightly. Shallow fry in oil, lard, butter or some combination, turning once or twice to get a nice golden brown color all over.
Have you had empanadas before? What is your favorite filling?
Yum, these look and sound great! I can’t wait to try them.
Congratulations! Your amazing recipe is one of my features at this week’s Inspire Me Monday party at Create With Joy!
Thank you! You’ve made my evening ๐
Oh my goodness these look *so* yummy! I’m kinda craving carbsโฆ. {I’ve abandoned carbs, I’m trying to go Paleo}
I love empanadas! I’ve never had them this way, but I’d love to.
Thanks for sharing via Mommy Monday!
xoxo
You could probably wrap the filling with lettuce or kale leaves. I like to do that to help cut the calories from breads. I guess you’d have to call them something else. Lechuganadas maybe, hahaha.
This post made me smile! I remember eating empanadas de atun in San Sebastian many, many years ago.
The most interesting empanada I’ve tried was filled with curry in Singapore. It wasn’t called an empanada though, I cant remember what it was.
Thanks for the simple recipe! I might try these this weekend.
We need to make our way up to San Sebastian. That area of Spain really took a beating this winter with a ton of storms. I’m not sure if they’re called samosas in Singapore, but I’ll bet they were really yummy!!
It was driving me crazy so I looked it up and they’re called curry puffs. So tasty! I bet I could replicate it with your recipe. Thanks so much!
Now you’ve got me curious!
I love Spanish food:) Thanks for linking up to the Bloggers Brags Pinterest Party. I have pinned your post to the Bloggers Brags Pinterest Board.
These sound so delicious and such a nice change of pace. Thank you for the recipe and how to. Thank you for sharing this at the HomeAcre Hop; I hope you’ll join us again this Thursday.
Kathi at Oak Hill Homestead
Thank you! I hope you’ll give them a try ๐
yummy empandanas!! I haven’t these in years! Thanks for coming over and sharing at The Weekend Retreat hope to see you back on Thursday!!
Oh, these looks so good! I love that they are baked too! I can’t wait to give them a try:) Pinned!
Thanks for the pin! Let me know how you like them ๐
I love the healthier, leaner take on this classic recipe! I have enjoyed the beef and cheese filling inside and the fried version lol, but this will do as well! I’m going to pin this so maybe one day I can try it ๐ Thanks so much for faithfully linking up with us at Countdown in Style! Don’t forget to stop by Friday to see if you are featured ๐
What a sweet thing to say… Thanks Brittnei! Have a great week ๐
These look amazing! Thanks so much for sharing on Whatever Wednesday at Thank You Honey! Congrats you are being featured this week! Looking forward to having you guest host with us!
Thank you! I’m very happy to hear the news ๐
I’ve never had an empanada before, but those look absolutely delicious! Thank you for sharing on Foodie Friday
I hope you get a chance to give them a try. Thanks for dropping by ๐
My husband has Celiac, but I’ve had good experiences with GF Bisquick. I’ll let you know if I gluten-free-ize these ๐
Sounds like a plan! I’ll keep an eye out for your update, thanks ๐
Hi, I saw you on keeping it simple link up and thought these looked delicious. I love empanadas and have to give them a try.
Thank you for coming by and taking the time to comment. I hope you like them ๐
Those look amazing. Kind of in a slump in the kitchen lately. I think I might have just found some inspiration. Just pinned it!
I know what you mean about being getting in a rut. I hope you like these ๐
I LOVE hand pies in every culture, but have never tried tuna. Do you have to have it cooked? Can you have like an ahi tuna, seared? This looks really good. I’ve made some beef patties which came out well, now I’d love to branch out. Thanks for sharing with Countdown in Style.
I used the best quality canned tuna I could find for this recipe. I don’t see why you couldn’t use seared tuna. Let me know how it turns out, April ๐
I like the tuna twist on these. Pinning. thanks for bringing your empanadas to foodie friday.
My kids would be thrilled with these empanadas and I would, too. Thanks for sharing at Inspire Us Thursday on Organized 31.
I hope you all enjoy them. They’re not too hard to make, and baking makes for an easy clean up. Thanks for taking the time to drop in and leave a comment ๐
I have not tried making these before. Such a unique combination, sounds really yummy!
I hope you give it a try ๐
Yummy, I love tuna and I think these will be delicious. A delightful combination of flavors. Visiting from SITS Saturday Sharefest.
Barbara @ http://www.allmylivesnow.com
We liked them. Thanks for dropping by from SITS!
These look amazing! I’ve never made empanadas before, but I’ve had them and love them! Pinning so I can try!
What an Delish looking recipe! Must make soon! Thanks for sharing this #LOBS weekend! ~A~
I’ve never made empanadas before and look forward to trying these! Thank you for sharing ๐
Let me know who they turn out and what you used for the shell. Have a great weekend ๐
I love making empanadas every time I do it’s a different filling and it makes it so much fun. I did not know there were premade pie shells. I will be looking for these at the store. Thank you for sharing it on our Four Seasons Blog Hop. Pinning now.
My local “Gucchi” grocery store in the US sells them in the freezer case with the Goya products. The particular brand I used is sold all over Spain and is a Nestle company.
These look delicious! I love empanadas and love that they can be savory or sweet. Stopping by from SITs!
Thank you for dropping in ๐ My husband gobbled these up and that’s unusual for him.
Stopping by from Let’s Get Real Party and these look amazing!
Thanks! Let’s Get Real is one of my favorite parties ๐
Hi Lydia~ I’m stopping in from Let’s Get Real today. I really enjoy your Tapas series. You are really expanding my tastes with new foods and food combinations to try. Like all of your other recipes, these look fantastic. Do you prefer baking or frying?
Thanks Christina. I prefer baking because I’d rather not deal with the oil. There’s plenty of butter/shortening/lard in the crust to get a nice texture and color. Most of the empanadas I’ve seen in the bakeries have been baked but I’ve seen them fried on Spanish cooking shows. They use olive oil (of course) but butter would be great, especially if there was a fruit filling. I think it would depend on your preference and the size of the finished product. Happy Valentine’s Day <3
I have been looking for a good empanada recipe to try (for my first time!) and this looks like it might just be the one. These look so yummy!
I hope you like them. If you can’t find the pre-made dough, use whatever you can find (or make yourself) and don’t worry about the finished shape too much. Squares, rectangles and triangles are all good too ๐ Have fun!
These look so good. I keep thinking I’m going to have a tapas party – maybe this is the kick in the seat I need!
Please feel free to check out the Tapas Tuesday tab at the top for more ideas. Have fun!
I haven’t had these in such a long time. Yours look delish! Hugs
I LOVE empanadas and these looks so easy to make! I’m definitely going to be on the lookout for those shells!!!
– Brooke –