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These Air Fryer Empanadas come together in just around 20 minutes, and have the perfect balance of crispy, savory and meaty textures and flavors.
Start with a store-bought pastry crust and a few pantry staples to whip up these delicious empanadas that are perfect for Mexican night. Team them up with some Air Fryer stuffed peppers or my favorite loaded Air Fryer nachos and you’ve got yourself an absolute crowd pleaser!
These taste SO good- just like those beef empanadas you’d find at your local Mexican restaurant- but much lighter, with much less oil- so you get to go for seconds without the guilt!
After making these, if you still have some leftover beef, put it to use to make my Air Fryer cheeseburger bombs or taco bombs the next day.
Quick Look At This Recipe
✨ Flavor: Crispy and savory.
⏱️ Prep time: 15 minutes.
🔥 Cook time: 8 minutes.
⏲️ Total time: 23 minutes.
👥 Servings: 4 servings.
🥄 Tools: Air Fryer.
❄️ Freezer friendly: Yes.
👩🏻🍳 Tip: Add some shredded Mexican cheese into the filling to get that irresistible cheese pull.
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Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- They’re the ultimate party food- just like my Air Fryer tortilla chips.
- They come together in under 30 minutes from start to finish, and can be prepped ahead of time too!
- You can play around with the seasonings and fillings to your liking, and come up with your own version of these savory pockets.
Recipe Ingredients
- Pie crust dough: Start with a classic refrigerated pie crust dough (like Pillsbury Pie Crust).
- Ground beef: I used lean ground beef here to keep it light. You can totally use the kind you like.
- Veggies: I used a mix of chopped yellow onion, some shredded carrots and frozen peas here. You can also chop up some bell peppers or green onions and add them in if you want to.
- Egg: To brush over the top of the empanadas- to lend them that beautiful shine.
- Seasonings: I kept it simple and just used a dash of Italian seasoning, salt and black pepper. You can add cayenne for a bit of heat, or even some of my homemade taco seasoning blend for additional flavor.
See recipe card for quantities.
Variations
- Experiment with different meats for the stuffing. You could use ground turkey or ground chicken too. I love shredding up some chicken whenever I make my Air Fryer whole chicken and using that for the stuffing.
- If you’re allergic to eggs, brush some olive oil over the prepared empanadas for that bit of glossy shine.
- To make these empanadas spicy, add some chopped jalapenos into the mix!
How to Make Air Fryer Empanadas
- Cook the ground beef in a pan over medium high heat until nicely browned. Drain the excess fat away.
- Transfer to a medium bowl and add the veggies and seasonings. Stir and set aside.
- Roll out the dough and cut circles around 5-6 inches in diameter using a cookie cutter.
- Spoon a small amount of the mixture onto one side of the circle. Fold the dough over the meat filling, sealing in the mixture and then pinch or use a fork to seal edges.
- Whisk the egg and a bit of water in a small bowl and brush this mixture over each empanada using a pastry brush.
- Transfer them to a lined Air Fryer basket and air fry at 350 F for 7-10 minutes.
- Once the empanadas have a golden brown exterior, get them out and let them cool down for a minute or two.
- Serve with your favorite dipping sauce.
Serving Ideas & Suggestions
Enjoy these air fried empanadas as a snack or an appetizer along with your favorite salsa or dipping sauce. I love teaming them up with my Air Fryer chicken taquitos, some Air Fryer frozen mini tacos or air fried frozen taquitos and a nice dipping sauce like avocado crema or some guacamole.
If you’re making these as a part of a Mexican dinner, team them up with my all-time favorite Air Fryer taco casserole or Air Fryer enchiladas for a hearty meal. Use up any leftover dough crust that you may have to whip up Air Fryer banana Nutella hand pies or some delicious Air Fryer blueberry hand pies.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Make sure you seal the edges tightly. This will help keep the empanadas from opening up in the Air Fryer. I realized this when I made my Air Fryer avocado bacon egg rolls.
- Remember to flip the empanadas over somewhere around the 5 minute mark, and then continue cooking. This will ensure they get nice and crispy on both sides.
- Don’t overfill the rounds- you don’t want the filling to spill out.
- Make sure the filling is nice and dry, and not too wet, or the empanadas will burst open when air frying. This happened one time when I made my Air Fryer taco stuffed shells and from then on, I always make sure I drain the excess fat away.
- You can also make smaller sized empanadas if you want to- just cut down a couple of minutes of cooking time to ensure they don’t burn.
- To make things quicker, I like to prepare the filling ahead of time. I usually make a big batch of my Air Fryer ground beef and refrigerate it to make meals throughout the week.
Recipe FAQs
Your leftover air fried empanadas can stay fresh for up to 4 days in the refrigerator. Just make sure you use a clean airtight container or a Ziploc bag to store them.
Yes, you can prep them ahead of time and freeze for up to 2 months! Simply arrange them on a baking sheet and freeze until solid, then transfer to a freezer bag or container and freeze until you’re ready to air fry them. Remember that if you’re cooking them from frozen, you’ll need to add a couple of extra minutes of cooking time.
Pop the leftover empanadas in your Air Fryer for a few minutes to warm them up. I wouldn’t recommend using the microwave as it can make them soggy.
More Air Fryer Mexican Recipes
Dinner
Air Fryer Shrimp Tacos
Dinner
Air Fryer Enchiladas
Side Dishes
Air Fryer Mexican Street Corn
Air Fryer Recipes
Air Fryer Taco Shells
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Air Fryer Empanadas
Equipment
- 1 Air Fryer
Ingredients
- 1 refrigerated pie crust dough
- 1/2 pound lean ground beef
- 1/4 cup yellow onion, chopped
- 1 cup frozen mixed vegetables, like peas, carrots, and corn
- 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Egg Wash
- 1 large egg, whisked
- 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
- In a medium pan, over medium-high heat, use a wooden spoon to break up and brown the ground beef, then drain the grease through a strainer.
- Transfer ground beef mixture to a medium bowl, then add in onion, mixed vegetables, and Italian seasoning, salt and black pepper. Stir together to fully combine, then set aside.
- Roll out empanada dough on a cutting board and cut circles, about 5-6 inches in diameter. Use a cookie cutter, pastry cutter or biscuit cutter if needed to make the dough rounds the same size.
- Spoon a small amount of the seasoned ground beef mixture onto one side of the circle. Fold dough over the meat filling, sealing in the mixture, then pinch, or use a fork to seal edges.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and a tablespoon of water. Use a pastry brush and brush the top of each empanada with egg wash.
- Place them in the air fryer basket, in a single layer on parchment paper liner, or spritzed with olive oil spray. Air fry at 350 degrees F for 8-10 minutes, until the dough is golden brown.
Notes
- Don’t overfill the dough discs.
- Make sure you seal the edges nicely, so the filling doesn’t spill out when the empanadas get air fried.
- Remember to drain the excess fat from the ground beef and try to keep the filling as dry as you can.
- Flip the empanadas over during the 5 minute mark to get them crispy on both sides.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
