~616 cal · 28g protein · 56g carbs · 30g fat (estimated, per serving)
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Golden baked empanadas with braided edges on a wooden board
🇦🇷 Mendoza
Every Argentine province stakes its identity on its empanada, and Mendoza’s is famed for using more onion than beef, baked in wood ovens until blistered. The repulgue — the braided seal — tells you what’s inside before you bite.
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Make it yours
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
Ingredients
Serves 6 —
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3 cups all-purpose flour (for the dough)
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1/2 cup butter or beef fat, melted (for the dough)
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3/4 cup warm salted water
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1 lb ground beef
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3 — yes, three yellow onions, finely diced
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1/2 cup green olives, chopped
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1 tbsp sweet paprika
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1 tsp cumin
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1 tsp dried oregano
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4 scallions, sliced
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1 egg, beaten (to glaze)
Instructions
1
Knead the flour, melted fat, and warm water into a supple dough. Rest 30 minutes under a cloth.
2
Sweat the onions slowly in a little fat until completely soft. Add the beef (or lentils), spices, and salt; cook just until no longer pink. Cool, then fold in olives and scallions — a cold filling keeps the pastry crisp.
3
Roll the dough and cut 5-inch circles. Fill each with a generous spoonful.
4
Fold, press, and braid the edge into a repulgue (or crimp with a fork). Brush with egg.
5
Bake at 425°F for 20–25 minutes until deep gold. Rest 5 minutes — the filling holds its heat like lava.
Mendoza wood-oven tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers — know your destination
📍
Mendoza. High-desert wine country with a fierce empanada pride.
🗺️
Argentina. Asado smoke, Malbec, and Italian grandmothers on the Pampas.
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South America. Andes, Amazon, and Atlantic all on one plate.
The story behind this dish is up top — worth a read while the pot works.
👩🍳
Richard Moore & Kelsey Tucker
Recipes cooked, tested, and researched by the creators of Spin the Globe. How we build our recipes →
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