Frituras

Empanadillas

Name: Empanadillas
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 12 empanadillas
Cuisine: Puerto Rican
Ingredients: 1 lb ground beef; 1/4 cup sofrito; 1 packet sazon con culantro y achiote; 1/2 cup tomato sauce; 1/4 cup olives, chopped; 1 hard-boiled egg, chopped; 12 discos (empanada wrappers); Oil for frying; Salt to taste

Puerto Rico's answer to the empanada — larger, softer dough pockets stuffed with seasoned beef, olives, and egg.

45 minutes Medium

By Josh Ortiz·August 2026·8 min read

Empanadillas are Puerto Rico's answer to the empanada — larger, softer dough pockets stuffed with seasoned beef. Every boricua has memories of eating these at family gatherings and school lunches. There's something about the way the crispy fried dough gives way to that savory filling of ground beef, olives, and hard-boiled egg that makes them impossible to eat just one. Unlike the thinner, crispier Argentine empanada, the Puerto Rican empanadilla uses a thicker, more pliable disco that puffs up when fried, creating a pillowy shell around the filling. They're the ultimate fritura — portable, shareable, and endlessly satisfying. Whether you're making them for a party spread or a weeknight dinner, empanadillas deliver that unmistakable boricua comfort in every bite.

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What are Empanadillas?

Empanadillas are Puerto Rican fried turnovers filled with seasoned ground beef. They're made with discos — pre-made empanada dough rounds that you can find in the frozen section of most grocery stores. The filling is a classic picadillo-style mixture: ground beef cooked with sofrito, sazon, tomato sauce, chopped olives, and diced hard-boiled egg. The combination of savory beef, briny olives, and creamy egg is uniquely boricua. After filling and sealing, they're deep-fried until golden and puffy. In Puerto Rico, you'll find empanadillas at virtually every fritura, school cafeteria, and family gathering. They're comfort food in its purest form — no plating, no pretension, just a golden pocket of deliciousness you eat with your hands.

Ingredients

Scale recipe:

12 servings

Makes 12 empanadillas:

1 ground beef — regular 80/20 beef works best for flavor. Lean beef can taste dry inside the fried dough.
1/4 sofrito — homemade or store-bought. The aromatic foundation of the filling.
1 sazon con culantro y achiote — gives the filling that signature color and depth.
1/2 tomato sauce — adds moisture and a touch of sweetness to the meat.
1/4 olives, chopped — manzanilla olives with pimento. The briny contrast to the rich beef.
1 hard-boiled egg, chopped — a classic addition that adds creaminess and texture.
12 (empanada wrappers) — found frozen in the Latin aisle. Goya is the most common brand.
Oil for frying — vegetable or canola oil. You need about 2-3 inches in your pan.
Salt to taste

Step-by-Step Instructions

Brown the beef. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and break it apart with a spoon. Cook until fully browned, about 5-7 minutes. Drain the excess fat from the pan.

Build the filling. Add the sofrito, sazon, tomato sauce, chopped olives, and hard-boiled egg to the beef. Stir everything together and cook for 5 minutes. The kitchen should smell amazing by now. Season with salt and taste before removing from heat.

Cool the filling. Transfer the filling to a plate or bowl and let it cool completely. This is important — warm filling will make the discos gummy and hard to work with. You can speed this up by spreading it flat on a sheet pan.

Fill and seal. Lay out a disco on a clean surface. Place about 2 tablespoons of filling slightly off-center. Fold the dough over to create a half-moon shape. Press the edges firmly with a fork to seal — make sure there are no gaps or the filling will leak during frying.

Fry until golden. Heat 2-3 inches of oil to 350°F in a deep pan or Dutch oven. Carefully lower 2-3 empanadillas at a time — don't overcrowd the pan. Fry for 3-4 minutes per side until deep golden brown. Drain on paper towels and serve hot.

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Tips for Perfect Empanadillas

Cool the filling completely. This is the #1 mistake people make. Warm filling creates steam inside the disco, which causes it to burst open in the oil. Spread the filling on a plate and give it at least 15 minutes.
Seal with a fork. Press the tines firmly along the entire edge. You can also dab a little water along the rim before sealing for extra insurance against leaks.
Don't overfill. 2 tablespoons is the sweet spot. More than that and the disco won't close properly, or the filling will push out during frying.
Watch your oil temperature. Too hot and the outside burns before the dough cooks through. Too cool and the empanadillas absorb too much oil and turn greasy. 350°F is the target.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, though the texture will be different. Preheat your oven to 400°F, place the empanadillas on a parchment-lined baking sheet, brush with egg wash, and bake for 15-18 minutes until golden. They'll be flakier and less puffy than the fried version — more like a baked turnover. Still delicious, just not the traditional fritura experience.

Goya brand discos are the standard — they come in the frozen section and are labeled "discos para empanadillas." They're about 5-6 inches in diameter, which is the right size for a generous filling. If you can't find discos, you can roll out pie crust or empanada dough from scratch, but the pre-made ones save a ton of time and are very forgiving.

Absolutely. You can freeze them before or after frying. For unbaked empanadillas, place them on a baking sheet in a single layer, freeze until solid, then transfer to a freezer bag. They'll keep for up to 3 months. Fry them directly from frozen — add 1-2 minutes to the cook time. If freezing after frying, reheat in a 375°F oven for about 10 minutes to re-crisp the dough.