Savory Vegetarian Empanadas with a flaky, tender crust and a hearty filling of potatoes, shiitake mushrooms, onion, and Feta cheese. Although you can use store-bought pie crust, I highly recommend making my Flaky Empanada Dough for authentic tasting masa (corn) empanadas.
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Making empanadas should not be intimidating. I'll show you how easy it is to prepare Spanish turnovers with my tasty vegetarian empanada recipe. My Savory Vegetarian Empanadas are so flavorful and filling, you'll never miss the meat!
My empanada dough recipe is made with a mixture of cornmeal and all-purpose flour. It's tender and flaky when fried and thin and crispy when baked to match your personal preference. Cooking them in an air fryer yields similar results to baking them.
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🔖 Ingredients and Substitutions
- Oil: I used olive oil in this recipe, but you can use vegetable oil or avocado oil instead.
- Potato: Use a medium-sized Russet or Idaho potato, or substitute a sweet potato for a touch of sweetness.
- Onion: I use yellow onions, but feel free to substitute white or Spanish onions.
- Mushrooms: I created this recipe around shiitake mushrooms, but if you have another favorite mushroom, you can use that instead.
- Herbs: Italian parsley can be replaced with curly parsley or another herb altogether. I can see fresh basil, oregano, and even rosemary working beautifully with the other ingredients.
- Spices: The salt and black pepper flavor the filling mix, so don't skip those. However, the sumac and crushed red pepper are optional. For an even spicier filling, sauté a Serrano or Jalapeño pepper with the filling.
- Cheese: Instead of feta cheese, you can use mozzarella cheese, Queso fresco, goat cheese, or another soft and crumbly cheese.
🥟 How to Make Vegetarian Empanadas
Prepare the Dough
Prepare empanada dough using my recipe, another recipe, or use store-bought pie crust if you're short on time. While the dough is resting, prepare the filling.
Pro Tip: If using my dough recipes, be sure to wrap the dough in plastic wrap and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for an hour before proceeding.
Sauté the Filling
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet. Add diced potatoes and sauté for 5 minutes.
Dice onions and add to the skillet. Sauté for 5 more minutes while you chop the mushrooms. Add mushrooms and saute for an additional 5 minutes.
Pro Tip: If you find that the filling is too dry, add another tablespoon of oil or, even better, a pat of butter!
Stir chopped Italian parsley and minced garlic into the filling and season with salt, black pepper, sumac powder, and crushed red pepper. Cook for an additional minute. Cool before mixing in the feta cheese.
Empanada Assembly Directions
Roll a portion of dough (approximately .75 ounces) into a ball and place it onto a plastic-lined tortilla press. Press the dough into a perfectly smooth and round disc.
Pro Tip: If you don't have a Tortilla Press, roll the dough out to ⅛" thickness onto a floured surface using a rolling pin and cut out 18 discs with a 5" biscuit cutter.
Add 1 tablespoon of filling to each dough disc, leaving a ¼" border. Fold the dough over the filling and form the dough into a half-moon shape. Seal the edges with a fork, or pinch them together by hand (see pictures and video).
Pro Tip: If the dough feels dry, wet the edges with water, milk, or an egg wash to help them seal.
Empanada Frying Instructions
Fry vegetarian empanadas in 350° F oil for one to two minutes on each side. Drain on paper towels before serving.
Pro Tip: The oil is ready when it instantly bubbles when you add the empanadas. If you want to take the guesswork out of it, use a hand-held instant-read thermometer. The frying oil temp should be between 350-375°F.
Empanada Baking Instructions
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Place vegetarian empanadas onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and prick a few holes on top to allow the steam to escape. Brush with egg wash and bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown.
🍽 What to Serve with Vegetarian Empanadas
If serving the vegetarian empanada as an appetizer, all you need is a great dipping sauce. Try my Soy Tamarind Sauce, spicy Chimichurri Sauce, or serve with your favorite dipping sauce.
If you want to serve the empanadas as part of a meal, serve them with Spanish Rice, Roasted Tomatillo Salsa, or a Healthy Broccoli Salad.
🤷🏻♀️ Recipe FAQs
Empanadas can be savory or sweet. Sometimes they're filled with chicken or beef. Other times they're filled with fruit like caramel apple or strawberries and cream cheese.
Empanada dough is very easy to prepare. However, you can substitute store-bought pie crust if you need to. Another quick option is to use Goya empanada dough. They come in round discs that are ready to use.
Goya empanada dough is vegan. It contains no eggs, dairy, or butter. The shells contain vegetable shortening and soybean oil, and/or palm oil.
👩🏼🍳 Pro Tips
- If you want milder empanadas, leave out the crushed red pepper.
- Most empanada filling recipes call for tomato paste or ketchup to be added to the filling. The sauce keeps the filling from being too dry. In this recipe, the feta cheese serves the same purpose.
- To make vegan empanadas, use Goya empanada dough with this veggie filling.
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Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Prepare empanada dough using my recipe, another recipe, or use store-bought pie crust if you're short on time. While the dough is resting, prepare the filling.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet. Add diced potatoes and sauté for 5 minutes.
- Dice onions and add to the skillet. Sauté for 5 more minutes while you chop the mushrooms. Add mushrooms and saute for an additional 5 minutes.
- Stir chopped Italian parsley and minced garlic into the filling and season with salt, black pepper, sumac powder, and crushed red pepper. Cook for an additional minute. Cool before mixing in the feta cheese.
- Roll a portion of dough (approximately .75 ounces) into a ball and place it onto a plastic-lined tortilla press. Press the dough into a perfectly smooth and round disc.
- Add 1 tablespoon of filling to each dough disc, leaving a ¼" border. Fold the dough over the filling and form dough into a half-moon shape. Seal the edges with a fork, or pinch them together by hand (see pictures and video).
- Fry empanadas in 350° F-375° F oil for one to two minutes on each side. Drain on paper towels before serving.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Place empanadas onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and prick a few holes on top to allow the steam to escape. Brush with egg wash and bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown.
Nutrition
Video
Notes
- Nutrition information is for uncooked empanadas since frying or baking them will significantly change the nutritional values.
- If you want milder empanadas, leave out the crushed red pepper.
- Most empanada filling recipes call for tomato paste or ketchup to be added to the filling. The sauce keeps the filling from being too dry. In this recipe, the feta cheese serves the same purpose.
- If you don't have a Tortilla Press, roll the dough out to ⅛" thickness onto a floured surface using a rolling pin and cut out 18 dough discs 5" biscuit cutter.
- If the dough feels dry, wet the edges with water, milk, or an egg wash to help them to seal.
- The oil is ready when it instantly bubbles when you add the empanadas. If you want to take the guesswork out of it, use a hand-held instant-read thermometer. The frying oil temp should be between 350-375°F.
- To make vegan empanadas, use Goya empanada dough with this veggie filling.
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