Chicken Empanadas
South American hand pies stuffed with seasoned ground chicken — variation on classic beef empanadas. Lighter than beef version. Best baked, served with chimichurri or aji sauce.
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
22 min
Servings
4
Calories
733 cal
🛠 Interactive Recipe Tools — Use them right here on this page
Smart Servings Scaler
- Dough1 batch
- Chicken500 g
- Cheese1 cup
- Salt1 tsp
- Black Pepper½ tsp
- Cooking Oil1
- Garlic3 cloves
All quantities scaled automatically from 4 servings.
Ingredients
Makes 4 servings · Use the Servings Scaler above to adjust
- Dough1 batch
- Chicken500 g
- Cheese1 cup
- Salt1 tsp
- Black Pepper0.5 tsp
- Cooking Oil1
- Garlic3 cloves
Instructions
- 1
Make or buy empanada dough (or use refrigerated pie crust). Chill 1 hour.
- 2
Brown 1 lb of ground chicken in 2 tablespoons oil with 1 chopped onion for 8 minutes. Add 4 minced garlic cloves, 1 chopped bell pepper, 2 teaspoons cumin, 2 teaspoons paprika, 1 teaspoon oregano, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper. Cook 3 more minutes.
- 3
Add 2 tablespoons tomato paste, ¼ cup water. Simmer 5 minutes until thickened. Off heat, stir in 2 chopped hard-boiled eggs, ½ cup chopped olives, ¼ cup chopped cilantro.
- 4
Cool the filling completely. Hot filling tears the dough.
- 5
Roll the dough to ⅛-inch thick. Cut into 5-inch circles. Place 2 tablespoons of filling on each circle. Fold over into a half-moon. Seal edges with a fork or crimp into a rope.
- 6
Brush with beaten egg. Bake at 400°F for 22-25 minutes until deeply golden. Cool 5 minutes. Serve with chimichurri sauce (blended parsley, garlic, olive oil, red wine vinegar, oregano).
Watch how to make Chicken Empanadas
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💡 Expert Tips
- 1.Cool the filling completely. Hot filling tears the dough.
- 2.Don't overfill. 2 tablespoons per empanada is plenty.
- 3.Seal edges firmly. Loose seals leak filling.
- 4.Egg + olives is traditional. Don't skip — they're the signature combination.
🔬 Why It Works
Chicken empanadas are the lighter cousin of beef empanadas — same dough technique, same filling structure (meat + egg + olives + onion), but with chicken instead of beef. The combination of tender chicken, briny olives, rich hard-boiled egg, and flaky pastry creates the classic Argentine flavor profile.
Frequently Asked Questions
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