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Vegan empanadas with spicy black bean filling on white plate with tomato salsa.
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5 from 6 votes

Vegan Empanadas Recipe

These incredibly flavorful vegan empanadas have a flaky, crispy wrapper encasing a spicy filling of black beans, potatoes and more veggies. They are baked, not fried. Serve with a zesty salsa for a filling snack or meal!
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time40 minutes
Total Time1 hour 10 minutes
Course: Appetizer/meal
Cuisine: Latin American, Mexican, Spanish
Diet: Vegan, Vegetarian
Servings: 10 six-inch empanadas
Calories: 332kcal
Author: Vaishali · Holy Cow Vegan

Equipment

Ingredients

For the empanada pastry cover

  • 2½ cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 8 tablespoons vegan butter (cold, cut into small cubes)
  • Ice cold water as needed

For the black bean filling

  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (or grape seed oil, avocado oil or sunflower oil)
  • 1 medium onion (finely diced)
  • 1 large carrot (finely diced)
  • 2 stalks celery (finely diced)
  • 6 cloves garlic (minced)
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 2 medium yellow or red potatoes (finely diced)
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon cayenne (can use less or skip for a less spicy filling)
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 3 cups cooked black beans (If starting with dried beans, use 1 cup dried beans and cook until tender)
  • ¼ cup raisins
  • Salt to taste
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Make the black bean filling

  • Heat olive oil in skillet. Add onions, carrots and celery.
  • Add a teaspoon of salt and ground black pepper to taste. Saute until the veggies begin to turn soft.
  • Stir in garlic and saute for a minute. Then add the potatoes and tomato paste and mix well.
  • Stir in the spices--ground cumin, chili powder, cayenne and cinnamon. Cover and cook over low heat until potatoes are tender. You can add a tablespoon or two of water if the vegetables begin to stick.
  • Once the potatoes are tender, add the drained black beans and mix them in. Continue cooking the filling until warmed through. There should be no visible moisture. Stir in the raisins, check salt and add more if needed, and turn off heat.

Make the empanada dough

  • Place the flour, cornstarch and salt in a food processor or bowl. Pulse for five seconds to mix. If using a bowl, whisk together. Add the cubed butter to the food processor or bowl.
  • Pulse for a few seconds until the flour is crumbly with the butter evenly dispersed. If you are using a bowl, cut the butter in with a fork until the flour looks crumbly.
  • With the feed tube open, trickle water into the food processor until a dough comes together. Try not to overmoisten the dough--there should still be a few dry bits at the bottom. Quickly form the dough into a disc, wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes.

Assemble the vegan empanadas

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit/190 degrees Celsius.
  • Divide the dough in half. Working with one half of the dough at a time, roll it out on a floured surface to a thickness of ¼th of an inch. Use a six-inch bowl or cookie cutter to cut out a disc. I don't have a cookie cutter that big so I used a bowl.
  • Place two heaping tablespoons of the filling a little off-center inside the disc. Moisten the edges of the disc with water.
  • Fold the dough to encase the filling. Press the edges together to seal and fold over for a fluted, decorative edge, or press the edges with the tines of a fork. Either way you want to create a tight seal.
  • Place the empanadas on a baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes or until golden brown. For better color, you can brush some olive oil on the empanadas before placing them in the oven.
  • Serve hot or warm.

Notes

Helpful tips
  • If you are cooking black beans from scratch, start with 1 cup dried beans. I cook the dried beans with 4 cups water in the Instant Pot set to the "beans" function or for 35 minutes on manual pressure. It makes the perfect black beans with no soaking needed.
  • If using canned beans, rinse them thoroughly under running water first.
  • Make sure you add drained beans to the pot with no moisture. You want the filling to have no visible moisture.
  • If you want to make smaller empanadas, use a four-inch cookie cutter or bowl. You should get 12-14 empanadas.
  • You can add other veggies to the filling, but preferably add veggies that won't express too much moisture. Sweet potatoes would be a nice choice, as would cauliflower. If you add mushrooms or zucchini make sure you cook out all the moisture.
  • Cut the veggies in a small dice and make sure they are tender. That way they won't stick out of the wrapper after you've formed the empanadas.
  • For a nice golden-brown color on the empanadas, brush the empanadas just before they go into the oven with some olive oil.
Storage instructions
  • Refrigerate: The empanadas can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to four days.
  • Freeze: Freeze the empanadas in a freezer-safe bag or container for up to four months.
  • Reheat: Reheat the empanadas in a 350-degree oven until warmed through.

Nutrition

Serving: 1empanada | Calories: 332kcal | Carbohydrates: 49g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 2g | Potassium: 515mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1723IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 41mg | Iron: 3mg