Sweet potato ground beef empanadas

Step by Step

Step 1

Make Green sauce: Place all of the ingredients for the sauce into a food processor and pulse until combined. Add the sauce into a bowl and place the sauce in the refrigerator for later.

Step 2

Make Empanada Dough: Add the all purpose flour, salt, and 1 tablespoon of oil to a large bowl and mix together. It should start to look a little crumbly.

Step 3

Next, start adding the cold water 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring it until it becomes very coarse and crumbly.

Step 4

Shape the dough into a disk and tightly cover the dough with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Step 5

While the dough is in the refrigerator, prepare the empanada filling: Add the cumin, paprika, oregano, garlic powder, and salt to a small bowl and mix. Set aside.

Step 6

Heat a large skillet over medium/high heat and add the ground beef to the skillet. Break the beef up with a spatula into small pieces and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add the minced garlic to the beef and toss. Finally, add half of the spice mixture to the ground beef and mix again. Cook the beef until just fully cooked, about 5 minutes.

Step 7

Remove the skillet from the heat and use a slotted spoon to remove the ground beef and place it in a separate bowl. Leave the beef drippings in the bottom of the skillet.

Step 8

Add ½ tablespoon of oil to the skillet (or more, depending how much beef drippings there is) and place back over medium/high heat. Add the sweet potato to the skillet and toss with the oil. Add the rest of the spices to the sweet potatoes and cook for 5-7 minutes, or until cooked but not mushy.

Step 9

Remove the skillet from the heat and add the ground beef to the sweet potatoes and toss the two ingredients together. Add the white onion, cilantro, and apple cider vinegar to the ground beef and toss together until combined. Set aside.

Step 10

Assemble empanadas: After the dough has rested, cut the disk into 8 triangles. Roll those triangles into balls and then place them on a floured surface. Roll out each ball of dough into a circle with a rolling pin, roughly 4 inches.

Step 11

Place 1-2 tablespoons of the ground beef mixture into the center of the empanada. Dip your finger into some water and trace it along the outside of one half of the empanada. Fold the dough over the filling and squeeze the edges together to seal completely.

Step 12

Air Fryer Instructions: Preheat your air fryer to 400℉. Spray your air fryer with cooking spray and place 2-4 empanadas in the basket. Brush each empanada with oil using a pastry brush. Fry for 3 minutes, flip and fry for an additional 3-4 minutes.

Step 13

Baking Instructions: Preheat the oven to 400ºF and place the empanadas on a parchment-lined baking sheet and brush each empanada with oil using a pastry brush. Bake the empanadas for 10 minutes. Flip the empanadas and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Step 14

Remove the empanadas and serve with the herb sauce.

Tips and Warnings

The sauce is supposed to be a bit chunky.
If you want the beef mixture to be spicy, use a hot sauce instead of apple cider vinegar.
The air fried empanadas may not be golden brown depending on what oil you use.
Freezer Instructions: To freeze the empanadas wrap them individually in parchment paper and store in a freezer storage bag. To reheat from frozen follow steps 6 or 7. Cooking times are the same.

Ingredient

Garlic cloves

2 2
Fresh mint leaves

10 10
Cilantro

2 cups 2 cups
Lemon juice

29.57 ml 1.03 fl. ozs
All-purpose flour

473.18 ml 16.56 fl. ozs
Olive oil

73.93 ml 2.59 fl. ozs
Apple cider vinegar

9.86 ml 0.35 fl. ozs
Garlic powder

2.46 ml 0.09 fl. ozs
Ground cumin

4.93 ml 0.17 fl. ozs
Small white onion

0.5 0.5
Green onions

4 4
Small sweet potato

1 1
Honey

4.93 ml 0.17 fl. ozs
Greek yogurt

29.57 ml 1.03 fl. ozs
Mayo

29.57 ml 1.03 fl. ozs
Cold water

236.59 ml 8.28 fl. ozs
Cilantro

473.18 ml 16.56 fl. ozs
Fresh parsley

236.59 ml 8.28 fl. ozs
Avocado oil or olive oil

59.15 ml 2.07 fl. ozs
Coarse salt

2.46 ml 0.09 fl. ozs
Fresh cilantro

59.15 ml 2.07 fl. ozs
Ground oregano

1.23 ml 0.04 fl. ozs
Ground paprika

2.46 ml 0.09 fl. ozs
Kosher salt

4.93 ml 0.17 fl. ozs
Garlic

3 pcs 3 pcs

Amount Per Serving
	Calories	423 kcal
	Carbohydrates	34 g
	Protein	10 g
	Fat	28 g
	Fiber	3 g
	Sugar	3 g

View nutrition facts