Vegan Empanadas Recipe

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5 from 22 votes

Vegan Empanadas Recipe has the best filling & comes with a homemade empanada dough recipe.

Course Main Dish

Cuisine Mexican

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 40

Total Time 1

Servings Empanadas

Calories 194kcal

Author Ginny McMeans

Ingredients

Mushroom Filling

¾ cup onion - finely diced
¾ cup green bell pepper - finely diced
½ cup mild pepper such as an Anaheim chlil pepper - finely diced, one pepper
1 tablespoon chipotle pepper adobo sauce - finely chopped
2 cloves garlic - minced
½ teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon chia seed
8 ounces tomato sauce - 1 small can
1 ½ pounds mushrooms - button mushrooms
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

The Dough

3 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup warm water

Instructions

Make the filling first.

In a skillet heat 1 tablespoon oil on medium heat and add the onion and both peppers. Saute until the onion is translucent - about 15 - 20 minutes.
Add the garlic, chipotle pepper and adobo sauce and the seasonings. Cook 5 more minutes.
Add the tomato sauce and cook 5 more minutes.
Add the chia seed, if you are including it and stir.
Remove from heat and set aside.
In another large skillet heat another tablespoon of oil to medium low.
Add the mushroom and sautee for about 20 minutes. If your mushrooms do not fit in the pan at first - that is okay. They cook down by about half. Do not stir to start with. After the ones that fit easily into the pan have cooked a little while (about 10 minutes) you will see you have more room in the pan. Now flip the mushrooms and add the rest of the mushrooms. Continue sauteeing. If they all fit in the pan to start with then fine.
You will see that a lot of liquid is in the pan. Pour what you can off and continue cooking another 5 minutes or so. You don't want all that liquid in your empanada dough.
When the mushrooms are done and the liquid is poured off go ahead and add the onion and pepper and tomato mixture (that is sofrito).
Stir all together and set aside to cool down for stuffing the dough rounds.

For the dough

You can buy the pre-made empanada discs but I have included a delicious homemade dough for you to make.
Add the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda to a large bowl.
Pour in the ¼ cup oil and 1 cup warm water.
You can mix this with a wooden spoon or a hand mixer. I prefer a hand mixer. It does not take long to come together.
Pour all out onto a lightly floured surface and knead about 50 - 60 times. (I am a counter)
Make into a ball and lightly cover with a little bit more oil. Lay a dishtowel over the ball and let rest 10 minutes.
Next, cut the ball in half, then cut those in half again, then each into thirds so that you have 12 sections.
Roll each one into a ball and flatten out onto a lightly floured surface. Use a pastry roller to help roll the balls out to about 5-6" in diameter.
Place about ¼ cup of the filling (at the most) in the center of each dough round.
Fold over to make a crescent shape. Fold the edges over so that you get a good seal. Sometimes I am able to fold over twice.
Press the tines of a fork, lightly, over the folded edge just to make a little bit of a better seal.
If you have a deep fryer you can use that for your frying. If not put about 1-½" to 2" depth of coconut oil in a frying pan and heat to 325° to 375°. A candy thermometer will measure the heat for you if you are using a pan.
Carefully place 2 empanadas into the hot oil and flip when one side turns golden brown. It doesn't even take a minute.
Take out with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Continue until all of the empanadas are done. Ready to eat!

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