Keto Empanadas (2.3g Net Carbs)

These Keto Empanadas are delicious, buttery, flaky South American-style pastries filled with spiced ground beef. Plus, they are dairy-free empanadas with only 2.3 grams of net carbs per serving!

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You can’t eat classic empanadas on a keto diet. In fact, traditional empanada dough is made of wheat flour, a high-carb flour that is not keto-approved. For a list of my favorite flours, read my keto-friendly flour guide.

While the whole recipe is just below, don’t miss all my tips further down, including process shots, ingredient swaps, tips, and more!

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Keto Beef Empanadas

2.3gNet Carbs

A crispy, buttery keto empanada dough filled with juicy ground beef with spicy flavors.

Author: Carine Claudepierre

Prep: 15 minutes mins

Cook: 20 minutes mins

Total: 35 minutes mins

Yield: 15 empanadas (43g/1.5oz each)

Serving Size: 1 emapanada (43g/1.5oz)

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Ingredients

US CustomaryMetric

Keto empanada dough

• ▢ 2 cups Almond Flour , fine, blanched, lightly packed, sweep
• ▢ 2 large Eggs
• ▢ 2 tablespoons Water
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Salt
• ▢ 2 tablespoons Xanthan Gum – don't skip or swap

Ground beef filling

• ▢ ½ tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• ▢ 3 tablespoons Diced Onion about 1 small onion
• ▢ 12 oz Ground Beef
• ▢ 2 tablespoons Tomato Paste
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Ground Paprika
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Ground Cumin
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Salt
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Garlic Powder or 3 cloves garlic, minced
• ▢ ¼ cup Chopped Fresh Parsley – optional

To brush on top

• ▢ 1 large Beaten Egg

Instructions

• Before you start, remember to scroll up in the post to watch the recipe step-by-step picture to help you make easy keto empanadas.

Cook beef filling

• In a non-stick pan, warm olive oil over medium heat.
• Cook the onions until soft and fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
• Stir in ground beef and break the meat with a wooden spoon to brown the meat evenly. Cook for 2-3 minutes until no more red parts can be seen.
• Stir in tomato paste, cumin, paprika, salt, garlic powder, oregano, and fresh parsley – if used.
• Cook for 1 more minute until flavors are evenly combined, and then use a slotted spoon to drain the meat and transfer to a clean bowl. Set aside.

Prepare the keto empanada dough

• Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a baking tray with lightly oiled parchment paper. Set aside.
• In a small mixing bowl, beat eggs with water. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a food processor, using the S blade attachment, add almond flour, xanthan gum, and salt. Process for a few seconds to combine.
• Add the beaten egg mixture and process again at high speed for about 30 seconds or until it forms a dough ball. It should be slightly sticky, but easy to gather pieces together into a pastry dough ball.
• Wrap the pastry dough ball into a piece of cling film wrap and refrigerate 10 minutes before using.

Roll the dough

• Remove the dough from the fridge and roll between 2 pieces of parchment paper. Using a 4.5 in (10cm) round shape – it can be a breakfast bowl or cookie cutter – cut out dough circles. Repeat with the remaining dough, then reroll dough scraps once to cut out more dough circles. You should be able to make 15 circles of about 20 g/0.7 oz each.
• Place 1 tablespoon of meat filling in the center of the circle, then lightly moist the outer edges of the circle with water.
• Fold the circle of dough half and press the edges with your finger to seal. You can gently use the back of a fork to create lovely marks, but sometimes it breaks the dough, so I prefer to avoid this option. You can also use an Empanada Press for a perfect shape.
• If the top of the pocket crack when you fold it, rub a bit of water with your fingertips to fix the cracks or add a tiny piece of extra dough to fill the gap.
• Lay the empanadas on the baking sheet covered with a lightly-greased piece of parchment paper.
• Brush the top of each empanada with beaten egg mixture.
• Bake for 25 minutes in the center rack of your oven or until the crust is golden brown and filling hot inside. You can add a piece of foil on top of the empanadas to prevent the top from browning too fast.
• Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze individually and defrost the day before at room temperature.

Notes

Leftover meat can be used as a meal later on top of lettuce.

Nutrition panel is for one filled empanadas. Dough weight per empanadas is about 20g and filling about 23g.

Tools

Getting Started What Is Keto? Macro Calculator Sweetener Converter Intermittent Fasting    Keto    Fruits Keto Vegetables Keto Flours Fighting Keto Flu Healthy Sweeteners

Want My Kitchen Equipment?

Non-Stick Saucepan

Measuring Cups Set

Baking Sheet

Parchment Paper

Vitamix 12-Cup Food Processor

Mixing Bowls

Rolling Pin

Empanada Press

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NutritionServing Size: 1 emapanada (43g/1.5oz)

Yield: 15 empanadas (43g/1.5oz each)

Nutrition

Serving: 1 emapanada (43g/1.5oz)Calories: 163.9 kcal (8%)Carbohydrates: 5.1 g (2%)Fiber: 2.8 g (12%)Net Carbs: 2.3 gProtein: 8.1 g (16%)Fat: 13.1 g (20%)Saturated Fat: 2.5 g (16%)Trans Fat: 0.3 gCholesterol: 40.9 mg (14%)Sodium: 236.1 mg (10%)Potassium: 110.3 mg (3%)Sugar: 0.9 g (1%)Vitamin A: 219.3 IU (4%)Vitamin C: 2 mg (2%)Calcium: 42.9 mg (4%)Iron: 1.3 mg (7%)

Ingredients and Substitutions

To make my buttery, flakey, easy-to-roll, and fold keto pastry dough, you need a food processor and the ingredients below:

• Almond Flour – I recommend using ultra-fine, golden almond flour and not almond meal. In fact, almond meal is coarse and can add a gritty texture to pastry dough that most people don’t like if new to keto. Read more about flour selection on my keto flour guide.
• Xanthan Gum – This is the key ingredient to creating a dairy-free, flexible keto pastry dough. You can’t swap this ingredient or remove it from the recipe. It is a must-have here.
• Eggs – I use free-range eggs.

To make the ground beef empanadas keto filling, you need only a few basic ingredients.

• Ground Beef – Any ground beef work, but my favorite is Wagyu beef.
• Olive Oil – I use extra-virgin olive oil.
• Onion – Fresh diced onions or onion powder.
• Paprika – Classic or smoked, both are great!
• Cumin – For more flavor.
• Oregano – Or dried cilantro.
• Tomato Paste – Or canned crushed tomatoes.
• Parsley – Or cilantro.

If you don’t mind adding a few net carbs to the recipe, add:

• 1/4 cup of diced green olives
• 1/2 cup of red bell pepper

If you are looking for a meat-free keto filling, swap the ground beef for:

• Cauliflower Rice – you can make my 3-Ingredient Keto Rice
• Broccoli Rice
• Crumbled Tempeh or Tofu 

How To Make Keto Empanadas

You can make keto empanadas with many different doughs. Most recipes use the classic fathead dough like the one I use in my keto bagels or keto cinnamon rolls. While fathead dough is very low in carbs and flexible, it’s not a flaky dough. To make flaky empanada keto dough that mimics the authentic empanada crust, I recommend instead using my recipe below!

First, beat the eggs with water and set them aside. Then, add all the dry ingredients to the bowl of a food processor and pulse to combine the xanthan gum evenly into the flour.

Finally, add the egg mixture and process at a high speed until it forms a tacky, slightly sticky dough ball.

Transfer the dough to a piece of plastic wrap and refrigerate for 10 minutes to set the dough.

Roll the dough between two pieces of lightly oiled parchment paper. Place the dough ball in the center of one piece of parchment paper.

Then, use a round shape of about 11-cm/4.5-in diameter to cut out dough circles. You can use a cookie cutter or a breakfast bowl.

Warm olive oil in a non-stick skillet and cook the onions until soft. add ground beef and cook until the meat is no longer red. Stir in spices and tomato paste and keep cooking for a few minutes.

Add a tablespoon of meat to the center of the dough circle, fold it in half, and press with your fingertips to seal the edges.

Brush the top of the keto empanada dough with beaten egg and water and bake them for 25 minutes at 350°F (180°C).

Serving Suggestions

These are perfect as a keto breakfast or keto meal. The best sides are keto-friendly vegetables like lettuce, baby spinach, or cucumber slices. Add these vegetables on the side with a drizzle of olive oil. You can also serve these keto empanadas topped with a dollop of:

• Sour cream
• Cream cheese
• Fresh chili slices
• Keto-friendly guacamole

Storage Instructions

These keto beef empanadas store very well in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days. To rewarm the empanadas, place them on a baking sheet covered with baking paper and bake for 10 minutes at 212°F (100°C).

You can freeze homemade empanadas in a sealed container and place pieces of parchment paper between each pastry to prevent them from sticking to each other. Thaw the day before, in the fridge. Rewarm in the oven for 10 minutes at 100°C/212°F.

Frequently Asked Questions

More Keto Mexican Recipes

If you love Mexican keto recipes, I have some delicious options for you to try:

Taco Egg Bake

Taco Stuffed Avocados

Chicken Taco Seasoning

Cheese Quesadilla