Puerto Rican Chicken Empanada Recipe (Baked or Fried)

There’s a version of this chicken empanada recipe I tried years ago that I thought was perfect — until my kids pushed it around the plate. Then I tried another. And another. This is the one that finally stuck. Years of tinkering, a few failed batches, and a lot of opinions from two boys who don’t know how good they have it.

I bake mine instead of frying them. Partly because it’s easier, partly because I have high cholesterol and fried everything isn’t exactly doctor-approved. Baked empanadas hold their own though, I promise. And if you really want that crunch, I’ve got a frying and air fryer method below too.

The filling is Puerto Rican-inspired — bright, a little tangy, heavy on garlic, and built around ingredients you can find at any grocery store. No specialty items, nothing hard to track down. Just good food your whole family will eat without complaint.

What Makes This Chicken Filling Work

Most chicken empanada fillings lean on cumin and chili powder, which pulls them toward Tex-Mex territory. This one goes a different direction.

The base is sofrito-style: onion, red and yellow peppers, a truly unreasonable amount of garlic, tomato paste, and chicken stock. It’s savory and fresh at the same time. Cilantro is optional (I know half the world thinks it tastes like soap), but I love what it adds.

The chicken cooks first in the Instant Pot or slow cooker, then gets shredded and simmered into the filling so it absorbs all those flavors. Not a quick recipe — but not complicated either. It’s Sunday afternoon cooking, the kind where your house smells good for hours.

Freezing Chicken Empanadas

I almost always make a double batch just to have extras in the freezer.

You can freeze them raw or already baked. For raw: assemble the empanadas but hold off on the egg wash. Layer them in a freezer bag with parchment paper between each one so they don’t stick together. When you’re ready to cook them, bake straight from frozen — add about 5-7 extra minutes and brush with egg wash in the last 5 minutes.

If you freeze them already baked, let them cool completely first. Reheat in the oven at 350°F for 10-12 minutes, or in the air fryer at 350°F for 6-8 minutes.

What to Serve with Chicken Empanadas

My favorite pairing is black beans, maduros (fried sweet plantains), and the mojito sauce from the mojo pork post as a dipping sauce. Really good.

For a more casual dinner, sour cream and simple salsa do the job. And if it’s a nice evening, I’ll make mojito cocktails for the adults and virgin mojitos for the kids. The lime cuts through the richness of the dough in a way that just works.

More Empanada Fillings to Try

• Mojo Pork Empanadas
• Slow Cooker Carnitas
• Vegetarian Empanadas
• Cheese Empanadas with Potato

And the foundation for all of it: our baked empanada dough recipe.

How to make Chicken Empanadas

The Ingredients (Filling Only)

• 2 lbs chicken breast
• 1.5 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
• 1 red pepper, finely chopped
• 1 yellow pepper, finely chopped (orange works too)
• 10 cloves garlic, minced (or 2 tbsp jarred minced garlic — no shame)
• 2 cups chicken stock, divided
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, optional

You’ll also need baked empanada dough — grab the recipe here. Or use store-bought frozen empanada discs (most grocery stores have them in the freezer section).

Instructions

Step 1: Cook the Chicken

Put your chicken in the Instant Pot or slow cooker with 1 cup of chicken stock and 4 smashed garlic cloves (or 1 tbsp minced). Cook on high pressure for 20 minutes in the Instant Pot, or 6 hours on low in the slow cooker. Then shred.

This step matters more than it sounds. The chicken absorbs the garlic and stock while it cooks, so you’re already building flavor before the filling even comes together.

Step 2: Build the Filling

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions, peppers, and remaining 6 cloves of garlic. Sauté for about 5 minutes until softened. Add the shredded chicken, tomato paste, the remaining cup of chicken stock, salt, and pepper. Simmer, stirring often, for about 10 minutes until most of the liquid cooks off.

Let it cool to room temperature, or put it in the fridge for a couple of hours. You can also make this the day before — the flavor is noticeably better after a night in the fridge.

Before filling your empanadas, squeeze each portion of filling with your hands to get rid of excess liquid. Do not skip this. Soggy empanadas are a real disappointment.

Add fresh cilantro right before you fill the shells.

Assembling the Empanadas

Preheat your oven to 400°F (drop to 375°F if your oven runs hot and the tops start browning too fast). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Take your chilled empanada dough out of the fridge. Portion out 2-3 tbsp balls of dough and roll each one flat with a rolling pin — or use a tortilla press if you have one. It’s faster and you get more consistent rounds.

Place about 1 tbsp of filling in the center. Fold the dough over, press out any air, and crimp the edges with a fork to seal. Set it on the baking sheet and repeat.

Once everything is assembled, brush the tops with egg wash (1 egg + 1 tbsp water, whisked) using a pastry brush. Bake 23-25 minutes until golden brown.

Baked vs. Fried vs. Air Fried

Baked: 400°F for 23-25 minutes. The outside gets a little crisp, the inside stays tender.

Pan Fried: Heat about 1/2 inch of neutral oil (vegetable or canola) in a skillet over medium heat to 350°F. Fry 2-3 empanadas at a time for 3-4 minutes per side until deep golden brown. Don’t crowd the pan or they’ll steam instead of fry. Drain on a paper towel-lined rack.

Air Fryer: Preheat your air fryer to 375°F, brush the empanadas with egg wash, and cook for 10-12 minutes, flipping once halfway through. Crispy without the oil, and ready in half the time.