Pizza empanadas are filled with mozzarella, pepperoni and pizza sauce, then fried until hot and golden! While not a traditional flavor, you’ll find them at kiosks all over Puerto Rico! Easy and delicious appetizer, snack or dinner!

Pizza Empanadas Recipe
We love empanadas around here and not just as appetizers. We can make a whole meal out of them (and often do!).
One of our favorite types are Puerto Rican picadillo empanadas (pastelillos). These are classic ground beef meat pies, but sometimes we like to mix it up with these pizza empanadas or empanadillas de pizza.


My husband adores these. They have such a crispy crust and so much gooey cheese.
You can fill them with whatever pizza toppings you like, but we always choose cheese and pepperoni.

For the dough, you’ll need to purchase empanada discos from the frozen section of the grocery store. They also carry them at Hispanic supermarkets. Goya brand is popular.
If you can’t find them in your area, you can make your own homemade empanada dough.
It’s really easy, just takes a little extra time, but you can make extra and freeze the dough for next time.

Start by placing a teaspoon of pizza sauce down the center of the empanada round.
You don’t want too much sauce or they’ll get soggy as they cook. I like to serve these with extra pizza sauce for dipping after they’ve been fried.
Next, add your desired pizza toppings. Of course, mozzarella cheese is classic, but you can use any cheese really.
I like to use fresh whole milk mozzarella. It’s extra melty. You can shred it or thinly slice it. String cheese also works if you have that on hand!

The remaining fillings are up to you. Pepperoni is always our filling of choice, but you could also use ham, bacon, peppers, mushrooms or pineapple. Just be sure any meat you use is already fully cooked.
These pizza empanadas then get a quick dip in frying oil on each side, just until the dough is crispy golden and the cheese is nice and gooey. Buen provecho!

Pizza Empanadas
Crispy, golden empanadas stuffed with pepperoni and lots of mozzarella cheese. Get creative and add your favorite pizza toppings!
Ingredients
- 10 discs of empanada dough
- 1/4 cup pizza sauce, plus more for dipping
- 8 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 2 ounces mini pepperoni
Instructions
- On one empanada round, spread 1 teaspoon of pizza sauce down the center. Top with about 2 tablespoons shredded mozzarella cheese (or 2 thin slices), and 1 tablespoon of pepperoni.
- Fold over dough in half and press edges to seal. Crimp edges with a fork. Repeat with remaining ingredients.
- To cook, heat 1/2 inch of oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add empanadas to pan, but do not over-crowd.
- Cook for about 2 minutes, or until golden brown. Flip empanada and cook for another 2 minutes. Drain on paper towels.
- Continue process until all the empanadas have been fried. Serve with extra pizza sauce, for dipping.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 226Total Fat: 15gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 23mgSodium: 369mgCarbohydrates: 16gFiber: 1gSugar: 0gProtein: 7g
Nutritional information provided is an estimate only. Please consult the labels of ingredients you use for more accurate results.