empanada

[ em-puh-nah-duh; Spanish em-pah-nah-thah ]

noun

, Latin-American Cooking.

1. a turnover or mold of pastry filled with chopped or ground meat, vegetables, fruit, etc., and usually baked or fried.

Word History and Origins

Origin of empanada¹

First recorded in 1920–25; from Latin American Spanish, equivalent to em- em- ¹ + pan “bread” + -ada, feminine of -ado -ate ¹