Venezuelan turnovers

Name: Venezuelan turnovers
Prep time: 9 min
Cook time: 18 min
Total time: 27 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Venezuela
Ingredients: 450g Ground Beef; Pinch Pepper; Pinch Ground Cumin; 1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil; 1 cup Onion; 1/2 cup Green Pepper; 1/2 cup Red Pepper; 1 tsp Garlic Powder; 1/4 cup Capers; 1 Can Tomato Sauce; 1 Can Sazon; 2 Yellow Masarepa; For frying Vegetable Oil

By The Spice & Simmer Kitchen · Published May 3, 2026

A one-pot Side recipe with Venezuela flavors, built for busy weeknights when you want real food without a sink full of dishes. Comes together in roughly 42 minutes, serves about 4, and uses ingredients you can find at any normal grocery store. The technique is simple: build a base in your pot, layer in the main ingredients, simmer until everything has had time to talk to each other, and serve straight from the pan. If you're cooking for picky eaters, this one tends to land — the flavors are recognizable, the texture is comforting, and there's nothing weird hiding in the ingredient list. Perfect for the kind of evening where you want dinner on the table by 7pm and the kitchen empty by 7:30.

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings · 27 min total

450g Ground Beef
Pinch Pepper
Pinch Ground Cumin
1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil
1 cup Onion
1/2 cup Green Pepper
1/2 cup Red Pepper
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1/4 cup Capers
1 Can Tomato Sauce
1 Can Sazon
2 Yellow Masarepa
For frying Vegetable Oil

Step-by-step instructions

Season meat with Adobo. In skillet, heat oil on medium high. Cook meat until pink is gone. Stir in onion, pepper, garlic, alcaparras, tomato sauce and Sazón. Cook, stirring often until most of the liquid has evaporated (about 20 minutes). Cool.
Prepared dough should be moist and should hold together, but it should not stick to your fingers. Start with about ½ cup of dough and roll into a ball between palms of your hands. Working on a sheet of non-stick parchment paper, form the ball into a 5-inch circle about ⅛ inch thick. Place a generous tbsp. of filling on one half of circle and using parchment paper close dough over to form a semi-circle. To seal and trim edges of the empanada, press lip of inverted bowl over semi-circle shaped patty. Repeat for all the Empanadas.
In large skillet on medium high, heat ½ inch of oil until hot but not smoking. Cook empanadas in batches, turning once or twice until lightly browned. Drain on paper towel. Do not over crowd skillet or let oil get too hot.

Why this works on a weeknight

Venezuelan turnovers genuinely fits a 30-minute weeknight window, which is why it earned a spot in our Skillet & One-Pan collection. The technique is forgiving, the ingredient list is grocery-store standard, and the active cooking time is short enough that you can answer a text message in the middle without ruining dinner.

Cleanup notes

This is a single-pan recipe, so the cleanup is exactly one pan, one cutting board, and one knife. While the dish rests, fill the pan with hot soapy water — by the time you are done eating, the residue lifts off with a single pass of a sponge. Skip the steel wool on cast iron; a stiff brush and warm water are all you need to keep the seasoning intact.

Make-ahead and leftovers

Leftovers keep covered in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat in a dry pan over medium-low with a splash of water or stock to loosen the sauce. Venezuelan turnovers actually improves overnight as the flavors keep talking to each other, so doubling the recipe and packing tomorrow's lunch is a high-leverage weeknight move.

Filed under 🥘 Skillet & One-Pan Side Venezuela ⚡ 30-Min Dinner