Celebrate National Empanada Day: Vocab & Activities for Kids

National Empanada Day is a festivity that takes place every April 8 in the United States. It recognizes this delicious Spanish and Latin American dish made of dough, meat, vegetables, and sometimes even fruit. 

If you’re looking for a fun way to practice Spanish with your children and broaden their vocabulary, this is it! Plus, you’ll introduce them to Hispanic culture and foods. Read on to discover Spanish concepts, terms, and activities to help this new knowledge settle.

¡Aquí vamos!
Here we go!

Happy National Empanada Day!

The word empanada means “to bread” in Spanish and Portuguese—as in to wrap something in bread. Empanadas are dough pockets filled with seasoned stuffings. 

These perfect finger foods may be baked, fried, or deep fried and filled with meat, rice, fruit, cheese, or vegetables. Thanks to their versatility, you can have them as a snack, entree, main course, or dessert. 

It’s National Empanada Day! If you’ve never tasted an empanada, this is the perfect opportunity.

Empanadas actually originated in Greece. Migration and invasions have made them the tasty pastry we know today. In Arabian countries, they’re served with lamb meat and spices. 

Empanadas Around the World

In Spain, and Portugal, they’re baked as a whole pie and sliced. They typically contains tuna, sardine and chorizo with tomato sauce. In some cities you can find the rare seafood variety. 

Later, empanadas spread to Latin American countries and the U.S. In the Southwest of the United States you can try a Creole variety that mixes cheese with pork, beef, or chicken. If you want to indulge your sweet tooth, the Southeast makes empanada pastries with dry or fresh fruit. 

Empanadas are a Christmas dish in New Mexico. Piñon nuts, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, sugar, and ground pork are some of the ingredients used for this winter tradition.

In Mexico, it’s easy to find pastes from Hidalgo nearly everywhere. These are empanadas’ cousins. 

The main difference is that with pastes the stuffings aren’t cooked yet, while empanada fillings already are. The most common ones are made of potato, onion, grounded meat, black pepper, parsley, salt, and chili. 

In Bolivia, sweet and salty ingredients are often mixed with spices. 

In Colombia, empanadas are wildly popular. They’re sometimes eaten with aji (chili sauce) and toppings like peanuts. 

Meanwhile, in Argentina boasts yummy varieties like beef meat with corn or spinach with cheese. What sets these apart from the rest? Their secret ingredient: chimichurri sauce. 

If you don’t find a place that sells these tasty bites, don’t worry! Celebrate National Empanada Day cooking them. They are easy to make, even the sauce!

Empanada Vocabulary

This vocabulary is inspired by National Empanada Day, but you can use these words in different contexts any day of the year.

English	Spanish
National Empanada Day	El Día Nacional de la Empanada
Festivity	La festividad
Celebration	La celebración
Hispanic culture	La cultura hispánica
Tradition	La tradición
Dish	El platillo
Food	La comida
Salty	Salado/a
Sweet	Dulce
Spicy	Picante
Sauce	La salsa
Snack	La botana
Entree / starter	La entrada
Main course	El platillo principal
Dessert	El postre
Finger food	La comida para picar

Empanada Ingredients

These empanada elements are basic in every kitchen. Teach them to your little ones and practice them.

Ingredients	Los ingredientes
Dough	La masa
Meat	La carne
Vegetables	Los vegetales
Cheese	El queso
Fruit	La fruta
Beef	La res
Pork	El puerco
Fish	El pescado
Shrimp	Los camarones
Chicken	El pollo
Spinach	La espinaca
Potato	La papa
Carrot	La zanahoria
Corn	El maíz / el elote
Parsley	El perejil
Salt	La sal
Garlic	El ajo
Chili	El chile
Onion	La cebolla

Types of Empanadas

Check out the most popular international empanadas from around the globe!

International empanadas	Las empanadas internacionales
Spanish empanadas	Las empanadas españolas
Mexican empanadas	Las empanadas mexicanas
Argentinian empanadas	Las empanadas argentinas
Bolivian empanadas	Las empanadas bolivianas
Colombian empanadas	Las empanadas colombianas

Empanada Phrases and Sentences

Once your children are comfortable with these terms, put them in complete sentences or phrases. 

El Día Nacional de la Empanada es una festividad que se celebra el 8 de abril.
The National Empanada Day is a festivity celebrated on April the 8th.

Con esta lección, aprenderás de la cultura hispánica y sus tradiciones.
In this lesson, you will learn about Hispanic culture and their traditions. 

Este platillo salado puede ser una entrada o botana.
This salty dish can be a starter or a snack.

Esta comida picante lleva salsa.
This spicy food comes with a sauce.

Como platillo principal, preparé empanadas de vegetales, carne, queso y otros
ingredientes.
As a main course, I will prepare empanadas with vegetables, meat, cheese and other ingredients.

Este platillo dulce es un postre de frutas.
This sweet dish is a fruit dessert.

El maíz, el chile, la cebolla y el ajo son la base de la comida en México.
Corn, chili, onion and garlic are the base of Mexican food.

Este platillo español es para botanear.
This Spanish dish is a finger food.

Las mejores empanadas de Argentina son de espinaca con queso.
The best Argentinian empanadas are of spinach and cheese.

Otras opciones de empanadas son de camarones, pescado y pollo.
Other empanada options are shrimp, fish, and chicken.

Los ingredientes de este platillo son masa, res o puerco, sal, perejil, elote, papa y zanahoria.
The ingredients in this dish are dough, beef or pork, salt, parsley, corn, potatoes, and carrots.

Las empanadas colombianas y bolivianas son deliciosas.
Colombian and Bolivian empanadas are delicious.

7 Practice Activities

Fun activities are more memorable than practicing dry theory. Try these 7 games to secure this new knowledge in your kids’ minds. 

1. To learn the vocabulary words you can use flash cards or even make a lotería or bingo game. 

2. If you live in a neighborhood with Spanish or Latin American presence, make a whole picnic out of this. Buy different kinds of empanadas to practice discussing as many ingredients as possible.

3. Have a Spanish language cooking session with your kids. Make your own empanadas to celebrate National Empanada Day! 

Over 30 countries have their own way of crafting empanadas, so surf the web to find the perfect ones for you and your family.

4. Play a question-and-answer game with your kids! This is a great idea to practice with the example sentences in this article.

5. Take a field trip to the supermarket and let your little ones choose empanada ingredients in Spanish.

6. Sing along to this YouTube melody about food in Spanish with your kids!

7. Print-out food vocabulary exercises in Spanish and practice them with your little ones. 

Apply Your Knowledge

You are fully prepared to celebrate and enjoy National Empanada Day! Bookmark this lesson to continue practicing the vocabulary and activities with your children periodically. 

Talk about empanadas and other topics with our certified native Spanish-speaking teachers from Guatemala. At Homeschool Spanish Academy, we are backed by our 10 years of experience and 24,000 monthly active students. Tailor your Spanish package for your kids according to their level and witness their improved fluency. Sign up for a free trial class today! 

Want to learn more about Latin American culture? Check out our latest posts!

• The Historical Importance of Corn in Spanish-Speaking Countries
• 20 Spanish Number Songs for Kids of Every Age
• The Surprisingly Complicated History of Cuba
• Celebrate National Empanada Day: Vocab & Activities for Kids
• The Meaning of Chancla: Flip Flops and Discipline
• What is the Meaning of Gringo? The History and Origin of the Term
• Celebrate a Happy Easter in Spanish! Vocab & Activities for Kids
• The History and Significance of the Virgin of Guadalupe