Unlike the fried, spice-forward empanadas of Argentina's northwest, Mendoza's version is always oven-baked, and stuffing an olive and a wedge of hard-boiled egg inside is treated as non-negotiable.
A baked, half-moon pastry filled with hand-chopped beef, onion, olive, and hard-boiled egg, sold hot from bakery counters across Mendoza city as an everyday snack or 'picada' bar bite. The dough stays flakier and less greasy than the fried northwestern styles.