These savory hand-held African style meat pies are EPIC! Believe me when I say you've never had meat pies like these before. The pie crust is perfectly flaky and the filling is perfectly meaty. Add a slice of hardboiled egg into each pie to take it up a notch. Insanely delicious!
1cupunsalted butter - softened226g or 16 tablespoons
1 1/2teaspoonssalt
1/2teaspoonbaking powder
1egg - beaten
1cupcold water
For the filling
1poundground beef about half kg
1medium onion chopped
1stemgreen onions - choppedsub with leeks
4large garlic clovespeeled and minced
1large bay leaf
1/2teaspoonground white pepper
1habanero pepperoptional
2medium Irish potatoes - peeled and dicedabout 1 cup chopped
3small carrots (or 1 large carrot)diced
8green beansdiced
2small bell peppers (1 yellow, 1 red)sub with half a medium bell pepper
2small stock cubes (Maggi)about 4g per cube
1/2teaspoonsalt
1/2tablespoonflour
2tablespoonsoilI used olive oil
For the egg wash
1egg - beaten
Instructions
How to Make the Filling
Pour oil into a pot and heat for 2-3 minutes. Add in onions and saute while stirring from time to time until fragrant.
Add the minced garlic and stir to bring out the flavor. Let it cook with the onion for about a minute.
Add the ground beef and use a wooden spoon to break it as it cooks. This helps prevent it from forming chunks of meat. At the same time, incorporate the meat into the garlic/onion mixture. Stir meat until fully scattered and it has changed from pink to brown.
Add a cup and a half of water to the meat. Add in potatoes, bay leaf, white pepper, salt, stock cubes and habanero (if you choose to use it). Cover and cook for about 15 minutes until the potatoes are soft and break easily when touched.
Add in half a tablespoon of flour and stir well. Let the flour cook with the meat for about 3 minutes.
Add the green onions/leeks, carrots, green beans and bell pepper. Mix well to combine. Turn off the heat - the filling is ready.
How to Make the Dough
In a large bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt.
Add in softened butter and mix until the flour and butter are well incorporated.
Add beaten egg and cold water. Mix to form a dough. Transfer to a floured surface and knead lightly until smooth. Place dough back in the bowl and place in the fridge until ready for use.
How to Make the Pies
Cut the dough into two. Place one half on a floured surface and roll out to about 1/8 of an inch thick.
Use a pie maker or a round lid (I used the lid of a water jar) to cut circles out of the rolled dough. Remove the excess dough from around the circles.
Place about a tablespoon and a half in the middle of each circle. Be careful not to overfill the circles! Now add a slice of hardboiled egg on the filling (note that I only used the hardboiled egg for half of the pies in this recipe. If you would love to use egg on all your pies, use two hardboiled eggs instead. )
Cover each circle to form a semi-circle. Press the edges with your hands then press with a fork.
Repeat the pie-making process with the rest of the dough.
Place all the pies in the refrigerator to rest for about 5 minutes. While they rest, preheat oven to 350 degrees F (or 180 degrees C).
Remove pies from fridge and brush generously with egg wash.
Bake in preheated oven for about 25 minutes until golden brown.
Enjoy!
Notes
1. Sometimes I add a tablespoon of sugar to the dough to give it a hint of sweetness. This gives it a nice variation in taste.2. Use milk in place of water if you would like a richer dough.3. I usually brush the top of my pies with egg again half way through baking. This makes them extra glossy.