Ghanaian Meat Pie
I have never made Ghanaian meat pies (turn overs) but I figured after years of watching Masterchef Australia this was a good time as any to give a go at this short crust pastry filled with a juicy and delicious meat filling and dare I say that it's probably the best tasting meat pie I've ever eaten.. Enjoy
Recipe Yields 20 mini pies
Pastry
800g soft flour (pastry flour)
400g unsalted butter*, very cold and firm (straight out of the fridge)
4 egg yolks
12 tablespoons cold water (depending on your flour, you might use more or less)
2 teaspoons freshly grated nutmeg ( substitute with ground nutmeg if unavailable)
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 egg whisked (to brush the surface of the dough)
Filling
457g minced beef
1 cup diced carrot
sea salt to taste
1 big sweet potato, peeled and diced into very tiny cubes
2 bay leaves
1 large onion, diced
2 teaspoons curry powder
2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger
3 tablespoons finely diced garlic
1 tablespoon chili flakes (optional)
1/2 cup water
1/2 to 1 tablespoon brown sugar
4 tablespoons corn flour (use plain flour if unavailable)
2 teaspoon herb mix * (see note)
1/3 cup veg oil* (see note)
Although you can use butter and margarine interchangeably in this recipe, there is a difference in the crumb and to an extent the taste. Both are equally delicious but the butter gives you a softer and richer crumb than the margarine. You can add an extra yolk and replace the cold water fully or partially with full cream milk if you use margarine and it'll add a bit more richness. The picture of the meat pies above was made with margarine.
Don’t overwork the dough. Rather than kneading, clump the dough together with your fingers. Do same till there are not longer any flour bits. If you overwork the dough the crust will become tough. Just mix until it comes together.
My spice mix contains dried fennel, cumin, rosemary, parsley, thyme, coriander, fenugreek, mint and sage but any Italian spice mix will do since they contain most of these dried herbs.
My beef literally had no fat so I had to use more oil that I wanted to. If your beef has enough fat then cut the oil quantity by half and you'll be good.
This recipe can be halved with no issues. In fact, for the first few recipes I halved it and it worked perfectly.
Directions
For the pastry
Refrigerate butter/margarine until hard then cut into cubes. Meanwhile combine the flour, salt and nutmeg in a bowl. Add the cubed butter/margarine mixture and mix by pinching the flour and margarine between your fingers just until all the flour is coated and it resembles a bread crumbs. Don’t worry if you see flecks of butter in the dough, that’s what we want. Add the egg yolks and mix with fingers just to combine then add the cold water gradually just until it comes together and forms a dough that can hold its shape as a ball. Don’t worry if it looks a bit shaggy/crumbly. Don’t overwork the dough. The more your overwork or over mix the dough the tougher your crust will become. Shape the dough into a ball, cover with a cling film and pat down to flatten it. Refrigerate for 30 mins. If possible, do all these as fast as you can so the butter/margarine doesn't melt otherwise use a food processor by going through all the same steps above.
For the filling
Put oil in a non stick pan and place over medium heat. Allow oil to heat up then add the onions and bay leaves. Fry the onions for 30 seconds then add the minced beef. Stir and add salt. Cook for 3 mins then add the curry powder herb mix. Add the potatoes, carrots . Stir, cover pan and reduce heat to low and allow the filling to cook until potatoes are soft. Combine the water and corn flour and add it it the filling when the potatoes are cooked through . Add the ginger, garlic and chili flakes. Stir, taste and add the brown sugar a bit at a time until you reach your desired taste. Taste and adjust salt and turn the heat off. Skim off any excess oil but don't forget that the filling needs to be juicy. Add more water if filling is too thick, however, taste and adjust seasoning and salt if you add more water. Set filling aside to cool to room temperature.
Assembling
Preheat oven to 170C
Stir the cooled filling and set aside. Lightly flour a clean and dry surface. Gently pat dough down with fingers to create a small circle. Lightly flour the surface of the dough and roll until 3-5mm thick about the thickness of the mouth/tip of a standard drinking glass. Cut dough with a 5 diameter cookie cutter or a wide mouth drinking glass (wider than the standard drinking glass).
Put 1 to 2 tablespoons or more of the filling at the center of the round dough and cover it with another cut dough, it should look like a small circle. Gently poke the edges of the dough with your fingers to seal it completely then use a fork to poke the top so the steam created when baking can evaporate. Knead and set the extra dough in the freezer to avoid the butter/melting. Bring it out when you're done filling first batch and repeat the steps until all the dough is finished. Keeping extra dough in freezer whilst filling ensures that the butter/margarine doesn't melt. Gently lift and stretch the edge of the dough when sealing so it seals properly.
Generously brush the pie with the egg wash and bake at the center rack for 170C for 45 mins or until golden brown on top. Serve with any chilled drink or perhaps my mint lemonade or my rosemary and orange iced tea.