Meat Pie
“I am a popular Nigerian street snack, hot or cold the young and old loves me. What am I”?
If you guessed Nigerian Meat pie, you guessed right! Nigerian Meat Pie is a savory, filling snack traditionally filled with minced meat, carrots and potatoes. It is one of the most popular snacks in Nigeria and its sold in restaurants, roadsides, etc. Flaky crust on the outside, warm and gooey on the inside, its a snack favorite for adults and Children and how could we not love it? its just everything!!!!
Let’s dive into the Ingredients and directions on how to make this easy peasy recipe.
The crust is the best part!
Many people are intimidated by making pie crust but no fear! I’ll show you how to get it perfectly every single time and it’s so super easy to do. Just follow these golden rules.
Rule 1
Do not over-mix the dough. After adding the water mix just until combined and stop. Dough will be lumpy and that’s okay. Overmixing allows the gluten in the flour to develop into elastic strands, which creates a gummy a tough and chewy dough.
Rule 2
Keep the butter cold. This tip makes the whole process a breeze and that’s why this recipe calls for cold water as it helps to keep the butter solid after crumbling with warm hands. Cold butter is much easier to roll and work with than soft butter/margarine.
Ingredients
Pie dough
- 500 grams all purpose flour 4 cups
- 8 grams salt 1 ½ teaspoons
- 240 grams unsalted butter 2 sticks
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoon cold water
Pie filling
- 450 grams ground beef /minced beef
- 1 large potato diced
- 1 carrot diced
- ½ teaspoon Curry
- ½ teaspoon Thyme
- ½ teaspoon Chilli pepper
- 1 teaspoon Garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 seasoning cube Bouillon cube
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 3/4 cup water
Egg wash
- 1 medium egg
Instructions
For the dough
- In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt.
- Add cubed butter, crumble with hands or with a butter cutter until it looks like bread crumbs.
- Add cold water, mix just until the dough comes together. Do not overmix or knead the dough.
- Divide in two, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
for the filling
- Peel and wash potatoes, carrot, dice.
- To a hot pan, add vegetable oil, just enough to fry chopped onions, sauté.
- When onion is soft, add ground or minced beef, cook until no longer pink.
- Add seasoning cube, salt, thyme, curry, garlic powder, chopped pepper (or dry) stir until combined.
- Add diced potatoes, carrots and flour to thicken. stir.
- Add the water or meat broth, cover and cook on low heat for about 15 minutes.
- Pour out pan content into a wide shallow plate and allow to cool completely.
To assemble
- Preheat oven to 350°C or 175°F. Cut with a dough cutter, round plate or small pot cover.
- Remove dough from refrigerator and transfer to a floured surface. Cut dough into small pieces then roll out to about ¼cm thick.
- Brush round the edge with egg wash(this will help seal the dough)Add cooled filling, cover and crimp with a fork.
- Brush with egg wash then Poke holes with the fork (the holes act as an air vent which will help the steam escape while the pie is baking).
- Line a baking tray with parchment paper and transfer. Bake pies in preheated oven at 350°f or 175°c for 45 minutes.
- Take meat pie out of the oven and enjoy hot or cold.
Notes
- Make sure pie filling is completely cooled before using as using a hot/warm filling will melt the butter in the dough resulting in a greasy crust.
- Refrigerating the dough helps the butter solidify so it’s easier to work with.
- When poking holes in the pie, make sure the fork goes through the top part of the dough.
- While making the pie, keep unused dough in the fridge so the butter remains cool and solid.
Did you make this recipe?
Tag, mention or DM @kikifoodies. I would love to hear from you!
FAQs
Question: Do I need baking powder for meat pie?
No, although some people use baking powder, I tend to keep it simple. If you follow this recipe and tips, no doubt your pie will come out flaky delicious without the need for making powder.
Question: my meat pie busted open in the oven. What did I do wrong?
This can happen if you overfilled the pie with filling or most commonly, if they’re no proper whole poked at the top. Steam builds up when baking and if there’s no way for steam to escape, the pie will burst open.
Question: What type of butter is best for meat pie?
I typically use unsalted butter. Margarine can also be used but reduce the salt by half if using margarine.
Question: can I double or triple this recipe?
Absolutely! this recipe can also be used for bulk meat pie
Question: Can I make meat pie ahead of time?
Absolutely! you can make pie dough the day before and refrigerate until ready to use. Same with the filling.
How to store meat pie
- Place meat pie dough to a ziplock bag or an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Place meat pie filling in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- You can store assembled unbaked pie in the refrigerator for up to 3 days and in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- You can store baked pie in the refrigerator for up to 7 days and in the freezer for up to 3 months.
How to reheat meat pie
You can reheat these pies in the microwave or in the oven at 330f/165c for 10 minutes or in the air-fryer for about 4 minutes. Enjoy with a cold glass of chapman drink
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Can you use hot pepper sauce as chilli pepper?
Can you use granulated onion as garlic powder?
Yes to both
Does pie comes out better without baking powder because I noticed you didn’t use it. Thank you ?
I usually prefer mine without baking powder. But sometimes I do add. If you want to try it, use ½ teaspoon for this recipe.
Thanks for sharing this recipe. We have tried it before and about to make it again.
It’s my first time making meatpies and it tastes so good .
I divided everything by four because I had fewer ingredients and it came out perfectly.
Aww..you’re very welcome
Please how pieces of meatpie does this recipe give?
12 medium pies