Nigerian (ish) Meat Pie for Chibu

Meat pie are really tasty. I can confirm because I’ve eaten them since childhood. You should technically add potatoes, carrots, peas, and can even use a different meat, but why ruin it?

I don’t have my mother’s recipe so here’s the recipe from https://cheflolaskitchen.com/west-african-meat-pie/ with a few modifications.

Ingredients

The Filling

• 1 Cup Carrots diced
• 1 Cup Potatoes diced
• 1.25 Tsp Salt
• 1 Tsp Curry powder
• 1/2 Tsp Thyme
• 2 Bouillon Cubes
• 1/2 Cup Water
• 2 Tbsp Flour
• 1 lb Ground beef
• 1.5 tbsp vegetable Oil
• 1 Finely Chopped Onion

The Crust

• 4 cups all purpose flour
• 10 tablespoon Margarine
• 10 tablespoon Butter
• 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg
• 5 tablespoon Water a little More or less
• 1 Egg For Egg wash
• pinch salt
• 1/2 tablespoon sugar optional

Instructions

The Filling:

1. Add the oil to a pan and saute the onions for about 1 minute. 2. Add the ground beef and cook until it’s well browned.
2. Add the curry powder, thyme, bouillon powder (cube), and salt and mix together. Then stir in the carrots and potatoes. Cook till tender.
3. In a separate bowl, mix the flour and water until smooth and stir the mixture with the filling (this will thicken the filling).
4. Remove from heat and allow to cool

The Crust:

1. Combine the flour, baking powder, and nutmeg in a bowl. Mix well
2. Add the Margarine and butter (or margarine alone if you choose to) and rub it with the flour until you get a crumbly texture – like Breadcrumbs then begin to add Cold Water, a little at a time until it forms a stiff dough
3. Transfer the dough to a work surface and knead for 1 minute then place the dough back in the bowl, cover it with a plastic wrap, and place it in the fridge to rest for about 30 minutes ( skip refrigerating if you want a less flaky pie).

Assembly:

1. Roll out the dough to about 1/4 of an inch thick then cut out your desired size circles and distribute the filling inside each cut-out pie dough (don’t overfill so you can be able to easily close the Pie).
2. Crack an egg in a small bowl, add 1 tablespoon of water and whisk together then use a pastry brush to brush the edges of the Pie
3. Fold the pie over to seal (and crimp the edge if not using a pie cutter) and use a fork to create a couple of vents on the Pie (this will help prevent air pockets in your pie)
4. Brush the surface of the Pie with the Egg wash and arrange the pies on a parchment paper-lined tray.
5. Bake at 350°F for 20 to 30 minutes or till golden brown.
6. Let cool and enjoy.

Hopefully, they turn out delicious!

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