A couple of weeks ago, a friend mentioned Jamaican Beef Patties. (Don’t you love friends who talk food?) I had never heard of them, let alone eaten one, so this led me down the rabbit hole of the internets.
Twenty seconds into my search, I was regretting that I had spent these many years without Jamaican Beef Patties in my life. Just from looking at pictures and reading descriptions, I knew they could be nothing short of incredible.
Essentially, they are a pie crust-like pastry shell wrapped around a mix of spiced beef. A savory hand pie. The pie crust is colored yellow with turmeric or yellow curry powder. I chose to make mine with turmeric. You know I love some turmeric—even in cake.
The beef is cooked with onion, garlic, and pepper. Scotch Bonnet pepper is traditional, but I can’t find those in my local grocery stores. Habanero is the closest thing to it. I’ve never done a side-by-side pepper tasting, but I read that the heat is similar, but the Scotch Bonnet is a little sweeter. To add some sweetness, I use a bit of brown sugar in the filling. Half of one gives a nice spice. If you love spicy, go for the whole thing.
A fair amount of spices go into the savory filling. You’ll also use a little beef broth or stock and breadcrumbs. Do not panic, if like me, you can’t find anything other than Italian breadcrumbs and you don’t have a stash of homemade plain panko in your freezer. Italian work just fine. There’s so much going on flavor-wise in the filling, that you’ll never notice.
First things first, make the dough. Whir it all up in the food processor. The dough will be sticky.
Once combined, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate while you make the filling.
Brown the beef and cook the onions, garlic, and pepper.
Next, add the spices and then the beef broth. Cook until most of the liquid has cooked away. Stir in the breadcrumbs and let cool a bit.
Roll the dough on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin. Do not fear the flour! Roll to about 1/8 inch and cut into 5-7 inch circles. Use a large cookie cutter, cup, or bowl.
Place about a tablespoon and a half of the filling onto each circle. (My cookie cutter is 5 inches wide. For larger circles, use more filling. You knew that.) Brush one edge with egg white and fold over to make a half circle.
Crimp the sides using your fingers or by pressing with the tines of a fork.
Brush with egg wash. This won’t add color because the dough is already yellow, but it does add a nice shine.
Bake!
Now, if you’re thinking that seems like a lot of work for dinner, here’s a tip. Make them when you have a little extra time. Bake, cool, and freeze them! Pop them into the oven to reheat. This is another reason to love these beef patties. They make a great dinner, but what an absolute treat they are for an afternoon snack.
Truth: I reheated one after my morning workout yesterday, and I think it tasted even more glorious.
One more tip: the filling is delicious over rice. It’s spicier, too, since there’s no buttery dough surrounding it.
It’s fair to say that I have found a new love in Jamaican Beef Patties. Have you ever tried one?
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