I have a basic pie recipe that I use each time for the meat pies. It is a Natchez Meat Pie recipe.
And yes, I even make the dough as well. Look at all those different sizes just waiting to become little pies!
I've been making these so long that I have collected an entire drawer full of pie molds. You can get these anywhere. I have bought them at Williams-Sonoma and paid a lot (but they were cute...they are the pie and apple looking one in the pic), and bought them three sizes to a Ross and paid under $5.
As you can see, I have lots of different sizes. One size of the pie mold cuts the circle out....
Then you just place your filling on half of the circle....
This one was Peach Pie....
This one was the Natchez meat pie......
After you have the filling on the dough, you just close the pie mold in half..........
It couldn't be easier.....
I always like to wet the edges of the dough circle before I close it up though.......
That's a little insider's secret!! I use a combination of water and a beaten egg to spread around the dough circle.
Once I have a pie made I stack them up on a big cookie sheet while I finish the others up.
If your dough tears or the seal comes apart, it is no big deal. Just pinch it back together.
I use a counter-top deep fryer to fry mine. I have tried everything: skillet, turkey fryer, commercial fryer and even baking them. They all work just fine.
Just make sure you don't over fill your basket if you are using the counter top fryer.
I usually turn them once while they are frying. Don't they look delicious? And they smell equally as well.
Because we're friends, I"ll tell you another insider's secret: It takes half the time for them to disappear as it did to make them.
They really are not hard to make. They do take a little time just because of the steps involved. (Fried Peach Pie above.)
One more insider's secret: When I am making the fried fruit pies (in this case peach)..............
I always add a little Cinnamon to the dough while it is stirring up. I don't measure. I just sprinkle into the dough and mix.
Deal with it. (Next time it might have half that amount of Cinnamon. The time after that I might forget all together!)
That's just the kind of cook I am. And you might note in this picture you can see the swirls of Cinnamon that run through it.
I also like to sprinkle the fruit pies with a little (ok, a LOT) of powdered sugar.
Eat now. Thank me later.
Just remember. Same exact dough for the crust. Just add a little cinnamon if you remember. If you don't, I promise they will still disappear.
When making the meat pies, you can spice the meat up as much or as little as you like. I always add Red Pepper flakes to the meat.
If you look closely you can see those spicy little devils!
My kids dip these in Ranch dressing, cheese dip, BBQ sauce or just (gasp!!) eat them plain.
IF you happen to have some left over....they are extremely good warmed up. They make great lunch box meals as well.
And yes, I have baked the "FRIED" pies before too. They don't get the beautiful golden color. They sometimes pop open as they are baking. They don't have quite the same taste, but they are devoured as well as the real fried ones.
Just remember there is always a healthy eater in every crowd!!!
We like to make these as a family, so the assembly line moves right along. Hope you enjoy them too.
Ingredients:--I always AT LEAST double the recipe. Remember to spice it up. This is just the basic recipe.
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 1/2 lb ground pork (or you can just do all beef)
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon flour
- For the pastry (I always at least double this too)
- 3 cups flour
- (There is nothing missing on the next dot. I just cannot get it fixed and deleted no matter what I try. RRRRRRRRRRRRR. Sorry!!
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 6 tablespoons shortening
- 1 egg
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1 to taste egg wash (1 egg beaten with 2 tablespoons water)
- 1 to taste vegetable oil (for frying)
So I don't own a pie mold or a deep fryer, will mine still taste as good as yours?
ReplyDeleteLori,
ReplyDeleteI tested your recipe last night and it was great. I used store bought dough, but it still tasted fantastic.
Worth every pound I gained. ;)
I have those cute little pie makers. I have never fried mine though. This looks sinfully delightful. Wow, should I be saying this when it is past midnight. I am seriously hungry.
ReplyDeleteI have to get some pie molds.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post! These look awesome, I love peach anything and with cinnamon...yum! I may have to try a whole wheat crust crammed with veggies and.....nah...
ReplyDeleteWOw!!! YOu got me going it all looks delicious. I think I may have a few of these in the kitchen I am going to look for them so I can try these delicious recipes
ReplyDeleteYour fried pies are bringing back some serious childhood memories. I love peach fried pies. Last year I added meat pies to my favorites list. Awesome!!
ReplyDeleteOh, I do love sweet and savory pies. These look scrumptious!
ReplyDeleteThey look so good!!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm sold and I do have a set of those pie makers from Ross.
ReplyDeleteMimi
What a fun post and great tutorial. I have long been intrigued by those pie molds, wondering if they worked or not, and I see that they do! They all look so delicious, the meat pie in particular.
ReplyDeleteWow these look so good! I've made fruit filled "pocket pies" with William Sonoma molds but they were time consuming to use. I like your molds better and will have to look for them. The spicy meat pies sound delicious!
ReplyDelete