Nigerian Meat Pie

Ingredients

Pastry

• 500 g plain flour
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 100 g unsalted butter (cold, cubed)
• 150 g block margarine (cold, cubed)
• 1 egg (large)
• 100-120 ml ice water

Filling

• 2 tablespoons sunflower oil
• 1 onion (large, finely diced)
• 3 garlic cloves (crushed)
• 400 g beef mince
• 1 tablespoon Curry Powder (Nigerian-style yellow)
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 stock cube (Maggi)
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 carrot (medium, diced 5 mm)
• 1 potato (large, diced 5 mm - about 200 g)
• 200 ml beef (or chicken stock)
• 1 tablespoon cornflour (mixed with 2 tablespoons cold water)

To finish

• 1 egg (beaten - for egg-wash)

Method

Stage 1 - Pastry

1. Whisk flour, baking powder and salt in a wide bowl.
2. Rub in the cold butter and margarine with your fingertips until the mixture looks like rough breadcrumbs with some pea-sized lumps. (Or pulse in a food processor.)
3. Whisk the egg into 100 ml of ice water.
4. Pour into the flour mixture; bring together with a fork until a shaggy dough forms. Add more water 1 tablespoon at a time if dry.
5. Knead briefly (5 squeezes) to a smooth ball. Don't overwork.
6. Wrap in cling film; refrigerate 30 minutes.

Stage 2 - Filling

1. Heat oil in a wide pan over medium heat.
2. Add onion; cook 5 minutes until soft.
3. Add garlic; cook 1 minute.
4. Add beef mince; break up; brown 5 minutes.
5. Stir in curry powder, thyme, stock cube, salt and pepper; cook 1 minute.
6. Add diced carrot and potato; stir.
7. Pour in the stock; bring to a simmer.
8. Cover; cook 12-15 minutes until the potato and carrot are tender.
9. Stir in the cornflour slurry; cook 1 minute until the filling is thick and glossy.
10. Off heat; cool completely (warm filling makes soggy pastry).

Stage 3 - Roll and cut

1. Heat oven to 200°C (180°C fan).
2. Line two baking trays with paper.
3. Divide the pastry in half; roll each half on a floured surface to 4 mm thick.
4. Cut out 15 cm rounds using a saucer as a guide. Re-roll scraps once.

Stage 4 - Fill and shape

1. Place a heaped 2 tablespoons of cooled filling on half of each pastry round, leaving a 1 cm border.
2. Brush the border with egg-wash.
3. Fold the empty half over the filling; press the edges together; crimp with a fork or by pinching to form a tight seal.
4. Transfer to lined trays.

Stage 5 - Bake

1. Brush the tops with egg-wash.
2. Cut 2 small steam slits in each pie top.
3. Bake 30-35 minutes until deep golden brown.

Stage 6 - Cool and serve

1. Cool on a rack 10 minutes (the filling is volcanic straight from the oven).
2. Eat warm or at room temperature.