Beef Hand Pies

I love pot pies. They are just easy and delicious. One day I thought, hey make this in a pocket. So, I did.

I used to make this with store-bought pie dough but found it a little more difficult to work with. It can be done though. I did it for a long while. I would thaw the dough, then gather it in a ball. knead it to make it come together. Divide it into 6 pieces and then roll them out and went from there. I then strayed away from that and started making my own dough and it was so much easier, well for me at least.

I altered my pot pie recipe for this recipe so it would not be so… brothy and creamy but a bit more hearty and substantial. It turned out delicious and I have been making it ever since then. It is a simple recipe but a delicious recipe. It is a family favorite.

let’s make some hand pies.

INGREDIENTS:

Pie dough (I doubled my basic pie dough recipe- you can find it here on my blog)
12 Oz. Beef – about 3 cups diced in a 1/4 inch dice
1 C. Mixed vegetables – thawed and drained
1 Lg. Potato – peeled and diced fine
1/2 Onion – diced fine
2 Garlic cloves – minced
1 Tsp. Dried Thyme
Salt and pepper – to taste
Egg wash ( 1 egg + 1 tbsp water mixed well)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Make the Pie dough according to the directions and wrap it in plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour. ( I doubled my recipe)
2. In the meantime, Make the filling.
3. In a large bowl combine the beef, potatoes, mixed vegetables, salt, pepper, and thyme. Mix well. Set aside.
4. Cut the dough into 6 equal pieces. Roll each piece into an 8-inch circle about 1/8 inch thick.
5. Add 1 level cup of the filling to the pie dough, just off-center. Brush the edges with egg wash and fold the dough up and over the filling. Press the edges together and crimp the edges as desired. Place each hand pie on a sheet tray that has been lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Chill for 30 minutes. this helps the dough not cook faster than the center.
6. Preheat the oven to 400*.
7. Brush the top with egg wash and season with salt and pepper. Cut two slits in the top.
8. Bake the hand pies for 15 minutes. Lower the temperature of the oven to 350* and bake for an additional 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown on top and the center is cooked through.
9. Remove and let cool slightly before serving.

• I like to serve these hand pies with my Chipotle ketchup. You can find the recipe (which is super easy) on my fried green tomato recipe here on my blog. It is in the “additions” part of the recipe at the bottom.
• Make sure that the dough is slightly thick (1/8 inch to 1/4 inch) because if it is thinner then it will not hold up to the fillings and will be more tender rather than sturdy enough to be handheld. Either way, it will still be delicious.
• I have even made these hand pies with diced ham, diced turkey, and diced chicken. I have not made just vegetable hand pies but this is what I would do. I would add 3-4 cups of mixed vegetables instead of 1 cup. 2 Medium potatoes instead of 1 large. I would make it the exact same way as stated above.
• Serve these hand pies with your favorite side dishes. These are such rustic styles of beef hand pies. In the South, these go by many names. Meat pies, Meat turnovers, Turnovers, and hand pies. We have both sweet and savory. Both are equally as delicious.