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Delicious Jamaican beef patties with flakey crust and flavorful beef filling.
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Authentic Jamaican Beef Patties

A classic Jamaican street food that can be enjoyed as a lunch meal or a quick snack.
Prep Time1 hour
Cook Time30 minutes
Dough Chill Time1 hour 15 minutes
Cuisine: Jamaican
Keyword: beef patties, beef patties recipe, beef patty recipe, Jamaican beef patties, Jamaican beef patties recipe, Jamaican beef patty recipe
Servings: 8

Equipment

  • Mixing bowl
  • Measuring cup
  • Measuring spoons
  • Small bowl
  • Plastic wrap
  • skillet
  • Wooden spoon or spatula
  • Rolling Pin
  • Dough cutter
  • Baking sheet
  • Parchment paper

Ingredients

Crust

  • 4 cup all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp Bijol coloring and seasoning
  • 1 tbsp granulated sugar
  • 8 oz unsalted butter very cold, cut into small cubes, divided
  • 4 oz vegetable shortening very cold, cut into small cubes, divided
  • 1 cup ice water
  • 2 tsp white vinegar

Beef Filling

  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1/2 medium onion finely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 2 scallion stalks finely chopped
  • 1/4 green bell pepper finely chopped
  • 1/2 scotch bonnet pepper finely chopped
  • 2 thyme sprigs leaves only, stems discarded
  • 1 tsp ginger paste
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp paprika
  • 1/4 tsp curry powder
  • 1/4 tsp ground allspice
  • 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1/2 tbsp ketchup
  • 1 tsp Jamaican browning sauce
  • 3/4 cup plain breadcrumbs
  • 1 1/2 cups low-sodium beef stock

Instructions

  • Sift the flour, salt, baking powder, turmeric, Bijol and sugar into a mixing bowl. Whisk to combine.
  • Work 4 oz of the cold cubed butter and 2 oz of the cold cubed shortening into the flour mixture with a fork or clean hands until it resembles pebbly sand.
  • Crack the egg into a clean bowl and whisk. Add 1 tbsp of the ice water to the egg and whisk again to make an egg wash. Reserve most of the egg wash. Add 1 tbsp of the egg wash to the ice water, then add the vinegar.
  • Add 2 tbsp of the ice water mixture at a time to the flour mixture while kneading.Add only enough water for the dough to come together into a firm, semi-smooth ball and for the bowl to become clean. Do not knead any further once the dough comes together.
  • Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
  • Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, coat the bottom of the skillet with1 tbsp vegetable oil. Add the ground beef and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring as it cooks, until browned throughout. Remove the beef from the skillet and drain the grease or liquid, reserving 2 tbsp.
  • Reduce the heat to medium. Add the reserved 2 tbsp of liquid to the skillet. Add the onion, garlic, scallion, green bell pepper, Scotch bonnet pepper, thyme and ginger paste. Sauté for about 2 minutes, until aromatic. Return the beef to the skillet and mix well.
  • Add the salt, black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, curry powder, allspice, soy sauce and ketchup. Stir well. Add the browning and mix to combine.
  • Mix the breadcrumbs with 1 cup of the beef stock. Add the mixture to the beef and stir well. Add the remaining ½ cup beef stock and stir until silky. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the filling reaches the desired consistency. Turn off the heat and allow the filling to cool completely.
  • Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Dust a clean surface with flour and roll the dough out until at least ¼ inch thick.
  • Evenly distribute 2 oz of butter and 1 oz of shortening over the rolled-out dough.Fold it over itself twice until it resembles an imperfect square. Roll the dough out again, evenly distribute the remaining 2 oz of butter and 1 oz of shortening over the dough, then fold it over itself twice.
  • Roll the dough out again and fold it over itself twice one more time. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
  • Preheat the oven to 400°F. Roll out the chilled dough one final time until at least ¼inch thick. Use a dough cutter, bowl or another circular object to cut out circles in your desired size. A 6-inch cutter makes approximately 8 to 10 standard-size patties, while a 4-inch cutter makes approximately 10 to 24 cocktail-size patties. Bring the remaining dough together and continue cutting until all the dough is used. Loosely wrap the dough discs and refrigerate. Work with four discs at a time while keeping the remaining discs chilled.
  • For each disc, gently roll it out on a lightly floured surface if it has shrunk.Add 1 to 1½ tbsp of filling for smaller patties or 2½ to 3 tbsp for larger patties to one side of the circle, leaving about ½ inch around the edge. Brush egg wash around the edge, fold the pastry over the filling and press the edges together. Use a fork to crimp and seal the edges. Continue until all patties are assembled, working in batches and keeping the assembled patties chilled.
  • Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Place the patties on the baking sheets and poke each one with a fork to create a vent. Bake for 25 minutes for smaller patties or 30 minutes for larger patties. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.
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