I’ve mentioned in a previous post that I had bought a bunch of Gardein products that were on sale and one of them was a bag of The Ultimate Beefless Ground. I decided they would work perfectly as a substitute for ground beef in a Jamaican beef patty. It’s been at least 10 years since I’ve had one these pastry delights, so I was excited to try my hand at making a vegan version of it. It is not a complicated process, per se, but it does take some time and patience to get right. The work required for this recipe is worth it though, because the end result is wonderful.
For those that don’t know, a Jamaican patty is a savory pastry normally filled with ground beef, but is sometimes filled with fish, vegetables, chicken, pork or soy. The flaky pastry is colored using turmeric powder, or sometimes an egg yolk mixture to give it a beautiful golden yellow hue. The filling is spiced with curry, cumin and coriander among other spices and herbs.
To give it heat, traditionally a Scotch Bonnet pepper is used but, I was unable to find them at my local supermarket, so I used a Habanero pepper instead. Both peppers belong to the same family, so they are very similar, but the Scotch Bonnet is slightly sweeter which lends itself well to the spiciness and overall flavor of the filling. To adjust for the lack of sweetness from the Habanero, I served my patties with some chutney, which is sort of a savory and sweet jam-like sauce that can be found in many parts of the world, including the Caribbean and Jamaica.
Jamaican patties are a food whose origins are multicultural and are influenced by a variety of cooking styles. They originated in Jamaica, of course, after Cornish pasties were introduced during European colonialism of the Caribbean. Indentured servants from India brought with them the curry, cumin and coriander, which merged with the cooking style of the slaves from Africa, who brought cayenne pepper with them. This food exemplifies the evolution of cooking as different cultures were forced to inhabit the same land and resulted in shared recipes and ingredients with one another.
Jamaican patties were introduced to the U.S. during the 1960’s and 1970’s when waves of Jamaican health care workers immigrated to New York and brought their recipes with them. Today, they are popular in many large cities around the world that have large West Indian populations, and they are increasing in popularity as a street food in the U.S., Canada, and England.
We sincerely hope you try this recipe because it is an interesting and very delicious food. If you do, let us know how it turns out on Facebook, Reddit, Instagram or Twitter.
Ingredients
- 4 cups all purpose flour
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 tbsp salt
- 2 tsp turmeric
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup ice water
- 1 1/4 cup vegan butter
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp allspice
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp coriander
- 1 tsp curry powder
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 vegetable bouillon cube
- 2 tbsp parsley
- 1/2 tsp cayenne powder
- 1/2-1 habanero pepper, finely chopped
- 2 green onions, chopped
- salt to taste
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 package vegan ground beef crumbles
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, sugar and turmeric.
- Using a fork or pastry cutter, combine the vegan butter with the flour mixture until the large chunks of butter are gone.
- Then add the apple cider vinegar and water a little at a time and mix using a wooden spoon just until it forms a dough ball. Do not over mix, or your pastry will be too chewy.
- Refrigerate the dough ball for 30 minutes while preparing the filling.
- To prepare the filling, add oil to a skillet over medium heat.
- Once the oil is hot, add the onions and sauté for a few minutes until they begin to brown.
- Add the garlic and spices, stir and continue to sauté until for a few minutes until they are fragrant.
- Add the habanero pepper, with or without seeds depending on how spicy you want it.
- Then add the vegan ground beef crumbles and the vegetable bouillon with the water.
- Sauté the mixture for 10-15 minutes until the moisture is absorbed and the beefless crumbles are cooked through.
- Add the green onions and remove from heat. Allow to cool to room temperature.
- While the filling is cooling, place the ball of dough onto a well floured, smooth surface and roll out using a rolling pin.
- Use a small bowl to cut out circles from the dough and place them on another well floured surface that can fit in the fridge.
- Once you have cut out all of your circles, place them in the fridge and cool for another 30 minutes.
- Heat oven to 375°.
- Once the dough is cooled and the filling is at room temperature, spoon about 1-2 tbsp of the filling into the middle of each circle of dough.
- Press the edges down with a fork and bake the patties for 30-45 minutes until they are golden brown.
Notes
The traditional Jamaican beef patties use Scotch bonnet peppers, but I was unable to find them at my local grocery store, so I used a habanero pepper instead. If your dough is too sticky and hard to work with, refrigerate it for a longer time, but try not to over mix it or add too much extra flour, because the pastry will come out too dense and chewy.