Homemade Jamaican Patties

If you’ve ever been to Jamaica, dined at a Caribbean restaurant, have a Caribbean friend, or lived in a Caribbean neighborhood, you probably know that Jamaican patties are the quick and easy food-on-the-go that are both packed with flavor and can be customized in many ways. You know a good patty by its flavor and the flakiness of its crust.

I always like to think of food as a means of getting to know more about a people and their culture. While the simple concept of the Jamaican patty seems to pose no great story behind its inception, the makings of a patty carries with it the stories of colonization and the different people groups who inhabit Jamaica and carried with them the stories of their distant homelands. Much like Jamaica’s dialectal language, Patois, the makings of a patty is a mixture of the various people groups who inhabited the island.

Take, for example, the use of cayenne pepper and curry powder in making a Jamaican patty. Cayenne pepper points to the island’s African roots and the thousands of African people who were stolen from their homelands and enslaved on the island. Curry powder was introduced to Jamaica by East Indians, some of whom willfully chose to migrate to Jamaica to work as indentured servants, others who were tricked or forcefully brought to Jamaica to enter indentureship after the abolition of slavery in the British Caribbean. The cayenne pepper adds to the flavor and spice of the patty while the curry powder adds flavor and contributes to the patty’s signature golden crust. The patty itself came about after the introduction of the Cornish pasty, a pastry originating in the United Kingdom. As you can see, the role of colonization, the transatlantic slave trade, and Asian indentured servitude all play a role in the flavors found within a Jamaican patty. These pieces of the past each contribute to this celebrated Jamaican staple.

Check out the recipe below to learn how to make this delicious Jamaican favorite. You can also check out my IGTV video for a visual guide.

The Ingredients

Pastry:

1 lb. of flour

1 tsp of baking powder

1 tsp of curry powder

1 tsp of salt

1/2 cup vegetable shortening

A drop of annatto coloring or Bijol coloring & seasoning

Oven preheat temperature: 350 degrees

Filling:

please note: the beauty of the Jamaican patty is that the filling can be customized to your preferences. Whether you’re vegan, plant-based, or prefer a different meat than the traditional beef filling, the inside of the patty is completely up to your preferences. Some examples of alternate fillings: chicken, lobster, callaloo, mixed veggies.

1 lb. of ground beef (or filling of your choosing)

2 stalks of scallion

1/2 teaspoon of dried thyme

1 onion

2 cups of bread crumbs

1 tsp of Black pepper

1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper

1 tsp. salt (we used Himalayan pink salt)

1 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. of browning

1 egg yolk for glazing

The Process:

The Pastry:

1. To make the pastry, first start by sifting your flour, salt, baking powder, and curry powder.

2. Add your shortening in small portions and mix

3. Add your annatto or Bijol coloring to color the pastry and mix until the ingredients stick together, creating a firm but pliable dough. The dough should be of the consistency such that it leaves the bowl clean.

4. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and leave in the fridge for 25-30 minutes. In the meantime, let’s work on our filling.

The Filling:

1. Season the filling according to your preference, adding the suggested seasonings & vegetables.

2. Add the meat to an oiled saucepan and separate any lumps with a fork (stovetop should be on low-medium heat).

3. Add a tsp of browning (we slightly watered down our browning to have better control over the coloring of the beef - you may add browning according to your preference and the coloring of your beef). Cook until soft on low heat.

4. Add bread crumbs

5. Make sure that there is enough gravy from the mince to ensure that the filling isn’t too dry.

6. Allow the filling to slightly cool.

7. In a blender, pulse the cooked meat to make the filling more smooth.

   Now, back to our pastry.

8. Lightly flour a board or clean countertop

9. Separate your dough into individual balls

10. Using a rolling pin, roll out dough balls into circles

    You can use your finger as a guide to trace a half-circle shape into one side of the rolled-out dough. This is where you will place your filling. Also, for greater flakiness, you can add butter and/or shortening to the dough

11. Place 1 teaspoon of filling on one half of the circle. Fold the other half over to form a crescent.

12. Press together and crimp with a fork. This will secure the filling in the patty.

13. Glaze a little egg yolk on each patty, front and back.

14. Place each patty on a pizza baking sheet (a baking sheet or screen baking tray with holes that will allow the heat to equally bake the top and bottom of the patty)

15. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 35-40 minutes or until golden brown.

16. When done, allow the patties to slightly cool before serving.

That’s it! There are so many ways that you can customize a patty and so many things you can add to enjoy it with. It’s the perfect food for on-the-go. My favorite way to eat patties is with cocoa bread which you can find at any Caribbean grocery store. Another common way to enjoy a patty is by adding cheese. If you live in the metro-Detroit area, check out Jamrock Foods for all of your Caribbean grocery needs. The grocery store is Black-owned and women led. Always support Black owned businesses and initiatives. Will you be trying this recipe? Let me know in the comments.

Bon appétit! and as Jamaicans say, walk good!