065 / 75 · Make the Most of What Is Left
Bean and Cheese Hand Pies
8 hand pies; 2 pies per serving · Active 40 min · Total 1 hr 30 min
Print recipe · PDFThese hand pies start with a simple flour, oil and water pastry, so there is no need to buy a separate pastry pack for one meal. A thick filling of beans, cooked onion and a little cheddar sits inside each folded round. Two pies make a portion. The filling must cool before shaping, which gives the dough time to rest and makes the assembly much less awkward.
Oil pastry wants a rest
Stir the oil and water into the flour until no dry pockets remain, then knead only briefly. This dough is not intended to become elastic like bread. A covered rest allows the flour to hydrate and makes the rounds easier to roll without springing back. Keep unused pieces covered while working; dry edges are difficult to seal. Rolling between two pieces of baking parchment is useful if the counter is sticky, and the top sheet can be reused for every round rather than torn off afresh.
A spoonful should hold its shape
Drain the beans before mashing them. Cooked onion adds flavor without leaving sharp raw pieces in the center of the pie. Crush enough beans to hold the filling together but leave some whole for texture. The cooled mixture should sit in a mound on the spoon. Runny salsa, bean cooking liquid or a generous pour of sauce would make sealing harder and soften the pastry. This is why the base filling uses measured onion and cheese rather than an unmeasured mixture of whatever is in the refrigerator.
Make the seam part of the method
Divide both dough and filling before starting, so the last pies are not left with enormous shells and almost nothing inside. Keep the filling just off the center of each round, dampen the exposed edge and fold the empty half over. Press out trapped air gently, then crimp the edge with a fork without piercing through the pastry. A small slit in the top allows steam to escape. Leave space between the pies on the tray; touching edges stay pale and soft instead of baking into a crisp rim.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (300 g)
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt (3 g), divided
- 1/4 cup neutral oil (60 ml), for the pastry
- 9 tablespoons water (135 ml), at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon neutral oil (5 ml), for the onion
- 1 small onion (100 g), finely diced
- 2 cups plain cooked pinto beans, well drained (340 g)
- 3/4 cup grated cheddar (80 g)
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin (2 g)
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper (0.5 g)
Set out
Mixing bowl, Small skillet, Rolling pin, Large baking tray, Baking parchment, Fork, Food thermometer
Allergens
Milk, Wheat. Check labels and substitutions.
Make it
- Mix flour and half the salt in the bowl. Add the pastry oil and water and stir into a dough. Knead gently for about 30 seconds, cover and rest for 20 minutes.
- Heat the remaining teaspoon of oil in the skillet over medium-low heat. Cook onion for 7–8 minutes until soft. Put beans in a bowl and mash about two-thirds. Stir in onion, cheddar, cumin, pepper and remaining salt. Spread in a shallow layer and cool for 15 minutes; do not leave it out beyond 2 hours total.
- Heat oven to 400°F/200°C and line the tray. Divide dough into 8 equal pieces and filling into 8 portions. Roll each dough piece into a 6-inch/15 cm circle, keeping the other pieces covered.
- Place one filling portion just off center on each circle. Dampen the edge lightly with water, fold over, press out air and seal with a fork. Cut a small steam slit in each top and arrange on the tray with space between them.
- Bake for 25–30 minutes until the pastry is golden at the edges and the filling reaches 165°F/74°C. Rest for 5 minutes before serving; each portion is two pies.
Canned and home-cooked beans both work
A single 15 oz/425 g can usually provides less than 340 g drained beans. Weigh after draining and either open enough for the full batch, save the remainder of a second can safely, or reduce every ingredient proportionally. Do not silently halve the filling while keeping eight large pastry shells.
Ingredient labels
Check the cheese and bean labels for additional allergens.
A useful detail
The pastry contains its measured oil; it does not need an egg wash. A small steam slit and a firm seal are more important than an elaborate crimp. The total includes the dough rest and filling cooling, partly done in parallel.
Another way
- Use 340 g drained canned pinto beans, or the same weight of plain cooked black beans, instead of home-cooked pinto beans.
- Replace cheddar with the same weight of a firm grated cheese already in the refrigerator. Avoid soft wet cheese, which changes the filling moisture.
Keep it well
Use promptly chilled cooked beans no more than 2 days old, or freshly opened canned beans. Cool baked pies in a single layer and refrigerate within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F/32°C. Keep at 40°F/4°C or below. With leftover beans, use within their original 3-day window, not more than 1 further day; with newly opened canned beans, use within 3 days. Reheat once to 165°F/74°C.