Day 4: Nigerian Meat Pies: A Handheld Treat! (Advanced Group)

The finished savory empanada topped off with the turkey filling.

Alice coating the empanadas with egg.

Although today started off with a chilly bus ride, the day shortly got better as we walked into the kitchen. The meal that we made could be looked at as an empanada, but the technical term for the ones we were making were called Nigerian Meat Pies. As we walked into the kitchen, we were surprised to find out that an extra chef would be helping us out today! The recipe we were following to make these delicious pies actually belonged to Chef Jessica’s friend, who was so kind to come in today and cook her own recipe with us. We started off by cleaning the surfaces of the kitchen to keep our food clean, and we split off into groups and began cooking.

Alex peeling and cutting apples.

At the end of the meal, we would have sweet empanadas and savory empanadas, so each group had to make lots of dough. Kneading the dough was a strenuous task, so while some members would knead their anger out, others would begin making the filling for the savory empanadas. When the dough was fully kneaded, it was put aside so that we could all begin working on the fillings. Almost every ingredient in the savory filling required its own, different cooking time so that everything would be evenly cooked in the end. The savory filling consisted of carrots, onions, potatoes, and ground turkey.

Sara kneading the dough.

While members continued to fully cook the filling, others would begin making the sweet filling. This delicious filling was an apple cinnamon filling, and each group got to decide how much cinnamon they wanted to add. As the apples and cinnamon were cooking up in a pot, we knew it would be ready when it became sticky and soft. Once everyone finished making their fillings, we all took a break to play volleyball, soccer, or just to sleep!

Ira adding cinnamon to his apples.

Once it was time to go back into the kitchen, everyone was ready to form some empanadas! Every single person in each group had an important job to create the empanadas. The dough had to be rolled out very flat in order to be cut into small ovals. Then one side of these ovals would be washed with whisked egg in order to help stick when folding. Then we would scoop up either the meat filling or apple filling depending on which one we were working on, and put a small scoop into the egg-washed side of the empanada.

Gloria folding the empanadas.

We would then fold the other side over to create the empanada shape, and the chefs taught us to press down on the edges with the back of a fork so that the sides would stick together, and also because the lines look nice for a finished product. We poked holes in the top and put the empanadas on the pan, and with one last egg-wash on the top, the empanadas were ready to be baked! We even drizzled some sugar on top of the sweet empanadas before baking them for extra sweetness. We made so many empanadas that we even had to use another oven in the school to fit all of them! 

Isa stirring the apple filling.

The baking time was 35 minutes, and we all took some time to relax while waiting. Once they were ready, we all happily enjoyed our tasty empanadas and were very proud of the hard work we put into making them. We had so many extra empanadas, and we were able to share our delicious treats with our friends and faculty back at school!

Talulah cooking the savory filling.