Beef and Potato Hand Pies
These beef and potato hand pies are simple, delicious, and perfect for little hands. They only take minutes to assemble and are made from ingredients you likely have on hand! Make them with cheese or without, and even sneak in your favorite veggies.
A history of hand pies
There are so many cultural variations on this simple savory hand pie. There are Spanish Empanadas, Turkish Fatayar, British Cornish Pasty, and many more. It makes sense then that hand pies were believed to enter the American scene by way of immigrant workers and thus became the original fast food for mill workers, coal miners, and farmers to take with them “on the go”. They evolved then to center around available spices and ingredients, and thus our “Southern” version of course is made with Homestyle biscuits, ground beef, and potatoes.
even picky eaters love beef and potato hand pies
These beef and potato hand pies are made with simple ingredients that can be easily adapted to fit your preferences. Want to add some peas or diced onion? Go ahead! Cooked carrots and corn? Why not?! You can even swap out the shredded potato for diced potato. They take literally minutes to roll out and minutes to bake… a near perfect week night meal!
I also love that they are so easy to handle. My small people can be super messy eaters, but these hand pies are firm enough to hold together and no forks or spoons are even needed. While they aren’t 100% homemade, you can even make these ahead and take them on the go with you- avoiding fast foods that are definitely less healthy! Bonus points that they are very budget friendly and super filling. Great for large families!
Ingredients for beef and potato hand pies
- 2 lbs ground beef (I use 90/10 or 80/20)
- 2 Cups of frozen shredded hash browns
- 2 Cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 2- 16 oz cans of Homestyle biscuits
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt + a pinch more for topping
- A couple Tbsp of flour for your work surface
making and assembling beef and potato hand pies
To make these beef and potato hand pies, first start by browning the ground beef and draining off any excess fats. Then, add in the salt, pepper, and seasonings to the ground beef and stir well to combine. Remove it from heat and begin assembling the hand pies.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out each biscuit into a thin circle and fill with a Tbsp or two of meat, shredded potatoes, and cheese. Place the fillings on one side, leaving enough room so that you can fold over the other half.
Stretch the unfilled half up and over the filled side, creating a half moon shape with the dough. Then pinch or press the edges of the dough to seal the seams and place on a baking sheet. Gently brush the dough with egg wash and sprinkle lightly with kosher salt.
Place the baking sheet into a preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before serving. Enjoy!
faq and substitutions for beef and potato hand pies
Can I make these with any biscuit? You should be able to use any premade biscuit for this recipe. Just check the baking instructions and adapt the bake time as needed.
Can I substitute shredded chicken for the beef? These hand pies are very adaptable. You can use shredded chicken, shredded beef, ham or turkey. Basically, you can use any pre cooked meat to fill these pies.
How do I get the hand pie to seal? It should be easy enough to seal by simply pinching together the seams, but if they struggle to stay sealed, you can gently brush the inside of the seam with a bit of the egg wash and then pinch them together. The egg wash should act like glue and hold them together.
Can I make these ahead and freeze them? Yes! You can assemble these hand pies and lay them out on a baking sheet. Put them in the freezer for a couple hours until they are firm and then store them in a freezer safe gallon bag or tupperware container. Just take them out when you are ready to bake and allow them to thaw before popping them in the oven to bake according to the directions below.
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Beef and Potato Hand Pies
Ingredients
- 2 lbs ground beef I use 90/10 or 80/20
- 2 Cups of frozen shredded hash browns
- 2 Cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 2- 16 oz cans of Homestyle biscuits
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt
- A couple Tbsp of flour for your work surface
Egg Wash
- 1 large egg
- 2-3 Tbsp Water
Instructions
- To make these beef and potato hand pies, first start by browning the ground beef and draining off any excess fats. Then, add in the salt, pepper, and seasonings and stir well to combine.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out each biscuit into a thin circle and fill with a Tbsp or two of meat, shredded potatoes, and cheese. Place the fillings on one side, leaving enough room so that you can fold over the other half.
- Stretch the unfilled half up and over the filled side, creating a half moon shape with the dough. Then pinch or press the edges of the dough to seal the seams and place on a baking sheet. Gently brush each hand pie with egg wash and lightly sprinkle with salt.
- Place the baking sheet into a preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes. When the tops are golden brown, remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before serving.
