Chef notes
If you’re a fan of dumplings, just wait until you try a Beijing-style meat pie. This Northern Chinese street food staple is made by filling large dough wrappers with a seasoned beef filling. After getting sealed up, the meat pies are fried until golden brown and crispy. While not widely eaten outside of China, this filling snack is beloved by everyone who tries them.
The gates of the Forbidden City inspired the name of these meat pies. The gates have giant golden nail heads which, you guessed it, vaguely look like a meat pie straight from the fryer. Their Chinese name, men ding rou bing, translates to nail heads. Meat pies are truly an all-day affair and can be eaten for every meal. In Beijing, they’re often thought of as an affordable and quick option for when you’re on the go.
There are three stages to making meat pies: making the wrappers, filling them and cooking. Because each step can be slightly laborious, this recipe can be broken up into stages and assembled when you’re ready to eat. While beef is the most traditional filling, you can experiment with different types of ground meat like lamb, pork and even chicken. Beijing meat pies are best served hot, so plan accordingly.
Technique Tip: Use warm water for the wrapper dough and emulsify beef stock into the filling to make it extra juicy.
Swap Option: If you’re not up for making your own wrappers, store-bought is fine.
Get Ingredients: If you don’t have everything you need on hand, you can easily purchase all of the ingredients (just click the orange button below that says ‘Get Ingredients’). You can pick and choose exactly what ingredients you need based on what’s in your pantry and they’ll be on your doorstep before you know it.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
- 1 cup warm water
- 1/4 cup kosher salt
- 1 pound coarsely ground chuck
- 1/4 cup beef stock
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup canola oil, plus more for cooking
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 large egg
- 2 cups small diced onion
Preparation
Make the wrappers:
1.Place flour in a large, heavy-bottomed mixing bowl. Drizzle warm water all over the flour and pour in kosher salt. With a pair of chopsticks or a fork, stir together, making sure the water hydrates all the flour and the dough looks like threads of cotton. Use your hands to knead the dough until smooth, cover with plastic wrap and rest for 30 minutes.
2.After the dough has rested, portion it into golf ball-sized rounds (about 1 ounce each in weight). Roll out the dough portions into round discs.
Make the beef filling:
1.Place ground beef chuck into a mixing bowl and drizzle stock, soy sauce and oyster sauce into the bowl and mix well, making sure all the liquid is absorbed into the beef. Add kosher salt and black pepper and mix well.
2.Drizzle canola and sesame oil into the beef filling while stirring the beef in one direction, fully emulsify the oils into the beef filling, then add the whole egg. Mix well until thoroughly combined. Add the onions into the beef and mix well.
Fold and cook the meat pies:
1.Place 1 golf ball-sized filling in the middle of the wrapper, pinch the edges together and form a “bao," then gently flatten the bao with the palm of your hand into a meat pie. Repeat this step until all meat pies are formed.
2.Heat a non-stick or cast iron pan over medium heat with 2 tablespoons canola oil. Place meat pies into the pan and cover for 2 minutes. When you can smell the dough and beef cooking in the air, flip it to the other side and cover again. After both sides are golden, about 8 minutes total, remove from pan.
3.Serve with rice vinegar and chili oil as dipping sauce.
