I have a constant curiousity about what I call “gas station burgers” and the like. I’ve written a few of those up before, as well as the one buck fish sandwich from the Dollar Store.
So when i saw empanadas at the Dollar Store the other day (labeled “Jamaican Beef Pies”) I had to give them a whirl. I love empanadas, one of my favorite places in Los Angeles is a drive-thru on the west side, and we had some outstanding Salvadoran style in Aberdeen, WA.
I think these are probably called “Jamaican style” as the ground meat is heavily flavored and a little spicy, much like you will find any ground beef concoction in Jamaica.
The product is made by Golden Krust Bakery, a fast-growing franchise of Caribbean food; it’s based out of the Bronx; they currently have over 100 locations up and down the east coast of the U.S. At the restaurants, in addition to meat pies, you’ll find jerk chicken and other Caribbean specialities.
The ingredients are fairly straight forward; the item is apparently meant to be available at convenience stores, as it has microwave instructions for both “in store” and “at home”.
The pie comes wrapped in the type of paper that assists with microwave “browning”, and at home it suggests two minutes in the oven, and a two minute rest.
I’m quite surprised at the outcome. I like these. Other than the fact they are very high in carbs, the microwaving works out well, which surprises me, the crust crisps up nicely, and the meat filling is tasty and peppery.
Very few frozen food companies, in my opinion, are able to figure out “crisp” in the microwave, so kudos to Golden Krust for that.
The best thing? If you’ve ever been to Jamaica, you know that ordering and waiting for food can sometimes be “a challenge.” With these pies, there’s no wait But then, there’s no pristine beach like Negril, to eat them at, either!
Unbaked Meat Pie
Microwave food tests