Jammy Plum Fried Pies

Makes 18 Pies

Ingredients

• Plum Filling

• 30 ounces of plums, washed, quartered, de-stemmed, and pits removed

• 1 cup (200 grams) sugar

• ¼ cup (60 milliliters) water

• 2 teaspoons lemon juice

• 1 pinch kosher salt

• 1 tablespoon butter

Fried Pie Crust

• 625 grams (approximately 5 cups) all-purpose flour (plus additional flour for rolling out the dough)

• 6 grams (1 teaspoon) fine sea salt

• 4 grams (1 teaspoon) baking powder

• 185 grams (1 cup) shortening

• 354 milliliters (1 12-ounce can) evaporated milk

• 1 egg

• 1-2 teaspoons water (for sealing the edges of the pies)

• 5-6 cups vegetable oil for frying

METHOD

To prepare the plum ‘fried pie’ filling, make 4 hours ahead of the fried pies, (enough time to completely chill the prepared filling) place all of the filling ingredients into a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir occasionally until the liquid is simmering and the sugar is dissolved. Cover the plums and simmer on low heat for 30 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and allow the plums to cool. While cooling, mash the plums with a masher or fork. The mixture should now be rather thick and jammy in texture, however, if it remains watery, return it to the stove over medium heat, stirring constantly until a jammy consistency has been achieved. Pay close attention at this point because it’s now easy to scorch the plums.

Once a jammy, slightly runny texture has been achieved, set the mashed plums aside to cool completely. Place the plum jam in a lidded container and refrigerate until ready to assemble and fry the pies.

For the pie crust, in a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, salt and baking powder. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the evaporated milk and the egg. With your hands, work the shortening into the dry ingredients until it’s evenly combined and the mixture is the consistency of sand. 

Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour the milk/egg mix into the well and incorporate evenly with a fork. Add 2 teaspoons of water to the bowl that contains the milk/egg mix and mix it well, this will serve as the ‘glue’ to seal the edges of the pies together.

Turn the crust mixture out onto a large 18”x30” piece of parchment paper and lightly work it into a ball. Cut the ball into approximately (18) 65 gram-sized balls and roll out each ball into a 6” disk.  Place 40-45 grams (2 heaping tablespoons) of plum pie filling into the center of each 6” dough disk. Dip a finger into the ‘glue’ mixture and trace along the edges of the dough, fold the pie disks in half, firmly and completely crimp to seal the edges with the tines of a metal fork (dredging the fork in flour if it starts to stick). Use the fork to prick 1-2 vents in the top of each pie. Repeat this process until all of the pies have been made.

Meanwhile, preheat the cooking oil in a deep fryer, electric skillet or 3”-4” deep 10” cast iron skillet to 350°-365°. Place 2-3 pies into the hot oil, frying 2 minutes and then flipping and frying for 2 additional minutes. Once golden brown on both sides, remove the pies and allow to cool slightly on a paper towel lined baking sheet or a cooling rack. Serve immediately, store at room temperature for 1-2 days, refrigerate for 4-5 days or freeze for 2-3 weeks.

Note - Occasionally test the oil temperature in order to maintain a consistent frying temperature.