Recipes Bread + Dough Irish Lamb Pies with Herbs (Dingle Pies) 1 Review Dingle, or Kerry, pies are savory lamb pies, a specialty of the Dingle Peninsula in southwestern Ireland. Traditionally, the pastry crust was made with mutton fat; here, chef JP McMahon uses Irish butter and eggs to keep the crust tender, flaky, and sturdy. By JP McMahon Updated on February 1, 2020 Print Rate It Share Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: Caitlin Bensel Active Time: 4 hrs Total Time: 9 hrs Yield: 10 Ingredients FILLING 6 tablespoons unsalted butter (3 ounces) 1 large yellow onion, diced 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh sage 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary 1 (2 1/2-pound) boneless lamb shoulder, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 2 1/2 cups lower-sodium chicken broth Water, as needed Fine sea salt, to taste PASTRY 4 cups all-purpose flour (about 17 ounces), sifted, plus more for work surface 1 tablespoon fine sea salt 1 2/3 cups unsalted Irish butter (such as Kerrygold) (about 11 1/3 ounces), chilled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces 4 large eggs, divided 3 to 5 tablespoons ice water Directions Make the filling Melt butter in a large Dutch oven over medium. Add onion, thyme, sage, and rosemary; cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened and translucent, 8 to 10 minutes. Add lamb pieces; cook, stirring occasionally, until browned on all sides, 10 to 12 minutes. Add flour; cook, stirring constantly, until flour is lightly browned and mixture is thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Gradually stir in broth. Bring to a boil over medium-high. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, 1 hour and 30 minutes. Continue cooking mixture, stirring often, until lamb is fall-apart tender and liquid is reduced to a very thick gravy, about 1 hour, adding water, 1/4 cup at a time, if sauce becomes too thick before lamb is tender. (Lamb will begin to shred when stirred toward end of cook time.) Coarsely shred lamb (still in Dutch oven) using 2 forks. (You will have about 3 cups filling once lamb is shredded.) Season filling with salt to taste. Transfer mixture to a large shallow heatproof bowl; let cool completely, about 1 hour. (Cooled filling can be used immediately or stored in an airtight container in refrigerator up to 3 days. If chilled, let filling stand at room temperature 30 minutes before assembling pies.) Make the pastry Stir together flour and salt in a large bowl. Add butter pieces; rub together using your fingers until evenly incorporated and mixture resembles small peas. Beat 3 eggs in a medium bowl. Make a well in the center of flour mixture; add beaten eggs, and stir with a fork to combine. Stir in 3 tablespoons ice water. Continue adding up to 2 tablespoons ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until a shaggy dough forms. Wrap dough tightly in plastic wrap; refrigerate at least 3 hours or up to 3 days. Unwrap chilled dough; place on a lightly floured work surface, and roll to 1/4-inch thickness. Using a 5-inch round cutter, cut 10 dough rounds; place rounds on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Using a 4-inch round cutter, cut 10 dough rounds, rerolling scraps as needed. Add to baking sheet. Cover baking sheet tightly with plastic wrap; chill at least 20 minutes or up to 1 day. Preheat oven to 350°F. Arrange the 4-inch dough rounds at least 1 1/2 inches apart on 2 baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Beat remaining egg in a small bowl. Spoon about 1/3 cup filling onto center of each 4-inch round; brush dough edges lightly with beaten egg. Top with 5-inch dough rounds. Using your hands, cup top dough round over filling, pressing lightly to shape dough around filling. Using a fork, crimp edges to seal. Cut a 1/4-inch-round hole in top of each pie. Brush pies lightly with remaining beaten egg. Bake in preheated oven until golden brown, 32 to 38 minutes. Transfer pies to a wire rack; let cool 10 minutes. Serve hot. Make Ahead To freeze: Follow recipe as directed through step 5. Freeze pies, uncovered, 1 hour. Transfer pies to a large ziplock plastic bag; freeze up to 1 month. To bake from frozen, preheat oven to 350°F. Arrange frozen pies at least 1 1/2 inches apart on 2 baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Brush lightly with 1 beaten egg. Bake in preheated oven until golden brown and filling is hot, 32 to 38 minutes. Rate it Print