This Oklahoma fried pies recipe need no sauce.

From breakfast pies to fruit pies, pecan, cream pies and sugar-free varieties, Oklahoma has a pie for all road trippers. The heart of America’s Mother Road, Route 66, is home to Arbuckle Mountain Fried Pies, with a century-old recipe created by Maude Pletcher in the small town of Springer, that has been passed down generations and feeding Oklahomans for years. 

With its original store located off the I-35 in Davis, you can get a taste of the original Arbuckle Mountain Fried Pie here still today, or from its seven other shops across Oklahoma, as well as two outposts in neighbouring Texas and Kansas and one store in Arkansas. 

Arbuckle Mountain Fried Pies keeps their dough recipe close to heart, but here’s a version of Oklahoma fried pies from Oklahoma Tourism you can recreate at home and get creative with different fruit fillings.

Oklahoma Fried Pies Recipe (makes 8 – 10 pies)

Ingredients

For the filling

4 ripe apples, apricots or peaches, halved, pitted and cut into 1cm wedges (cherries, blackberries and blueberries recommended as alternatives, frozen mixed berries can also be used)

100g granulated sugar 

Pinch salt

2 tsp lemon juice

For the pastry

750g all-purpose flour

4 tbsp granulated sugar

225g butter, extra for frying

½ tsp salt

2 eggs, beaten

480ml buttermilk 

Instructions

Combine the fruit, 100g sugar and pinch of salt in a medium saucepan. 

Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally and breaking up the fruit with a spoon until tender, 5-10 mins (if using frozen fruit as an alternative, allow 15 mins). 

Uncover the fruit and continue to cook, frequently mashing with a potato masher until it resembles a coarse puree and thickens (10-15 mins).

Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice. Allow mixture to cool completely. 

To make the pastry, mix together the flour, sugar and salt. Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add one of the eggs and buttermilk and stir until the mixture comes together. Form into a ball and put into the fridge for at least an hour. 

Roll the pastry out into a large sheet, cutting into 8 circles using a butter knife, re-rolling any excess pastry to create up to two more pastry circles.

Spoon a heaped tablespoon of filling into one half of each pastry circle. 

Use the remaining beaten egg to seal the edges by folding the unfilled half over the top and crimp the edges shut with a fork. 

Heat butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat and fry the pies 2-3 at a time until golden brown, 3 minutes per side. Remove and immediately drain on a paper towel. Serve your Oklahoma fried pies while warm. 

Feature image: Oklahoma Tourism

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See more: Food