Natchitoches Meat Pies

The Natchitoches (*NAK-uh-tush*) meat pie — a half-moon shaped, deep-fried hand pie filled with seasoned ground beef and pork — is the signature food of Natchitoches, the oldest permanent settlement in the Louisiana Purchase territory (established 1714). The meat pie tradition in Natchitoches predates the Cajun settlement of southern Louisiana and reflects the Creole fusion of the northern part of the state: French pastry technique, Spanish *empanada* influence, and the indigenous and African filling traditions that shaped the specific seasoning. Lasyone's Meat Pie Restaurant, operating since 1967 on Second Street in Natchitoches, is the most famous purveyor and the standard against which all others are measured.

A crescent-shaped hand pie, approximately 15cm long, with a thin, golden, slightly sweet pastry shell that shatters when bitten, enclosing a filling of seasoned ground beef and pork with the trinity, garlic, cayenne, and black pepper. The filling should be moist but not wet — the meat mixture cooked and seasoned before filling so the pastry doesn't become soggy. The crust should be thin enough that the first bite goes cleanly through both pastry and filling.

Hot sauce on the side for dipping. The pie is self-contained — pastry, meat, seasoning, fat all in one package. A cold drink. At Lasyone's, the meat pie comes with dirty rice and coleslaw — the three together constitute the Natchitoches lunch.