Install specific version using laravel installer
Solution 1:
Using composer you can specify the version you want easily by running
composer create-project laravel/laravel="5.1.*" myProject
Using the 5.1.* will ensure that you get all the latest patches in the 5.1 branch.
Solution 2:
use
laravel new blog --version
Example laravel new blog --5.1
You can also use the composer method
composer create-project laravel/laravel app "5.1.*"
here, app is the name of your project
please see the documentation for laravel 5.1 here
UPDATE:
The above commands are no longer supports so please use
composer create-project laravel/laravel="5.1.*" appName