This has to be my favorite pie in the world, I mean who doesn’t love pie! It’s a whole meal by itself, great if you’re running low on energy and especially great if you have a hankering for something delicious, then you’ve come to the right place. This recipe involves making a short crust pastry, most people are afraid of doing that, hence restaurants charge you large sums of money for making simple things. Hope you try this recipe, enjoy!

  1-hour  /    Moderate  /    Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

Meat:

500-g Beef or Veal, bite size cubes

2 Onions, large, sliced

250-g Mushrooms, sliced thin

4 Garlic cloves, minced

1 Dried red chilli

1 Bay leaf, dried

2-tbsp. Tomato puree

200-ml Chicken stock

60-ml Red wine

1-tsp. Thyme, fresh, chopped

Dash of Worcestershire sauce

Dash of Tabasco sauce

Olive oil for cooking

Salt and pepper to taste

Shortcrust Pastry:

200-g Butter

400-g Flour

Pinch of salt

Water

1 Egg, beaten

PROCEDURE

Shortcrust Pastry

A. In a bowl add flour and salt, sift through a strainer pour into a mixer, now add cubes of cold butter to the flour, blitz using short bursts until all the butter has incorporated with the flour and it looks like ‘wet sand’. Remove the flour mix on to a clean surface to work it, sprinkle flour over the surface before you start. Gather all the flour together and knead until its incorporated well, DO NOT overwork the dough or it will shrink while baking. Add a teaspoon of water if the dough is too dry. Once the dough is ready wrap with cling film and refrigerate. You can freeze this type of dough for future use, for up to a month. 

B. Use a 12-inch crimped baking pie tin with a removable bottom for the pie, grease the tin well with butter and dust with flour, keep aside.

C. Remove the dough from the refrigerator, divide by 3:2 use the larger portion for the bottom.

1. For best results when rolling out Shortcrust Pastry use a large, clean dry area of the work surface and lightly dust it with plain flour.
2. Place pastry dough on surface and lightly dust it and the rolling pin with flour.
3. Roll pastry firmly, always rolling away from you; give the dough 2-3 rolls.
4. Then turn the dough a quarter turn.
5. Dust again if necessary and continue rolling out, frequently turning the pastry so it is not always rolled in the same direction as this causes shrinkage.
6. When the pastry has increased in size, pick it up to turn / line the tin by rolling it round the rolling pin.
7. Lift the pin with the pastry around it carefully and turn it to lie out and continue rolling. Again this is done to prevent the pastry from stretching as you lift it which in turn would result in shrinkage in baking. Shortcrust pastry should be rolled out to approx. 3-5mm depth.
8. Now carefully lay the dough over the flan ring on the tin.
9. Ease pastry gently into ring and press firmly down sides, again allowing a small excess at base as for the flan tins.
10. Allow excess pastry to fall over sides and to cut it away use a sharp knife and trim all round the top outside edge of the ring.
11. Gently ease pastry up all round the inside of the ring as described in the flan tin section so that the pastry stands slightly proud of the top of the ring. Make this a day before.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.

Beef filling

1. Add oil to a sauté pan heat to a smoke, add the meat and brown well, do not reduce the heat it should look like you’re burning it, but don’t burn it, constantly stir ensuring it browns evenly. Add the chopped Thyme leaves and continue stirring for a few minutes. Never reduce the heat or the meat will boil in its own juices, you want it to caramelize well. Remove the meat , retain the oil in the sauté pan.
2. Now add the sliced onions, pour more oil of required, toss well to coat the onions with oil, reduce the heat to a simmer, season with salt and add the sugar, cover the pan and cook on low stirring occasionally to caramelize the onions. Do this for about 10-mins. Keep aside once done. OR use 5-tbsp. of onion compote.
3. Pour a little oil in the pan add the garlic, red chilli and bay leaf, fry on medium heat for a minute, add the mushrooms, turn up the heat and stir fry until well browned.
4. Now add the onions and meat, mix well, add the red wine, reduce by half, then add the puree, chicken stock, sauces, salt and pepper, cover and cook for about 20 mins until the meat is tender, cook uncovered to reduce the liquid and thicken the mix for a few mins. Once done discard the chilli and bay leaf.
5. Pour the filling into the pastry pan, press down with a spoon spreading well, cover with the top half of the pastry shell, crimp the edges, poke a few holes all over the top for steam to escape, give the top a egg wash and bake in preheated oven at 400F for 30-mins.