Steak and Ale Pie
Preparation time: 2 hours, 30 minutes
Cooking time: 35 minutes
Serves: 6
Adapted from: Ainsley Harriott's Friends and Family Cookbook
This is an absolutely gorgeous dish; rich and warming for the winter months! Well worth the time.
Ingredients
- 25 g / 1oz plain flower
- 900 g / 2lb diced stewing or braising steak
- 5 tbsp sunflower oil
- 25 g / 1oz butter
- 225 g / 8oz small chestnut mushrooms
- 2 onions, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 300 ml / 10fl-oz beef stock
- 300 ml / 10fl-oz brown ale
- 1 tsp tomato purée
- leaves from 3 sprigs of thyme
- 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 500 g / 1lb-2oz packet chilled puff pastry
- 1 egg, beaten, to glaze
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Season the flour with salt and pepper, put into a bowl with the beef, and toss together well until all the peices are coated.
- Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a large, flameproof casserole, add half the beef and fry over a high heat until browned. Transfer to a plate and repeat with the rest of the beef. Set aside.
- Add half the butter and the mushrooms to the pan and fry briskly over a high heat for 2 minutes. Set aside with the beef. Add the rest of the oil and butter, the onions and sugar to the casserole, and cook over a medium-high heat for 20 minutes, stirring frequently until nicely browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Stir any remaining seasoned flour into the onions, followed by the beef stock, brown ale, tomato purée, thyme leaves and Worcestershire sauce and bring to the boil, stirring.
- Return the beef and mushrooms to the pan, season with salt and pepper, part-cover and simmer for 1½ hours until the beef is just tender and the sauce has reduced and thickened. Leave to go cold.
- Pre-heat the oven to 200°C / 400°F / Gas Mark 6.
- Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface and then put a 1.75litre / 3pint pie dish upside-down in the centre of it. Cut out a lid which is about 2.5cm / 1" larger than the dish, and then cut a small hole in the centre to let out the steam during cooking.
- Spoon the filling into the pie dish. Put the pastry lid on top of the filling, and push it against the pie dish to form a good seal.
- Brush the top of the pie with beaten egg and bake for 30-35 minutes until the top is golden and the filling is bubbling hot.