A comforting traditional steak pie recipe that packs flavour
This is Grandma G’s steak pie recipe… it’s to die for!
PREP TIME: 10 mins
COOKING TIME: 2 – 3 hrs – slow cooking so no stress
DIFFICULTY: easy
IDEAL FOR: one-pot meal, family, crowd-pleaser
BUDGET: £
WINE PAIRING TIP: Jonathan (Michael Sutton’s Cellar) gave me a couple of nice inexpensive wines to pair up with Grand G’s steak pie this week.
The one I went for was the Domaine du Mage (£8.50) which is a Merlot & Syrah -soft, easy drinking with plenty of fruit.
The other option is a Malbec Postales Del Fin Del Mundo (£11) with more tannins this rich flavoursome red is perfect for a beef pie.
Grandma G’s steak pie for British Pie Week
Or it might be?…
No it’s not.
Due to Covid the annual British Pie Week, normally the first week in March has just moved the celebration to 15th September 2021.
Well, I’m going to celebrate the mighty pie, regardless.
Needless pie facts…
Apparently, around 75% of people enjoy a pie at least once a month.
The fastest time to eat three mince pies is 52.21 secs.
This ‘great feat’ was achieved by Leah Shutkever (UK) in London in 2019.
The world’s largest meat pie comes in at a whopping 10,540 kg!
And was made by 17 catering students from Stratford-upon-Avon College in 1998.
It measured 9.75 x 2.32 m and 0.61 m deep.
The pie was made from:
- 5,500 kg (12,125 lb) of diced British braising beef
- 1,400 kg (3,086 lb) of diced ox kidney
- 750 kg (1,653 lb) of sliced mushrooms
- 750 kg (1,653 lb) of sliced onions
- 220 kg (485 lb) of Worcester sauce
- 200 kg (441 lb) of English mustard
- 110 kg (243 lb) of herbs and seasoning
- 900 kg (1,984 lb) of beef stock
- 810 kg (1,786 lb) of best bitter
- 840 kg (1,852 lb) of thickenings
- 816.69 kg (1,800 lb) of pastry was laid on top of the pie.
The most expensive pie was a wallet destroying £8,195 or £1,024 per slice in 2005.
The pie’s ingredients included:
- £500 worth of Japanese wagyu beef fillet
- Chinese matsutake mushrooms (£500/kg
- French Bluefoot mushrooms at £200/kg
- Gravy made from made two bottles of vintage 1982 Chateau Mouton Rothschild wine at £1000/ea
- Pastry topped with edible gold leaf costing £100/sheet.
So, there you have it.
Some totally needless, useless pie facts you can put in your back pocket for your first pint down at the pub, post-Lockdown III – #conversationstarter
You’re welcome 😊
Until that glorious day
When the pubs re-open, get stuck in this week and whip up a British favourite.
If you want super simple, then just click through to the chicken & ham filo topped pie.
If you’re after a bit of a challenge (not that much of a challenge really, I was able to make it!).
Then head over to one of our family favourites, curry pie – seriously good!
Not sure about making pastry?
I have tips from Grandma Gunstone, here.
Ever wondered when to blind bake and when not to?
It’s simple, blind baking is necessary when:
- You’re filling is unbaked.
- You don’t have to blind bake for a meat pie but you could do a partial blind bake to avoid a soggy bottom.
Personally, our family doesn’t do blind baking for meat pies… we kind of like the juices being soaked into the pastry at the bottom.
This week, I decided to go for a traditional steak pie.
A recipe handed down to me by Grandma Gunstone.
It’s super easy but the key is patience.
You need to slow-cook the beef chuck… that’s where the magic lies.
And it’s a taste sensation!
What’s your favourite pie? Leave a comment…
Grandma G’s steak pie
Equipment
- Pie dish
Ingredients
- 1 kg beef chuck, diced
- plain flour to dust the chuck with
- sea salt and cracked pepper
- 500 ml beef stock (or enough to cover the beef)
Shortcrust pastry
- 6 tbsp plain flour
- 3 oz butter, cubed
- pich of salt
- water
- 1 egg, beaten for pie lid wash
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 150 C/130 C fan.
- Pat your diced chuck with a paper towels and place in a bowl.Add 2 – 3 tablespoons of plain flour, loads of cracked pepper and some sea salt and toss the beef chuck so they are lightly covered.
- In a casserole dish, on medium heat, add a tablespoon of oil and add the chuck to brown the meat (you may need to do it in batches so as not to overcrowd the dish). This should take approx. 10 mins.
- Once all the meat is browned off, add it all back into the casserole dish and pout in your beef stock. Make sure it covers the beef so you may need to add a little more stock of water.Using a wooden spoon, scrape the bottom of the casserole dish to get off all the lovely brown sticky stuff that may have caught the bottom when browning the meat off. This gives flavour.Add some more cracked pepper (if you want it peppery).Bring to the boil, then pop the lid on, and transfer to the oven for 3 hrs or until your chuck is tender.
- Once done, take out of the oven and let cool for an hour or longer (Grandma G does the cooking the day before then assembles the pit the next day… this does give it time to deepen in flavour).
- Once cooled, take your pastry and assembled your pie (we don't blind bake the base, but feel free to).Egg wash the lid and pop into the oven for
Shortcrust pastry
- In a mixer (or use a bowl with cold hands to mix), put the flour and chilled cubed butter and slowly mix until crumb-like, adding a little water until you get a pastry texture (don't add too much).
- Take the pastry and form it into a ball, then place covered in the fridge for approx 1hr.
Pie assembly
- Pre-heat oven to 200 C fan / 220 C.
- After 1 hr (or when chilled), on a flat work surface dusted with plain flour, divide the pastry into 2/3rds for the casing and the final 3rd is the lid.Roll out thinly your 2/3rds pastry to the size of the pie dish (approx 20 cm dish). Then roll out your lid.
- Gently lay your pastry casing into the pie dish and push it into the sides.*If you prefer, blind bake the pastry now. We don't as we enjoy the base soaking up the pie juices.
- Add the cooled beef mix and lay the lid on top and pinch the pastry all the way around to close it. Make a small incision in the middle so steam can escape, then white wash with a beaten egg.
- Bake for 30 mins or until golden.
- Serve.
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Leave a Comment
That looks like such a hearty steak pie! I love a homemade pie; it’s one of my favourite comfort foods. I like it with creamy mash and steamed veg – not forgetting the gravy.
I agree they’re to best. And easier to make than you think. 🙂