Every now and then I get a massive unstoppable craving for pie that can be solved by nothing but a large helping of, well, pie. So when I saw this recipe on Just Nice Stuff  I just couldn’t resist trying it out. Like Tassy says, it’s not the most beautiful pie in the world (hence the rather odd pic with this one) and it is quite a long process to make, but it’s delicious and very very worth it.

I made this pie for a Sunday lunch with friends and served it with mashed potatoes and honey glazed carrots. Make sure to start at least three hours before you want to eat.

Steak and mushroom pie

For the crust

400g flour
250g butter, chilled and cut into cubes
1 teaspoon of salt
1 – 2 eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons of cold water

For the filling

800g lean casserole steak, diced
2 onions, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
150ml red wine
2 teaspoons of Worcester sauce
1 bay leaf
500ml beef stock
250g sliced mushrooms
25 butter

Heat the oven to 150 C.

Mix together the salt and flour, rub in the butter until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add one egg and the water and mix together with a knife until it comes together in a ball. If it doesn’t all come together add a little more egg at a time until it does come together. Any leftover egg can be used to brush the top. Wrap the pastry in clingfilm and pop in the fridge.

Now make the filling. Brown the beef in a large frying pan and then add to a large baking or casserole dish. Add the onions and garlic to the original frying pan and cook over a medium heat until the onions soften. Add the red wine and Worcester sauce and bring to the boil. Continue to boil until you can no longer smell the alcohol and the wine has reduced a little. Pour over the beef. Then add the stock and the bay leaf. Season well with salt and pepper. If your dish has a lid, put this on. If not, cover with foil. Put in the oven and cook for an hour and a half.

In the meantime cook the mushrooms in butter. Add the mushrooms to the beef, re-cover and cook for a further half an hour.

Divide your pastry into sections. 2/3 for the base of the pie, 1/3 for the top. Lightly flour a large chopping board or even your kitchen counter (of course make sure it is very clean before you do this) and roll out the section for the base to about 5mm thick. Press into a large pie dish.

Remove the beef from the oven, take out the bay leaf and pour into the prepared pie dish. Turn the oven up to 200 C. Roll out the remaining pastry and lay over the top of the dish to make the lid. Crimp the edges to seal the pie. If you have any remaining egg, brush this over the top of the lid. You could also do this with a little milk. It’s not essential though.

Bake the pie for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Serves 6 – 8

The remains of the day