Steak and Guinness Pie

I didn't know that 17 March was St Patrick's Day, when I decided to make this pie. St Patrick, of course, is the Patron Saint of Ireland, land of Guiness Stout, a main feature of this pie.

Before starting out, I googled a few Steak/Beef pie recipes, but in the end, I settled for Jamie Oliver's version, from his book "Happy Days with the Naked Chef".

Not all the ingredients are easily available here, though, so I made do with some substitutions. Also, this amount is almost double the recipe because whenever I make pie, I usually make enough to keep for another meal within the week. The time going into pie-making must be worth it, don't you think so? ;P

INGREDIENTS:

1kg Beef steak (I bought 2 x 500g of frozen beef cubes from NTUC, and then I sliced each cube into half)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Flour enough to coat beef

Olive oil for frying

3 medium Onions, peeled and roughly chopped

2 medium Carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch-pieces

7 sticks Celery, washed and cut into 1/2 inch-pieces

1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch-pieces

Liberal dashes of dried oregano, thyme and 3 pieces of bay leaves

1L Guiness Stout (I bought 2 x 500ml can)

5 very large tomatoes, skin removed and cut into 8 pieces each (Click here to learn a painless way to skin tomatoes)

1 tsp tomato paste

METHOD:

Because the stewing process took at least 2 hours, I used an induction cooker. I didn't want to use the thermal pot for this stew because the thermal pot won't be able to reduce the stout into the thick gravy I needed.

1. Season the beef pieces with salt and ground black pepper. Sprinkle in the flour and toss until coated. Heat olive oil in the pot and fry meat in batches. The meat need not be cooked through, but the surface has to be sealed in. This will ensure that the meat will be juicy and tender during the stewing process.

2. After the last batch of meat is done, return all the meat back into pot and add the onion. After one minute of stir-frying, add the carrots, sweet potatos, celery and liberally add in the herbs. Fry for a further 4 minutes and then add Guinness and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then simmer uncovered for 2.5 hours or until meat is really tender, and the sauce is thick. Add salt and pepper if needed at this point.

3. Jaime Oliver advise that at this point, the stew could be served as a stew with mash potato, or to leave it for 5 days in the fridge to improve its flavour. For me, I needed the stew cooled to put it into my pie. =)

4. I used my Yogurt Pie Crust recipe (doubling the amount) for making the pie crust, but it's mostly because it's not easy to get premade pie crust; use premade if you are able to find, and flaky pie crust ones are best. I did consider using frozen prata for the cover, but at the time, I had made more than enough crust, so I didn't need to do so... perhaps I'll half the amount the next time I make it and use the flaky prata dough for the cover. =)

5. Brush a beaten egg over the pie and poke a few holes in the pie crust for vents. Bake the pie in the oven at 180 deg C, for about 30 minutes.

The pie! Oh the pie is flavourful - mildly bitter from the stout, but the taste is intense. The pastry helps provide that delicious mouth-feel of crumbly butteriness with the chewiness of biting into tender steak. Because the beef isn't cut too small, you'll literally get to chew on steak. Yum!

Chicken Pie

One of our favourite meals is the humble Chicken Pie. There's something just wonderful cutting into a pie, releasing that delectable aroma of whatever's underneath the pie crust.

Chicken Pies also make great gifts or potluck items because they travel well, and disposable pie tins ensures that you don't need to wait around to collect the serving dish. *winks*

This pie crust recipe comes via Leelee Hugbear. It's very special because of the inclusion of yoghurt, which gives the crust a lovely aroma and a non-oily feel.

Pie Art? Nah, just leftover pie crust, cookie cutters, and a whole lot of imagination! *hee*

A Mini Version

Chicken Pie (with Yogurt Pie Crust)

Pastry for 9" Pie
Ingredients:
200g butter
250g plain flour
1 tsp sugar
1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp salt
110g plain yoghurt

Method:
1. Put all the ingredients into the mixing bowl except yoghurt, and mix to a crumble.
2. Add in yoghurt and mix to a dough.
3. Refrigerate dough for at least 30 mins to harden.

Chicken Pie Filling
Ingredients:
350g diced potatoes
1 cup water (2 half cups)
1/2 tsp salt
1 big onion, diced
50g frozen mixed vegetable
1 can of Button mushrooms, sliced
2 chicken fillets, diced
1 tbsp corn starch mixed with 2 tbsp water
1 tsp oregano flakes
1 tsp basil flakes
1 hard-boiled egg, sliced, or 4 hard-boiled quails' eggs, halved, or 8 hard-boiled quail's eggs, whole

Method:
1. Heat abt 2 tbsp of oil and fry potatoes with 1/2 cup of water and salt until soft, then set it aside.
2. In a clean wok, heat 2 tbsp oil and fry the onion until transparent.
3. Add in the mixed vegetable, mushroom and chicken. Fry for a while to break up chicken.
4. Add in the potatoes.
5. Add in another 1/2 cup of water and simmer for about 5 mins.
6. Add in the cornstarch and stir to thicken mixture.
7. Add in the basil and oregano. Stir and then set aside for later use.

Assembling the Chicken Pie
1. Split the pie dough into half, if making the large pie, or divide the dough into smaller amounts required. Keep the dough which is not in use in the refrigerator.
2. Roll out the pie dough between baking paper until the size is large enough to cover the bottom and sides of a pie dish. Don't worry if there is a tear; fix it by pressing leftover dough into the tear. Use a fork and poke some holes into the pie base so that the pie can breathe. You wouldn't want your pie to explode! *winks*
3. Put 1/2 of the filling on top of the pie base. Arrange the eggs evenly on the fillings and then cover the eggs with the rest of the fillings.
4. Roll out another pie dough to cover the top. Crimp the sides of the pie to seal the top crust with the sides of the base dough. Decorate the pie with leftover pie dough, if any.
5. Poke some holes on the top crust with a fork to allow the steam in the pie to escape. At this point, you can refrigerate or even freeze the pie until needed. If freezing, ensure that the pie is well wrapped to prevent freezer burns. Just thaw the frozen pie in the fridge until required.
6. Before baking, give the top crust an egg wash to ensure a lovely warm browned crust. Brush the pie with 1 beaten egg.
7. Bake the pie in a preheated oven at 180 deg C for 30 mins.

Enjoy!