Make a traditional meat and onion pie that’s worth the effort – or use 500 g ready-made shortcrust pastry if you are short on time.
Meat and onion pie
Ingredients
- 2 carrots, diced
- 450 g beef mince
- 2 tbsp tomato sauce
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tsp Marmite or yeast extract
- 1 ½ tbsp plain flour
- ½ tsp salt
- Generous grind of black pepper
- For The Pastry:
- 300 g plain flour
- Pinch salt
- 75 g butter
- 75 g lard or vegetable fat
- 5-6 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp milk
Instructions
Dry fry the onion, carrots and beef together in a medium saucepan over a high heat until browned, then reduce the heat and add the tomato ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, Marmite, flour and seasoning. Stir well, pour over 150 ml water and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Allow to cool completely.
Make the pastry: Place the flour in a bowl with a pinch of salt. Cut the butter and vegetable fat into small pieces and rub between your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add 5 tbsp water and bring the mixture to a ball, adding a little more water if necessary. Chill for 30 minutes if possible.
Heat the oven to 200°C/gas 6. Dust a work surface with flour and roll out two thirds of the pastry to a square large enough to cover the base and sides of a 20 cm square, 4 cm deep cake tin. Add the cooled mince, then roll out the remaining pastry for the lid. Dampen the edge of the pastry then place pastry lid on top of the pie and press the edges well to seal. Use a fork to pierce the top several times and brush with milk. Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown.
Serve hot with mashed potatoes and peas. Freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost over night in the fridge then reheat thoroughly.
