Recipes
Uk

Steak & Ale Pie

A hearty British pie with tender beef in rich ale gravy.

Ingredients

  • 800g stewing beef, diced
  • 2 tbsp flour
  • 2 tbsp oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 carrots, chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 250ml ale
  • 300ml beef stock
  • 1 tbsp tomato purée
  • 2 tsp thyme or rosemary
  • 1 bay leaf
  • Salt & pepper
  • Ready-made puff pastry
  • 1 egg for brushing

Method

  1. 1

    Toss beef in flour, salt, and pepper. Brown in hot oil until caramelised

  2. 2

    Add onions, carrots, and garlic. Cook 10 minutes

  3. 3

    Pour in ale, scraping up browned bits

  4. 4

    Add stock, tomato purée, herbs, and bay leaf. Simmer 1.5-2 hours until tender

  5. 5

    Place stew in a pie dish. Top with pastry. Seal edges and cut a vent

  6. 6

    Brush with egg wash and bake at 200°C for 25-30 minutes until golden

Swaps & variations

  • Add mushrooms
  • Add Worcestershire sauce
  • Add smoked paprika
  • Make individual pies

Storing & freezing

Freeze filling separately for 3 months. Assemble with fresh pastry before baking.

Grow it yourself

  • Onions: Plant sets in spring. Water during dry spells
  • Carrots: Direct sow into sandy, fine soil. Thin seedlings early
  • Herbs: Rosemary and thyme grow well in pots and dry soils
  • Garlic: Plant cloves in autumn. Harvest midsummer
  • Carrot fly: fleece covers
  • Onion thrips: garlic spray
  • Companion plant rosemary with carrots to deter pests
  • Carrots: Pull young for sweetness or mature for stews
  • Onions: Harvest when tops flop over
  • Herbs: Pick before flowering for best oil content

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