Not Just a Minced Beef and Onion Pie

Do you ever feel the need to eat mashed potatoes - or is it just me?

Mash is nice at any time I think.  But in order to be fed properly you need something to go with it, so of course.....Pie springs to mind - well my mind anyway!

Scrummy yummy flaky puff pastry.  What's inside?  Minced beef, red wine, onions, peas, oregano, rosemary and a dollop of Colman's mustard.  

Print Recipe

To serve 2 you will need:

a glug of olive oil

1 large onion - finely chopped

small handful of finely diced pancetta - or you could use 2 rashers of streaky bacon

250g minced beef

150g minced pork

1/2 a tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves - very finely chopped

a pinch of dried oregano

1 nice fat tomato - skin removed and chopped

a good dollop (tablespoon and a bit) tomato puree (paste in the US)

170ml red wine

200ml beef stock

a splash of Worcestershire Sauce

about a tablespoon of Colman's English Mustard

a good handful of cooked peas - keep covered till you're ready to bake the pie

250g ready-made puff pastry

1 egg - lightly beaten with the tiniest amount of water added 

salt and black pepper to taste

How to do it:

Preheat the oven to 200C.

Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan.  Add the onion and pancetta or bacon and cook for a few minutes or until nice and soft.  

Add the beef, pork, rosemary and oregano to the pan and fry until starting to colour then stir in the tomato puree and the chopped tomato. 

Cook for a minute then pour in the red wine.  Simmer for a couple of minutes until the wine has almost gone, then add the stock along with the mustard and Worcestershire sauce.  Cook for about five more minutes, have a taste - add a little salt and some black pepper to taste.

Now you can spoon the mixture into a pie dish - add the cooked peas and stir through just before you are going to bake the pie or they'll loose their colour.

Roll out your puff pastry to about 5mm.  Brush the edge of the pie dish all the way round with a little of the egg.  Top the pie dish with the pastry and brush the top with more of the egg mixture. 

Nothing fancy to do here - just fold the pastry around the edge of the pie dish - tucking it around the edge of the dish.

Cook for about 25 minutes, until the pastry has risen and golden brown. 

Also just check that when you insert a knife into the center of the pie it is piping hot.

Serve straight away with a big dollop of mashed potatoes and Colman's mustard of course.