Looking for a beef pie with a twist? This Chinese spiced beef pie recipe is just the thing for a hearty weekend lunch.
Or, if you want Chinese flavours but don’t fancy making your own pastry, try this gingery beef and mushroom pie with a puff-pastry top.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1kg good-quality stewing beef such as chuck steak
- 1½ tbsp Szechuan peppercorns
- 25g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
- 4 medium potatoes, cut into large cubes
- 4 star anise
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 4cm piece of fresh ginger, finely chopped
- 100ml light soy sauce
- 4 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 3 whole large red chillies
- 2 tbsp dark muscovado sugar
For the pastry
- 300g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
- 100g butter, cut into cubes
- 1 medium free-range egg, beaten, to glaze
- 2 tsp sesame seeds
Method
- Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a large flameproof casserole, then cook the onion and garlic over a medium heat for a few minutes until starting to soften. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Turn up the heat and add the remaining oil to the casserole. Brown the meat all over, in batches, over a high heat for a few minutes, then remove from the pan and set aside.
- Finely crush the Szechuan peppercorns in a pestle and mortar, then add the flour. Cook the spiced flour in the casserole for a few seconds. Return the meat and onions to the dish and toss everything together.
- Add the remaining ingredients to the casserole, then cover with 400ml water. Bring to a simmer, then cook, covered, over a very low heat for 1½ hours until the meat is tender and the sauce is thickened and glossy. Remove from the heat and cool.
- Meanwhile, make the pastry. Mix the flour with a good pinch of salt in a bowl, then add the butter. Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Slowly add ice-cold water, 1 tbsp at a time, stirring it in with a round-bladed knife, until the dough just sticks together. Turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly into a ball. Wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 15 minutes.
- Transfer the cooled filling to a 2 litre pie dish. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface until it is about 2.5cm larger than the pie dish. Put a pie funnel in the centre of the filling (it will support the pastry and stop it sinking and becoming soggy). Moisten the edges of the dish with a little water to help the pastry stick. Lay the pastry over the top of the dish, pressing down well on the edges to seal – don’t make a hole in the centre for the pie funnel just yet. Trim any excess pastry, then crimp the edges with a fork or between your thumb and forefinger. Wrap in cling film, then foil. Freeze.
- The day before you want to eat the pie, remove it from the freezer and defrost completely overnight in the fridge. Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan180°C/gas 6. Brush the pastry with beaten egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Make a hole in the centre of the pastry to reveal the pie funnel. Bake for 35-40 minutes until crisp, golden and piping hot.
Nutrition
- 709kcals Calories
- 26.3g fat (12g saturated) Fat
- 48.3g protein Protein
- 74.5g carbs (9.5g sugars) Carbs
- 5.6g salt Salt
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