How to make the perfect winter meat pie

Claridge’s chef Chris Ark goes for a bit of Australian nostalgia this week and explores the art of one of the world’s best (and favourite) foods, the meat pie. Whether it be at the footy with some mates, at home with your loved ones or even driving down the highway, the meat pie never fails to satisfy.

Nothing can make an Aussie more home sick than mentioning one of our favorite pleasures, tucking into a succulent pie (with tomato sauce of course).

This weeks feature I will be sharing a favourite recipe using some English ale to give the pie a good old kick along. This pie doesn’t have the pastry base but it’s a quick and simple pie that always delivers.

We will mix things up with a tasty pie for dessert to empress and share with your mates. The pie is a great way to feed a house full of hungry tummies and with a few good scoops of mash you will be on a real winner. Large pie dishes cost pennies from kitchen shops or pick one up from an antiques shop for a touch of class.

Pies have been baked for centuries in this country along with the humble pasty, (I have devoured a number of those bad boys while surfing in Devon but nothing beats the simple steak pie in my eyes). Get out the dead horse (tomato sauce), get some friends around and enjoy your very own home-cooked pie. Happy cooking!

Chris’s recipe for the good old steak and ale pie:

What you need:
1kg of good quality braising steak, chuck is the way to go. Ask your butcher to dice it for you
½ cup of plain flour for dusting the pieces of meat
Vegetable oil for pan-frying
1 medium onion diced
4 sprigs of thyme
3 bay leaves
Salt and cracked black pepper
250ml of your favourite ale (then drink the left overs!)
1ltr of good quality beef stock from major supermarkets
2 large tomatoes finely diced
250g of ready –rolled short crust pastry
2 eggs for brushing on the pastry

What to do:
Divide the diced meat into three batches and season with salt and pepper.
In a clean food storage bag add the first batch of meat and some flour and shake the meat and flour until all the meat is nicely dusted.
Repeat with the remain two batches.
Next we must braise the meat and create a rich tasty beef stew for the pie filling.
Take a large stew pot and heat and with the oil and brown the meat in the three batches so each piece is nicely browned all over. Remove the meat and place on a plate on the side.
Add the diced onion and herbs to the pan and lightly fry until the ingredients become aromatic.
Add the meat back to the pan and increase the heat. Add the ale and allow the ale to reduce to a syrup consistency. Then add the stock and tomatoes and reduce the heat to a very slow simmer for 2 hours or untilthe meat is soft and a nice saucy consistency is achieved.
Add more black pepper if you want to spice it up a little.
Turn on the oven to 180 degrees.
Transfer the beef stew to the pie dish and cover with the rolled out pastry and slice two small holes in the top.
Pinch the edges to the pie dish to create a perfect seal.
Brush the pastry with the egg wash and repeat twice so a golden crust will form when baked.
Bake in the oven for 30 minutes but be sure to check the pastry does not brown too much. Once the pastry is nice and golden, remove the pie from the oven and allow it to cool for 5 minutes.
Slice the pie with a large serving spoon and scoop out a portion and serve with buttery mash.