You cant beat this rich, meaty and delicious homemade steak pie, filled with slow cooked beef and potatoes it's the ultimate comfort food.
No it doesn’t come with a couple of horns sticking out like your Desperate Dan classic, but it’s still a damn good meat and potato pie.
After eating this, can you believe that Chris (with a large smile on his face) actually said these words: "I love you more when you make me pie". Putting aside the tongue-in-cheek emotional blackmail, I’ve just got to say yum and double yum.
This is no light-weight ‘pastry lid’ pie.
This is pastry base, pastry sides and pastry topping. I use ready-made shortcrust pastry for this recipe (I find the ready-made stuff to be almost as good as homemade, so I only make it myself when I’ve got plenty of time).
First soften some onions in a pan with a little oil:
What cut of beef is best for pies?
The best cuts for a slow cooked steak pie are chuck or silverside, or any braising beef you can get from your local supermarket will do just fine. You don't need to use expensive cuts of meat for this steak pie.
- Chuck steak (braising steak) – comes from the forequarter- Consisting of parts of the neck, shoulder blade, and upper arm.
- It’s a tough but very flavorful cut of meat. It has a lot of connective tissue, which needs long slow cooking to break down and become tender. Cut into bite-size chunks, or you can use bigger chunks and shred the beef into strips.
- Silverside (bottom round) – comes from the hindquarter – just above the back leg
- It’s a leaner, inexpensive cut of meat with little marbling. The lack of fat means it doesn’t have as much flavour as chuck steak, so make sure you use good quality stock to cook it in. It’s good for slow cooking, but must be cooked with moisture/liquid so doesn’t dry out and become tough.
Coat your steak in a seasoned flour (this will help thicken the sauce later):
Add it to the onions and brown, then add stock, seasoning, Worcestershire sauce and some chopped potato. I like to add half the potato at the beginning, as these potatoes will soften quite a lot during the cooking process and will help to thicken the mixture. Then I add more potato about half way through the cooking time, so there are some slightly firmer potatoes in there too.
Bring to the boil, then place in the oven at 150C/300F for an hour, before adding in those extra potatoes and cooking for a further hour.
Spoon the beef mixture into a pie dish lined with pastry (no need to blind baked first).
Place a pastry lid on top and pinch the edges of the pastry for a decorative crust.
Brush with egg wash and place in the oven for 30-35 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown.
So delicious for a winter dinner!
What do you serve with steak pie?
This meat and potato pie is almost a meal in itself so you dont need loads of sides. I like to serve mine with:
- Green veg (hmmmm loving the those sprouts!!) and carrots.
- If we are feeling particularly hungry mashed potato.
- How about try it along with my super easy cauliflower cheese.
- Some pickled cabbage
- Simple Butter Pepper Carrots
- Chris likes cauliflower and broccoli as "its the perfect veg for soaking up the gravy" < thats the extra gravy i have to make 🙂
Can you freeze a steak pie
Yes, you can make the whole pie and cook it, then cool, cover and freeze it. Defrost in the refrigerator until fully defrosted, then reheat in the oven at 150C/300F, covered in foil for 30-40 minutes until piping hot throughout. Remove the foil for the last few minutes.
Can I make a gluten free Steak Pie?
Yes! With a few adjustments:
Replace the flour with plain (all purpose) gluten free flour blend.
For the pastry - you can use gluten free shortcrust pastry, but I find the brands I've tried to shrink and go very hard. I'd recommend using a gluten free puff pastry. Jus-Rol do a good one. You can use this for the base and the top.
Use gluten free beef stock (knorr do good gluten free beef stock cubes)
Make sure the Worcestershire sauce is a gluten free version (usually is but it's best to check).
Can I make the meat pie filling in the slow cooker?
Yes, at the end of stage 6 - after bringing it to the boil, add all of the potatoes, transfer to the slow cooked and cook for 3-4 hours on high or 5-6 hours on low (skipping step 7).
I'd like some gravy with that steak pie!
If you like, you can add approx 500ml (2 cups) extra of stock when cooking the filling. Then use a slotted spoon to transfer the filling to the pastry-lined dish. The sauce that's left in the pan will be your gravy. Cover and then reheat it just before serving.
I like this pie to have a thick filling that just about holds it shape when you cut into it. If you like your pie more saucy, then just add an extra cup or two of stock to the beef when you cook it.
***If you’ve tried my steak pie recipe then please rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing your thoughts and add-ons to my recipes!***
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The Steak Pie Recipe
Ingredients
Pie Filling:
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large brown onion - peeled and chopped
- 1.1 lb (500g) braising beef - chopped into bite-sized chunks
- 1 tbsp plain/all-purpose flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 2.5 cups (600ml) hot beef stock - (water plus 2 stock cubes is fine)
- 2 large potatoes - peeled and chopped (about 300g/10.5oz each)
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
Also:
- 1 egg - lightly whisked
- 2 x11oz (320g) packs of ready-rolled shortcrust pastry
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 150C/300F
- Heat the oil in an oven-proof casserole dish and add in the onions. Cook on a medium-low heat for 5 minutes.
- Place the beef in a bowl and mix it with the flour, salt and pepper.
- Place it in the pan with the onions and cook on medium for about 5 minutes – until the meat is sealed and slightly browned all over. Give it a stir every so often so the meat doesn’t stick.
- Add the beef stock and half of the potatoes.
- Add in the Worcestershire sauce and salt and pepper. Bring to the boil, put a lid on the pan and place in the oven for 1 hour.
- After an hour take out of the oven, give it a stir and add the rest of the potatoes. Add a splash of hot stock or boiled water if the meat is starting to look too dry. Put back in the oven and cook for an hour.
- Take out of the oven and turn the oven up to 200C/400F. Remove the lid and give everything a gently stir. Leave to cool slightly for 5 minutes before assembling the pie.
- Take a 25cm diameter circular pie dish, brush the rim of the dish with a little of the whisked egg.
- Line the dish with pastry, so it overhangs the edge of the dish slightly.
- Spoon the pie mix into the dish and top the pie with pastry.
- Crimp the edges of the pastry by pinching it all the way round. (see picture above for how the crimp should look)
- Cut off any excess pastry and brush the top of the pie all over with the egg wash. If you have any little holes in the top of the pie, you can use the excess pastry to make a couple of little leaves to cover it up. Eggwash the leaves too.
- Use a knife to pierce a couple of holes in the centre of the pie – this is to allow any steam to escape.
- Place the pie in the oven for 25-35 minutes until golden brown.
- Serve with mashed potato green veg and carrots.
Video
✎ Notes
Can I make it ahead?
Yes, you can make the whole pie and cook it, then cool, cover and freeze it. Defrost in the referator until fully defrosted, then reheat in the oven at 150C/300F, covered in foil for 30-40 minutes until piping hot throughout. Remove the foil for the last few minutes. .Can I make it gluten free?
Yes! With a few adjustments: Replace the flour with plain (all purpose) gluten free flour blend. For the pastry - you can use gluten free shortcrust pastry, but I find the brands I've tried to shrink and go very hard. I'd recommend using a gluten free puff pastry. Jus-Rol do a good one. You can use this for the base and the top. Use gluten free beef stock (knorr do good gluten free beef stock cubes) Make sure the Worcestershire sauce is a gluten free version (usually is but it's best to check). .Can I make the filling in the slow cooker?
Yes, at the end of stage 6 - after bringing it to the boil, add all of the potatoes, transfer to the slow cooked and cook for 3-4 hours on high or 5-6 hours on low (skipping step 7). .I'd like some gravy with that pie!
If you like, you can add approx 500ml (2 cups) extra of stock when cooking the filling. Then use a slotted spoon to transfer the filling to the pastry-lined dish. The sauce that's left in the pan will be your gravy. Cover and then reheat it just before serving. . Nutritional Information is per serving ( based on 4 very hungry people).Nutrition
This post was first published in January 2015. Updated in October 2018 with new photos, tips and recipe video. Updated in Sept 2019 with new hints, tips and for housekeeping.
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Eric B says
I make this pie for my wife, my daughter & son, their partners and my four grandsons and they all say it is the best pie they have ever tasted. Praise indeed for a fantastic recipe. Many thanks.
Nikki says
Hi
I would like to make this delicious looking pie but don’t want potatoes. Can I just omit potato?
Thank you so much
Nikki