Easy Steak Pie
Very tender meat in a gravy that is so full of flavour with lovely flaky puff pastry on the top.
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1kg diced stewing steak
- 2 onions roughly chopped
- 3 tbsp plain flour
- 1 tbsp tomato ketchup
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 beef stock cubes or pots mixed with 600ml boiling water
- 375g sheet of ready-rolled puff pastry
- 1 egg yolk beaten
Instructions
- To make the filling (see Notes to make ahead or freeze), heat the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Heat half the oil in a large casserole over a high heat, brown the meat really well in 2 to 3 batches, then set aside. Add the onions with the rest of the oil, then cook on a low heat for 5 minutes until coloured.
- Scatter over the flour, stirring until the flour turns brown. Tip the meat and any juices back into the pan along with the ketchup, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and give it all a good stir. Pour over the stock and bring to a simmer then cover with a lid and put it in the oven for about 2 to 2.5 hours (see Tips), until the meat is tender.
- To make the pie, heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Put the filling into a suitable rimmed pie dish (mine is 15cm x 24cm) and brush the rim of the dish with some of the beaten egg yolk. Unroll the pastry, drape over the dish and use a knife to trim and press the edges against the side of the dish. Re-roll your trimmings to make a decoration if you like. Brush the pie heavily with the rest of the beaten egg yolk and make a few little slits in the centre of the pie and bake for 40 minutes until golden. Leave to stand for a few minutes before serving.
Notes
- Make ahead and freeze - the filling can be made up to 3 days ahead and chilled, or frozen for up to three months. If freezing, defrost thoroughly and then continue with the last step of the instructions.
- Check if the meat is tender enough after 2 hours. You might need to put it back in for another 30 minutes.
- You can easily adapt the recipe for this easy steak pie if you're cooking for less people. The leftover pastry could be used for another pie recipe or half our sausage rolls recipe!