English Beef Pie Recipe

The gang is heading out to watch football on a cold, dreary day today so I wanted to send them off filled with some good comfort food. This dish did the trick.

I made the pie dough in advance. It is so much easier if you have the dough prepared in ahead of time.

Dice one large onion.


And four carrots.


Melt a bit of bacon grease in some olive oil in a heavy pot.


Dice up four anchovies.


Saute' them in the oil.


These impart no fishy taste at all but rather caramelize and give your dish a deep beefy flavor.


Saute' the onions in the oil until they become transparent.


Add the carrots.


Sprinkle in some freshly cracked pepper.


And a few tablespoons of granulated garlic. You can use fresh garlic but when I want a more concentrated flavor throughout a dish, I use granulated garlic.


Add several tablespoons of dried thyme.


Then add two teaspoons of salt
.

Add two pounds of ground beef and begin browning it.


After the beef browns add about 1/3 cup of flour. Stir it in and cook it for a few minutes.


Add four cups of beef stock.


And four tablespoons of tomato paste.


Add a few tablespoons of Maggi.


And a couple tablespoons of Kitchen Bouquet.


Cut four potatoes into small dice.


Then stir in some diced fresh parsley. Set the mixture aside to cool.


Roll the dough into a large rectangle.


Fit it into a heavy 12 X 9 pan.


Roll out more dough and place on top and crimp around the edges.


Brush the top with cream. Bake this in a 400 degree oven until nice and golden. Mine took about 1 hour and 30 minutes. The juice should be bubbling around the edges.



While the pie is baking make the gravy. Dice up a large bowl of carrots, celery, onions and any root vegetables you have on hand. I used turnips and parsnips.


Put them in a heavy pot with a few tablespoons of olive oil. Sprinkle some cracked pepper and salt over them.


Sprinkle some dried thyme in too.


Cook this over medium high heat stirring occasionally. They should create a nice brown crust on the pan and the vegetables will become golden brown. This is where all the flavor comes from.


Sprinkle about a quarter cup of flour over the veggies and stir and cook for a couple minutes.


Stir in a cup of red wine and scrape up the crust from the bottom of the pan.


Add about 6 cups of beef stock.


Let this simmer until thickened then drain off the gravy and discard the vegetables.


Here is the pie fresh out of the oven.



Make some mashed potatoes. I always bake my potatoes instead of boiling them. This gives the mashed potatoes a rich baked potato flavor. Boiling them causes them to lose flavor.


While the potatoes bake I melt some butter with about four tablespoons of cream cheese, 2-3 cups of whole milk and salt and pepper.


Slice the baked potatoes in half and scoop out the potato into the bowl with the butter and milk.


Mash them to the desired consistency.


Make some buttered peas. As you can see I forgot to take that pic.


You can see the steam rising from the plate. A comfort food feast!

Comments

Anonymous said…
The restaurant that delivers our food to my job makes a really good beef pie now and again, so I´ve actually stopped doing it myself :-)

But I have never thought of baking the potatoes before mashing them. Must try that! and I have never had any cheese in it either, must try that too!

Have a great day now!
Christer.
What perfect food to fill up a football fan! Today the CFL western and eastern finals are being played. Next Sunday is the Grey Cup -- here in Edmonton!
Julie Ferguson said…
OMG, that looks so good and easy. I didn't think of baking my potatoes before mashing them, but I will give that a try.
Mother Moon said…
what a wonderful meal of a cool day indoors. I have to ask though in making your gravy please tell me you dont just discard the vegetables... They look so good I think I may drain the gravy off yet the veggies look like they would be so good to eat also.

Will have to try mashing baked potatoes. I have had baked potatoe soup and love it... thanks again for a great recipe
brokenteepee said…
Stick to your ribs food for sure.
That kitchen bouquet made me think of my mother. She used it all the time....
BelladonnasJoy said…
What a perfect cool weather meal. I love that pitcher of gravy that I often see with your recipes. My hubby and I love gravy. I don't have any recipes for pasty that I like, so I usually buy mine. I know that's slack. I was thinking about a meat pie for tonight's supper. This looks like the best choice. Thanks again for such a wonderful dinner recipe, again!!
Rosemary said…
You have made me so hungry. This looks so good will be trying this meat pie.
AkasaWolfSong said…
Mmmmm...looks delish! This is very similar to Pasties or Cornish Pasties which I grew up with and still make.
We are going to be so ready for this fabulous meat pie after so much turkey. I can not wait to make it. I'm thinking about making the meat filling and freezing it for later. Could there really be anything better than Meat Pie, Mashed Potatoes and Gray and Peas.

I agree 100% on the baking the potatoes. It makes all the difference in the world. Plus you can make Potato Skins from the skins.
Guillaume said…
looks hearty and delicious, perfect for a cold Sunday night.
It is not particularly cool today, rather, overcast and windy. The beef pie, baked/mashed potatoes and English peas are just the ticket.

Thank you and blessings.

xoxo to "Teddy Red Fluffs".
i just sent you an email...we are on the same page today....

making pot roast , gravy, and i am making your mashed potatoes. i always boil them. not today. i'll bake 'em. it is COLD and rainy here today...at last :-)

cozy comfort tonight around woodstove...

we are enjoying all the goodies you sent...i am going to try a peppermint PEEP in my hot chocolate
:-)

kary and teddy
xxx
Mark Willis said…
It's good to find someone else who likes PROPER gravy! None of that wishy-washy thin stuff than all the TV chefs dish up these days!
Ann said…
When you do comfort food you do it up right. That looks delicious. Well except for the peas, I'm not a fan :)
Suzie said…
Ooooh, you are right. .major comfort food! I'm as bad as Pavlov's dogs. .I see your gorgeous meals and start salivating! Not a pretty sight.

Funny that you should be using your anchovies today, because a while back I mentioned to my hubby that there were anchovies in his treasured A-1 Sauce. He didn't believe me. So today, when we were at the market, he picks up a bottle, and proudly tells me that anchovies are not listed on the label, and he was right! They have removed them from their ingredients!
I told him that they used to have anchovies in their recipe, and he still didn't believe me, so I grabbed a bottle of Lea & Perrins Steak Sauce, and sure enough. .there they were! And I grabbed another brand. .can't remember which one it was now, but it too still had anchovies in the ingredients. So if your A-1 isn't enhancing your steak like it used to, you know why!
Lois said…
Imagine my excitement when I went to my sad little blog and found your comments! :) I've blogged with xanga for years and years, and have had a slow start with Blogger. It's my need to make it pretty, and not knowing how. I need a Tech-guy. I have to get ready for work, but will take my Tortiere recipe with me and I'll stick it on my sad blog while I'm at work. Thanks again! I'm so enjoying your site. Lois
Good tip about anchovies - I'll try that.

Thanks, Irene x
Lois said…
Oh and your pie looks wonderful!!! It's making me very hungry. Peri-menopause is taking away my sweet tooth, but yes I do love buttertarts. Haven't ever made them, though. Where did you live in Canada?
This is the best pie ever. I have tried making this and it was very easy. The recipe was exact so I did not have to adjust the taste. Kudos to you and thank you so much!