Steak and Ale Pie

Filling

• braising steak1 kg
• plain flour3 tbsp
• sunflower oil2 tbsp
• onions2
• carrots2
• garlic cloves2
• dark ale500 ml
• beef stock300 ml
• Worcestershire sauce1 tbsp
• dark brown sugar1 tsp
• thyme4 sprigs
• bay leaves2
• salt
• black pepper

Pastry

• ready-rolled all-butter puff pastry375 g
• eggs1

Filling

1. 01

   Heat the oven to 160°C. Cut the braising steak into 4 cm chunks and toss with the flour, a teaspoon of salt and plenty of pepper. Heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole and brown the meat in three batches over a high heat, leaving each piece to form a crust before turning it. A crowded pan steams the beef grey and there is no way to get that colour back later.

2. 02

   Slice the onions and carrots and chop the garlic. Lift the beef out, lower the heat and cook the onions and carrots in the fat for 10 minutes, until the onions are soft and browning at the edges. Add the garlic for 1 minute.

3. 03

   Pour in the ale, scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the casserole and boil for 3 to 4 minutes to cook off some of the alcohol.

4. 04

   Return the beef with the stock, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, thyme and bay leaves. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook in the oven for 2 hours, until a piece of beef falls apart against the side of a spoon.

5. 05

   Take off the lid and simmer on the hob for about 10 minutes, until the sauce is glossy and there is no thin liquid left in the pan. Remove the thyme stalks and bay, taste for salt, then tip the filling into a wide shallow dish and leave to cool for 1 hour, then chill until cold, or for up to 2 days.

Pastry

6. 06

   Heat the oven to 200°C with a baking tray inside. Spoon the cold filling into a 1.5 litre pie dish, heaping it slightly in the middle so the pastry has something to sit on.

7. 07

   Beat the egg and brush the rim of the dish with it. Unroll the pastry over the top, press it down onto the rim, trim the overhang back to about 1 cm and crimp it with a fork or your thumb.

8. 08

   Cut two slits in the centre for steam and brush the whole lid with egg, avoiding the cut edges, which will not rise if they are glued together.

9. 09

   Bake on the hot tray for 30 to 35 minutes, until the pastry has risen and is deep gold all over and the gravy is bubbling through the slits. Rest for 5 minutes before cutting in.