Steak and Ale Pie

It's British Pie Week so I asked my facebook pals to vote on which pie I should make for Mr.E and me this weekend. The resounding vote was for steak and ale over chicken and leek or squash and spinach. After a bit of research online and thinking about which ingredients I'd have available to me, I came up with this recipe. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients
2 tbls Oil, I use rice bran as it has no flavour
2 Red onions, sliced
3 Cloves garlic, finely chopped
800g Beef shank, fat trimmed and chopped
2 Carrots, peeled and diced
500ml Ale, I used Young's London Gold
600ml Beef stock
2 tbls Worcester sauce
3 Sprigs fresh thyme
salt and pepper
1 tbls Plain flour

Pastry
400g Plain flour
75g Unsalted butter
2 Eggs, beaten
1 tsp salt
dash of cold water

Method

• Heat the oil in a saucepan or casserole, add the onion and garlic, stir then cover and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from the pan
• Mix the flour with salt and pepper in a bowl, add the beef then toss to coat evenly
• Brown the meat in small batches, removing each from the pan once browned
• When the last batch of meat is removed, deglaze the pan with a little stock.
• Return the meat, onions and garlic to the pan, stir in the carrots and thyme sprigs then add the stock and ale.
• Bring to the boil and cook for 10 minutes before adding the Worcester sauce
• Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 1.5 hours
• Remove the thyme stalk and check the seasoning. Leave to rest for half an hour

• Combine the flour and salt in a bowl
• Rub in the butter until it looks like breadcrumbs
• add the beaten egg and a dash of cold water
• bring the mix together with your hands to form a soft springy dough
• Cover and refrigerate for 1 hr
• Divide into 2/3 and 1/3 then roll out.
• Use the larger portion to line a pie dish, pushing the dough into the edges
• Line with foil or baking parchment and add dried beans then bake for 15 minutes at 190C
• Remove the pie crust from the oven and fill with the beef mixture. Top with the remaining pastry, ensuring the edges are well sealed. Cut a hole in the middle of the pie to let the steam escape then brush with egg or milk to give a golden crust.
• Bake at 190C for 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving with a hearty portion of mashed potatoes