Steak and Kidney Pie

Steak and Kidney Pie

A traditional British pie at its best – meltingly tender after long slow cooking!

Serves 4-6

Prep time:  20 minutes

Cooking time:  3 hours

Ingredients

500g braising steak, cut into 2.5cm

175g kidney, sinew removed & cut into small pieces

25g plain flour

Sea salt & black pepper

75g butter, diced

250g chestnut mushrooms, quartered

2 large onions, peeled & chopped

2 garlic cloves, peeled & chopped

350ml Newcastle Brown Ale

300ml beef stock

2 bay leaves

3 thyme sprigs

1 tbsp tomato puree

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tbsp HP brown sauce, to taste

500g ready-made puff pastry

1 egg, beaten to glaze

Preparation method

1.  Place the steak into a bowl and toss in seasoned flour, do the same with the kidney using a separate bowl and set aside.

2.  Add a few cubes of the butter into a large pan or wok and fry the mushrooms with a little seasoning for 2-3 minutes.  Add the onions and garlic, cook until the onion has softened.  Place in a bowl and set aside.

3.  Add a few more cubes of butter to the pan and fry the kidney for 1 minute each side until evenly browned.  Remove from the pan and set aside.  Add some more butter to the pan and brown the steak in batches, this should take about 5 minutes until browned all over.  

4.  Return all the steak, kidney and vegetables to the pan and pour in the brown ale, simmer until it has reduced by one-third.

5.  Pour in the stock and add the bay leaves, thyme, tomato puree and Worcestershire sauce.  Bring to a simmer, partially covered and cook gently for 1 ½ - 2 hours until the meat is tender and the sauce is thick.

6.  Stir through the HP sauce and season to taste, leave to cool.

7.  Preheat the oven to 200°C/Gas Mark 6.  Spoon all the contents of the pan into a 1.2 litre pie dish.

8.  Roll out the pastry on a well-floured board and brush the edge of the pie dish with egg.  Place the pastry gently over the filling and press the edges firmly to seal.  Trim the pastry neatly and decorate the top with the excess pastry and brush with the beaten egg to glaze.

9.  Place the dish in the centre of the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes until the pastry is puffed up and golden brown.