This beef and stout pie is an old English classic, best enjoyed with a pint of pale ale on a cold blustery day.
Over the years I’ve put in hours of research when it comes to pie. Hailing from the UK, it’s a national dish that’s simple, but surprisingly easy to get wrong. I’ve sampled stale pastry and undercooked pastry, chewy meat and pies with serious salt content: but when I first tasted Cockpit’s Beef and Stout pie, I knew I was on to a winner.
We just had to have this recipe in the book, “African Brew: Exploring the Craft of South African Beer.”Many of the recipes in the book seek to put beer on a more prestigious stage, proving that it’s not just wine that can be paired with fancy fare, but we had to include this old classic. It’s one of beer’s best buddies and is best enjoyed with a pint of English ale – if Cockpit isn’t available, try Mitchell’s Bosun’s Bitter – or a rich and warming stout.
Recipe courtesy of The Cockpit Brewhouse.
Beef and stout pie
Serves four
Ingredients
- 1 kg bolo, diced into 2 cm cubes
- About 80 g flour
- Vegetable oil for frying
- 1 onion, sliced
- 6 carrots, roughly chopped
- 1 stick celery, finely sliced
- 500 ml Black Widow Stout (or another stout if Black Widow is not available)
- 250 g button mushrooms
- Salt and pepper
- Ready-made puff pastry
- Egg wash
Method
1. Place the diced beef into a large bowl, add the flour and toss until the meat is coated.
2. Heat a drizzle of oil in a pan, add the beef in batches and brown. Remove and set aside.
3. Fry the onion, carrots and celery in the same pan until soft.
4. Add half the stout, bring to the boil and then add the beef.
5. Cook over a low heat for 2-3 hours. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees celsius.
6. Add the remaining stout (reserving a sip for yourself) and button mushrooms, and simmer until the mushrooms are cooked. Season to taste.
7. Leave to cool slightly, then ladle the mixture into individual pie dishes.
8. Cover with puff pastry and brush with egg wash. Bake until the pastry is golden brown. Serve with chips and salad or veg, and a pint or half of your favourite English Pale Ale.
Recipe extracted from “African Brew” by Lucy Corne & Ryno Reyneke (Struik Lifestyle), which is available at all leading bookstores in South Africa.
