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Tall Minced Beef and Cheese Pie

Introduction & method

Minced beef and cheese pies are very popular in New Zealand, and in some Australian cities, but they are pretty much unheard of in the UK. However, they are delicious so you really should give them a try.

 Tall Minced Beef and Cheese Pie Recipe

Make the filling


Peel and dice the onion. Heat some oil in a heavy-bottomed pan and gently sauté for 5 minutes until softened but not browned. Turn up the heat and add the minced beef. Break it up and turn it now and again to get rid of any raw redness. Stir in the beef stock, add the bay leaf, finely chopped parsley and some generous grinds of black pepper. Turn the heat down, place a lid on the pan and simmer for about an hour until the meat is tender. Check the liquid level occasionally and add more water if the filling is drying out. After cooking, allow the filling to cool completely.

Make shortcrust pastry


In a large bowl, mix together the salt and the flour. Cut the lard and butter into small chunks and rub into the flour with your fingertips. Alternatively, you can whizz it all together in a food processor. When your mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs, add just enough cold water to make it come together in a ball. Wrap the dough in plastic film and let it rest in the fridge for 30 minutes. 

Assemble the pies


To form these pies I used stainless steel rings, 10cm (4 inches) diameter, 4cm (1½ inches) tall. Smear the inside of each ring with butter, then sprinkle with rice flour (or semolina or polenta). Sprinkle flour on the worktop. Roll out the pastry to 5mm (quarter inch) thickness and use one of the rings to cut discs for the pie lids. Cut larger pieces of pastry for the pie cases - press dough into each ring, being careful not to crease, fold or tear it. Trim the dough around the top, leaving a bit of excess around the rim.

Fill each case with minced beef mixture, leaving a gap at the top for the cheese. Moisten the rim of each case with water, add plenty of grated cheese, then place a lid on each pie. Press it down onto the base and fold the excess pastry to form a crimp. Glaze each pie top with eggwash (an egg beaten with a splash of milk). Sprinkle extra cheese on the top of the pie.

Bake the pies


Heat your oven to 180° Celsius (356° Fahrenheit) for a fan/convection/airfryer oven, or 200° Celsius (392° Fahrenheit) for a conventional one, or gas 6. Carefully transfer the pies to a baking sheet lined with greaseproof paper, and put it in the middle of the oven. Bake for 25 minutes. After this time, remove the tray from the oven and remove the rings from the pies - you may need to tease them out with a knife. Paint the sides of the pies with egg wash and return to the oven for a further 20 minutes.


The video above is from the Keef Cooks YouTube channel. Click here to see the video recipe of Tall Minced Beef and Cheese Pie on YouTube.

 
You might also like these recipes:

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Ingredients & Info


SHORTCRUST PASTRY
 500 grams plain white (all-purpose) flour
 half a tsp salt
 125 grams lard
 125 grams unsalted butter
 250 ml water
FILLING
 500 grams minced beef
 1 medium onion
 500 ml beef stock
 small handful flatleaf parsley
 1 tsp ground black pepper
 1 bay leaf
 200 grams strong cheddar
EGGWASH
 1 egg
 a splash of milk

PLUS

Oil for sautéeing. The fat can be all lard or all butter, or a mixture.


UNITS:
Metric
US Customary/Imperial

Makes 5 pies
Prep time: 15 minutes.
Resting time: 30 minutes.
Cooking time: 2 hours.
Total time: 2 hours 45 minutes.