Beef Shin Ragù Pie Recipes

BEEF SHIN RAGù PIE

Steps:

• Heat 25g of the butter and 1 tbsp of the oil in large deep casserole. Add the shallots and carrots and gently fry for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and mushrooms and fry for 5 minutes. Remove and set aside.
• Add the remaining butter and oil. Coat the beef in the flour, add to the pan and fry until it starts to brown (2-3 minutes). Return the veg and add the chopped tomatoes, tomato purée, sugar, Worcestershire sauce, 500ml of the wine and the herbs.
• Bring to the boil, then simmer gently over a low heat. Put the lid on and simmer for 3 hours, stirring every 20 minutes, checking it's not catching on the pan base. If the beef isn't falling apart after this time, simmer for another 30 minutes.
• When ready, stir in the remaining wine and season, then take off the heat and cool almost completely.
• Meanwhile, make the pastry. Put the flour and salt in a heatproof bowl, make a well in the centre, crack in the egg, then cover with the flour. Put the butter and lard in a pan with 200ml water and bring to the boil. When the fat has melted, pour the mixture into the flour, mixing well with a knife. When cool enough to handle, knead on a lightly floured work surface until smooth. Shape into a disc, cover loosely and leave to rest for 30 minutes.
• Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/ gas 6. Once the pastry is lukewarm, cut off one third, wrap in cling film and chill. Roll out the rest on a floured work surface to a circle about 40cm in diameter. Grease a 23cm diameter, 5cm deep, fluted loose-bottomed tart tin. Line it with the pastry, leaving a 2-3cm overhang all round. Line with baking paper and foil, then fill completely with baking beans or uncooked rice. Blind bake for 20 minutes. Remove the paper, foil and beans, lightly brush half the beaten egg yolk all over the pastry case, then bake for another 13-14 minutes until the bottom of the case feels sandy and there are no grey areas. Cut away the overhanging pastry with a sharp knife to give a clean edge.
• Fill the pastry case generously (you may not need all the ragù), then roll out the remaining pastry on a lightly floured work surface to the thickness of a £1 coin. Stamp out as many leaves as you can and arrange over the filling in a circular pattern, slightly overlapping (you may need to re-roll the trimmings). Glaze with the remaining beaten egg, then chill in the freezer for 15 minutes.
• Put the pie on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for 40 minutes until the pastry is golden. Turn the oven down to 170°C/150°C fan/gas 3½ and bake for 20 minutes more. Let it sit for 10 minutes before serving.

BEEF SHIN PIE

Steps:

• Tip the flour onto a large plate and season well. Toss the beef shin in the flour in batches until all of it is completely coated in flour.
• Heat the sunflower oil in a flameproof casserole dish or large heavy-bottomed pan and brown the beef shin in batches, for 2-3 mins each until well-caramelised. Scoop out onto a plate using a slotted spoon.
• Tip the onion, carrots, celery, thyme and bay into the pan along with more oil, if needed, and a large pinch of salt and pepper. Cook for 10 mins, scraping the bottom of the pan to release all the browned bits, until the vegetables are beginning to soften. Tip in the stock, cover and cook for 1 hr 30 mins, then remove the lid and cook for a further 1 hr 30 mins until the beef is meltingly tender and the gravy has thickened. Tip into a 28cm pie dish and, if freezing the pie ahead, leave to cool completely. If not, cool the filling for 1 hr.
• Roll the puff pastry out on a lightly floured work surface into a 5mm- thick circle that's large enough to comfortably fit over the pie dish. Brush the edge of the dish with some of the beaten egg, then carefully lay the pastry circle on top. Trim any excess and crimp the edge of the pie. Use any leftover pastry to make decorations, if you like, and fix these to the top using a little beaten egg.
• Cut a small steam hole in the middle using a sharp knife, then brush the whole pie with the rest of the beaten egg and sprinkle with thyme leaves. The unbaked pie will keep covered in the freezer for three months. Fully defrost overnight in the fridge before baking.
• Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/ gas 6. Bake the pie for 30 mins (or 45 mins if it's been frozen and defrosted) until the pastry is cooked and golden. Serve with vegetables and mashed potato, if you like.