These are probably my favourite pies. Peppery beef in my all-time favourite pastry, puff pastry! You can make these pies any size and any shape - but I like to make these snack-sized. The pepper steak is also great in a pot pie if you’re serving it for a lot of people.
ingredients.
500g beef (chuck steak is ideal), cubed small
1 Tbsp flour
½ tsp salt
½ large onion, sliced
1 Tbsp olive oil, for frying
¾ cup beef stock
½ cup water
2 tsp coarse black pepper (I add a couple of shakes of pink pepper too) 1 tsp thyme ----- Puff pastry sheets 1 egg + 1 Tbsp water, beaten together for
egg wash Extra flour for work surface
process.
Dredge the beef in the flour, salt and half of the pepper. Heat 1 Tbsp oil, and add the onions and beef once the oil is hot. You want to sear the beef and brown it well, this can take a few mins and works best if you don’t stir the meat too often. Once all of the meat is well browned, add a couple of tablespoons of beef stock to deglaze the pan. Then, add the remainder of the beef stock, water, thyme and the rest of the pepper. Stir well and leave on a low-medium fire for 45 minutes. If the meat isn’t tender, keep it simmering until the meat is cooked through and almost falls apart. Once cooked, let the meat cool down completely - I prefer to make the filling the day before I want to make the pies.
Preheat the oven to 175°C. Prepare a baking tray by lining it with parchment paper. Lightly flour your surface, roll out your puff pastry sheet and cut into rectangles. Each pie takes about a teaspoon of filling, remember to leave roughly 1cm for the egg wash and to seal the pies properly. Be careful with the egg wash - if it drips down the edges of the pastry, the pastry won’t puff up. Some people choose to crimp the edges with a fork, but I love the buttery layers of puff pastry so I just gently press the edges together. Poke each pastry with a fork a couple of times (to release steam while baking) and brush the tops with egg wash. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown.
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