Britain is famous for its pies; they come in all shapes and sizes, sweet and savoury, hot and cold, with lid or without, baked and steamed….
Steamed? or is that a pudding?
Anyway, there’s nothing more British than a traditional steak and kidney pie – A superb slice of British cuisine.
I often double the quantities for the meat filling, then freeze half, so I’m only a defrost away from the next batch of pies, and I always cook the meat filling a day or two in advance: the flavours deepen wonderfully and the whole thing seems less of an effort.
INDIVIDUAL STEAK & KIDNEY PIES
There is nothing more British than a traditional steak and kidney pie – A superb slice of British cuisine
4-6
servings1
hour30
minutesIngredients – Filling
2 tbsp Oil
700 g Braising Steak, cut into cubes
200 g Lambs Kidney, cut into cubes
200 g Baby Button Mushrooms
2 Medium chopped Onions
1 tsp Mustard
2 Crushed Garlic Cloves
850 ml Beef Stock
1 tbsp Worcester Sauce
1 tsp Xanthan Gum
Salt an freshly ground Black Pepper
- Ingredients – Pastry
350 g Mozzarella Cheese
200 g Cream Cheese
2 medium Beaten Eggs
135 g Almond Flour
2 tsp Xanthan Gum
1 tsp Onion Powder
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp Himalayan Salt
Method – Filling
- Note: I cook this part in the pressure cooker. You can also cook it in a large frying pan, but it will take much longer
- Fry the beef in batches until nicely browned all over. Remove from the pan and set aside
- Add the onions to the same pan and fry for 3-4 minutes
- Quarter the mushrooms, add to the pan and fry until cooked
- Return the beef to the pan. Add the stock and stirring well, bring to the boil
- If using a pressure cooker, close the lid – follow the instructions – Simmer for 15 minutes
- In the pan : Turn the heat down and simmer for 1½ hours
- Fry the kidneys in a separate frying pan. When browned, add to the beef and cook for another 15 minutes without the lid (pressure cooker and pan)
- Remove from the heat. Take the meat out of the gravy, set aside. Add the Xanthan gum to thicken
- Thickening with Xanthan gum is easy. You need a very small amount. Starting with half a teaspoon, sprinkle onto the boiling gravy and whisk quickly to stop any lumps forming. If it’s not thick enough, add a bit more. If lumps do form, pass gravy through a sieve
- Add salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce and taste. Allow to cool completely. Preferably leave for 1-2 days before making the pastry and baking the pies. The flavours deepen wonderfully
- Method – Making the Pastry
- Microwave the Mozzarella cheese in 30 second bursts, stirring each time until completely melted. I use my Kitchenaid mixer at this point, but a hand held mixer with the dough attachment will also do the job
- Mix the cheese until it’s slightly cooled then add the two beaten eggs. Stir until the eggs and cheese are combined. Slowly add the dried ingredients and mix until you have a nice dough texture. Wrap in cling-film and cool in the fridge for two hours
- Take the the pastry out of the fridge and cut in two, one half slightly larger than the other. Put the smaller half back in the fridge until needed
- Roll the first ball of pastry between two pieces of greaseproof paper
- I made four small pies in deep ca. 4inch/10cm metal pie/pudding tins, but you can make one large one if you prefer
- After rolling the pastry between the greaseproof paper, take a small bowl (or similar), big enough to line the pie tin – (measure with a flexible tape measure the outside of the dish from rim to rim). You’ll need to experiment here depending on the size/depth of baking tin
- Pressing down and moving it in a circular motion, make an impression in the pastry. For the pie lid, use the pie tin rim as a cutter
- Taking a pair of scissors, cut around the round pastry pieces on the greaseproof paper. Pick up the pastry still attached to the greaseproof paper and pop into the pie tin. Remove paper. This is the easiest way of handling the dough. Repeat with second batch
- Spoon the cooled meat mixture into the pie tins
- Place the lids on and make two slits in the pastry for the steam to escape
- Bake in a preheated oven for approximately 25 minutes at 180C until golden brown
Notes
- MACROS in total: 45g Carbs – 238g Fat – 357g Protein – 3740 Calories
1 Comment
Ashok
1 June 2022 at 5:57 amThanks for sharing this amazing recipe.my family loved it.will be sharing this recipe with my friends.they will like it.