Recipe: this steak and ale pie is the ultimate winter warmer – and couldn’t be easier

Steak and ale pie recipe

Serves 4

Total time required: 3 hrs 10 mins

(Preparation time: 10 mins; cooking time: 3 hrs)

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp sunflower oil
• 500g braising steak, cubed
• 300g shallots, peeled
• 250g mushrooms, wiped
• 200ml real ale
• 300ml beef stock, made from a cube
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 tsp caster sugar
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tbsp instant beef-flavour gravy granules
• 350g puff pastry
• 1 egg, beaten, to glaze

Instructions

Heat the oil in a large pan and fry the beef over a high heat to seal on all sides. Add the shallots and mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes.

Pour the ale and stock into the pan and stir in the tomato purée, sugar and Worcestershire sauce. Season. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 1½ hours. The beef should be very tender. Raise the heat and whisk in the gravy granules, stirring until the juices thicken. Spoon into an ovenproof pie dish.

Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/Gas 6. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface and cut a long thin strip to go around the edge of the pie dish. Dampen the rim of the dish and press the strip onto it. Use the remaining pastry to form a lid, lift onto the pie, pressing down well. Trim the edges.

Pinch with your finger and thumb all the way around the edge of the pie and make 2 small slits in the top. Decorate with any pastry trimmings by re-rolling and cutting out shapes.

Brush evenly with beaten egg and bake for 40 minutes until the pastry is cooked through, well risen and a deep golden colour.

Recipe from Morrisons.