CLASSIC DISHES – Steak and Kidney Pie

Steak and Kidney Pie
Serves 4

50g plain flour
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
600g chuck (or braising) steak, cut into 3cm pieces
30g unsalted butter
Olive oil, for cooking
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
2 tsp tomato purée
450ml beef stock
1 bay leaf
Leaves from a few sprigs of thyme, plus a few sprigs for garnish
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
100g chestnut mushrooms, trimmed and halved
300g ox (or lamb) kidney, trimmed and chopped into large pieces
300g puff pastry
1 large egg yolk, beaten to glaze
1 Mix the flour with a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Toss the steak pieces in the seasoned flour, tip into a large sieve and shake off any excess flour.
2 Melt half the butter in a large, heavy-based casserole with a drizzle of olive oil (which will help prevent the butter from burning too quickly). Fry half the steak pieces over a medium-to-high heat until browned all over.
Remove to a plate and continue with the remaining meat, adding more oil and butter as necessary, until you¹ve browned all the steak.
3 Add a little more oil and fry the onion until softened and lightly golden.
Add the tomato purée and stir for a couple more minutes. Pour in the stock and scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to deglaze. Return the browned meat to the pan and add the bay leaf, thyme and Worcestershire sauce. Cover the pan with a lid and simmer gently for 2½-3 hours until the beef is fork tender. Stir in the mushrooms and kidney, then turn off the heat. Transfer the mixture to a 1.5 litre or 1.7 litre pie dish.
4 Preheat the oven to 200C (Fan 180C)/Gas 6. Roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured work surface to the thickness of a £1 coin and cut out a shape 5cm wider than the pie dish. Using the pastry trimmings, cut out 2.5cm wide strips for the edges of the dish. Brush the lip of the dish with water and press the strips of pastry on to it. Brush the strips with water and place the pastry over the top. Press down the edges to seal then trim off any excess pastry on the sides. Insert a few sprigs of thyme in the centre of the pie to allow steam to escape, and garnish with some pastry leaves, if you like. Brush the pastry with the beaten egg then bake for 30-40 minutes until golden brown and crisp.