Beef Cheek & Pumpkin Pie

When the cold weather snap arrives and the leaves start falling, we all start craving something warm with a bit of comfort. And my go to dish in autumn has always been PIE! Surprise, Surprise ;-)  

Now, I have combined my love for beef cheeks with beer and pumpkin! This is a great way to use up all those pumpkins that are lying around for Halloween as well. Topped with my ultimate flakey and golden pastry to make the perfect pie that is sure to impress. 

If you can’t find beef cheeks, any other slow cooking beef cuts will work fine such as brisket or ask your local butcher. Also, you may find squash or sweet potato to be a great alternative for pumpkin.

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My Beef Cheek and Pumpkin Pie

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 beef cheeks, cut into 4cm cubes
• 1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped
• 5 cloves of garlic, cut in half skin on
• 2 sprigs of thyme
• 500ml pumpkin beer or your favourite ale
• 500g pumpkin, peeled & cut into 3cm cubes
• 750ml of good quality beef or veal stock
• 1 tbsp butter
• olive oil for frying
• salt & pepper

For the Pastry:

• 200g plain flour
• 150g butter, chilled & cut into 1cm cubes
• 50ml sour cream
• 1 tsp salt
• egg yolk for brushing

Method

In a bowl place the beef cheeks, onion, garlic, thyme, beer with a pinch of pepper. Cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours. 

Next day take the beef cheeks out of the bowl, pat dry and season with salt and pepper. In a heavy based pan, heat some oil to high heat and fry off in batches until brown all over. *Do not overcrowd the pan

Place in an oven-proof saucepan and add the beer marinade and veg to the pan, add the beef stock, cover and cook in a low oven 130C/250F for 3 hours or until very tender but not falling apart.

Carefully strain through a sieve into a clean saucepan reserving beef and stock only but keeping them separate. Discard the remaining veg and herbs. Reduce the stock until thick and glossy then whisk in a tbsp of butter. Add the beef and the pumpkin chunks. The pumpkin will cook when the pastry is cooking (pumpkin will fall apart if cooked too long). Allow to cool and refrigerate until needed.

 

For the pastry:

Add the flour and salt into a food processor, add the butter and combine to a breadcrumb consistently. Add the sour cream and pulse to combine. Wrap in clingfilm and chill for at least 1 hour in the refrigerator.

 

To assemble:

Pre-heat oven to 180C/ 350F or gas mark 4. 

Fill four individual pie dishes with the beef and pumpkin filling. Separate the pastry into 4 and roll into circles/ovals, 10mm thick making sure they overlap each pie dish to make a lid. Brush egg yolk around the rim of the pie dish then top with a circle of pastry, seal and crimp the edges and trim around the sides to neaten.

Brush pastry with the egg yolk and prick the top with a knife. Bake for about 20-­25 minutes till the pastry is golden brown. Cool for 5­-10 minutes before serving.

photos by Carolina Menendez. 

Chicken & Ham Hock Pie

This pie won the 'Best Pie Award' in the Street Food Awards 2010 and is still my favourite. The ham hock is full of flavour, and the black treacle adds a lovely rich sweetness and depth of colour to the jelly. I've experimented with different seasonings, but lots of pepper and thyme give the best results. A hot water crust pie to me is one of the benchmarks of British cuisine and served with either salad cream or piccalilly (the acidity of the vinegar with cold seasoned meat is a dream combo) and a pint of ale is sometimes a forgotten meal in these present times of burgers and barbecues.

CHEF TIP: Soaking the ham hocks overnight will take away some of the saltiness of the brine. If bought on the day of cooking, place the ham hocks in water and bring to a quick boil, then refresh with clean water before CONTINUING. 

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My Chicken & Ham Hock Pie 

Ingredients

• 2 large ham hocks
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 celery stick, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 1 handful of thyme
• 1 tsp black treacle
• Salt, black pepper (medium coarse ground) and thyme, to season
• 6-8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 260g plain flour
• Pinch of salt
• 175g lard or butter
• 200ml water
• Small amount of softened butter

Method

Soak the Ham hocks overnight in cold water. Place the ham hocks in a large saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil and skim any scum off the surface.

Reduce heat to a gentle simmer and add the chopped vegetables, a teaspoon of chopped thyme and the black treacle. The treacle will take some of the saltiness out of the ham and give the stock a wonderful rich color. Simmer for 2-3 hours or until the meat is just starting to fall off the bones.

Remove the meat from the pan and allow it to cool. Strain the remaining stock into a clean pan and return to the boil until it has reduced by a third, then take the pan off the heat and leave to cool. This will become the jelly for the pie later on.

Pick the meat from the ham hock removing any fat and muscle. Flake the meat into a bowl and season with coarse black pepper and the freshly chopped thyme to your taste. Remember this is a cold pie so pepper will really bring out flavor once rested and chilled. Hocks can be very salty so do taste before adding any extra salt.

Next place the chicken between two pieces of cling-film and batter out with a rolling pin to tenderise and season with salt & pepper.

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Mix the flour and salt in a bowl making a well in the centre. Bring the water and lard to the boil in a saucepan then stir it into the flour with a wooden spoon to form a smooth dough. Leave for ten minutes until cool enough to handle.

Lightly grease a pie ring measuring 15-20cm by about 8-10cm deep and line the bottom with a disc of lightly greased greaseproof paper. Place it on a similarly lined and greased baking tray.

Take two thirds of the dough and, on a lightly floured table, roll it into a circle large enough to line the base and sides of the pie ring and overlap the edge. Place the pastry into the pie ring, carefully pressing into the corners, allowing the pastry to just hang over the edge. Roll the remaining pastry into a circle for the lid.

Cover the bottom of the pie with a layer of ham, then a layer of chicken. Repeat this again until the pie is filled. Brush the pie edges with egg wash and place the lid on top.

Pinch the lid edge and top pastry edges together with your thumb to crimp the pie and create a seal. Trim the edge with a knife removing any overhanging pastry.

Brush the top of the pie with the beaten egg, make a hole in the middle of the pastry lid and cook for 1 hour. Remove the ring and brush the sides and top again with egg before baking for a further 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave to cool. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours.

When the pie is cold, fill any holes in the pastry with softened butter so that the jelly doesn't escape. Take the jelly from the fridge, remove the layer of fat from the surface and gently reheat to melt the jelly Pour the jelly into the round hole in the top of the pastry until the pie is filled. Return to the fridge until the jelly is set.