Here's a mouth-watering recipe to tempt the fussiest of foodies. Good wholesome fare from the world-renowned Black Sheep Brewery (www.blacksheepbrewery.com.) The Bistro at the Black Sheep Brewery Visitor Centre serves a wide range of dishes, featuring the Brewery’s award-winning beers.
Black Sheep Steak & Riggwelter Ale Pie
Ingredients
- 4oz butter
- Drop of rape seed oil
- Seasoned flour
- 1kg hand diced local beef (ask your butcher to do this)
- 6oz diced carrot
- 6oz diced swede
- 6oz diced celery
- Half a diced onion
- A Bottle of Black Sheep Riggwelter Ale
- Pint of beef stock
- Two bay leaves
- Two tea spoons of thyme (fresh or dried)
- One tablespoon of garlic puree (optional)
- Three tablespoons of tomato paste
- Short crust pastry
Method
- Pre-heat the oven to 180̊C.
- In an oven-proof casserole dish, melt the butter with a drop of rape seed oil.
- While this is melting put the hand diced local beef in seasoned flour.
- Brown the beef in the butter/oil.
- Take out and leave to cool on a plate.
- Add the diced carrot, swede, celery and onion.
- Sweat the vegetables off and then take them out.
- Pour the Riggwelter Ale into the pan and reduce by half.
- Put the meat back in the pan and add the beef stock, bay leaves, thyme, garlic puree (optional) and tomato paste.
- Add the vegetables that were sweated off earlier, then put the lid on the casserole and put in the oven for about 1½ - 2 hours. The meat should be nice and tender and still holding together and the gravy reduced.
- Additionally, you can add a tablespoon of corn starch mixed with a drop of water or beer at this point if you wish to thicken it slightly.
- Transfer all into a large pie dish or several small pie dishes and top with short crust pastry.
- Egg wash and bake for a further 15-20 minutes until golden brown.