Guinness Beef Pie

Beef and booze, all wrapped up into buttery pastry. Artery clogging and oh so sinful.

It's quintessential pub grub and I've been meaning to make it for ages. I'm amazed at how similar it is to Boeuf Bourguignon in terms of technique and ingredients. Substitute Guinness for wine and it's basically the same thing. Goes to show that good food is good food no matter where you are in the world.

Since I'm doing a pie, I'm using more flour for a thicker gravy. If you want to have it as a stew, use 2 tablespoons of flour instead of 3.

And if you can't be arsed with making your own pastry, store-bought shortcrust or puff pastry works just as well.

• 800g beef brisket, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 onion, finely diced
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 small carrots, diced
• 2 potatoes, diced
• 8 mushrooms, sliced
• 1 spring of rosemary, finely chopped
• 1 sprig of thyme, finely chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 330ml can of Guinness
• 1 beef stock cube
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 tablespoon butter
• Olive oil
• Freshly ground salt and pepper to taste
• 1.5 portion of shortcrust pastry
• 1 beaten egg with 1 tablespoon water

Wash and pat dry beef cubes. Roll them around in some flour till evenly coated and set aside.

In a large pot, heat olive oil over high heat and sear the beef cubes till browned and set aside.

In the same pot, turn the heat down to medium and saute onions and garlic till soft and translucent. Add the butter, carrots and potatoes and saute for a few minutes. Next, add the beef cubes, sprinkle the flour over and mix well.

Pour in the Guinness and top up with water till ingredients are covered, add the stock cube and herbs and season with freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to low and simmer for 2 hours till meat is tender.

Add mushrooms to the stew and cook for a further 10 minutes. In the meantime, roll out the shortcrust pastry and preheat the oven to 200C.

To assemble the pie, pour the stew into an ovenproof baking dish and cover the pie with the pastry. Trim the edges so that you have a 1.5 inch perimeter. Scrunch the edges down into the side of the dish and use the back of a fork to make little lines.

Pierce a few holes in the top of the pie and brush with the egg and water mixture. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes until pastry is golden brown and serve immediately.