SCRUNCHY FILO BEEF GOULASH PIES

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tbsp olive oil

• 1.2kg gravy beef, trimmed, cut into 2-3cm pieces

• 2 brown onions, coarsely chopped

• 1 tbsp plain flour

• 3 tsp paprika

• 400g can diced tomatoes

• 250ml (1 cup) beef stock

• 300g button mushrooms, quartered

• 12 sheets filo pastry

• 125g (½ cup) sour cream

• 2 tbsp chopped fresh chives

METHOD

1 Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large saucepan over high heat. Add ¼ of the beef and cook, turning, for 3 minutes or until browned. Transfer to a plate. Repeat in three more batches with the remaining beef and 3 tablespoons oil.

2 Heat remaining oil over medium heat in the saucepan. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until soft. Stir in flour and paprika and cook for 1 minute or until aromatic. Add tomato and stock. Bring to the boil, stirring and scraping the base of the pan to remove any bits. Return beef to pan and add mushrooms. Cover and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to very low. Cook, covered, for 1.5 hours. Uncover and cook, stirring often, for 30 minutes or until the gravy has reduced and thickened. Season. Transfer to a large, wide heatproof bowl to cool completely.

3 Preheat oven to 180C/160C fan forced. Spoon mixture among six 200ml baking dishes. Place filo on a clean work surface. Cover with a dry tea towel, then a damp tea towel (to prevent it drying out). Spray one filo sheet with olive oil. Top with another sheet. Repeat with two more filo sheets, spraying between each layer.

4 Cut filo stack in half crossways. Use your fingertips to gather up one stack and scrunch to make the pastry the same size as the top of a dish. Place on top of one dish. Repeat with the remaining filo and dishes.

5 Spray the filo with olive oil. Bake for 20 minutes, or until golden and crisp. Serve with sour cream and chives.