Beer, Beef and Biltong Pie

SERVES 4 PREP 15 COOKING 3–6 hours

100 g packet Original Canterbury

Biltong

¼ cup (60 ml) extra virgin olive oil

800 g blade steak, cut into 3 cm

pieces

2 tbsp plain flour

3 brown onions, thinly sliced

4 garlic cloves

2 bay leaves

2 tbsp tomato paste

½ bunch thyme, leaves picked, plus

extra to serve

1 cup (250 ml) beer of your choice

300 g cleaned medium agria

potatoes, sliced 1 cm thick

2 tbsp cornflour

2 sheets all butter puff pasty

1 egg, whisked

Place half the biltong in a small processor and whiz until finely chopped. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a lidded casserole pan. Toss steak with flour and season with salt and pepper. Working in batches, add blade steak and cook, turning, for 5 minutes or until browned. Transfer to a bowl.

Add onions and cook for 4–5 minutes or until softened. Add garlic, bay leaves, tomato paste and most of the thyme and cook for 2 minutes or until aromatic. Add beer, whole biltong and most of the chopped (we’ll keep some to finish with). Bring to the boil then cook for 5 minutes or until beer is reduced by half. Transfer to a slow cooker along with potato and 3 cups (750 ml) water and cook over low heat for 6 hours, or high for 3 hours or until meat is tender and shreds when pushed with a fork. Combine cornflour with ½ cup of the cooking liquid to dissolve then return to filling and mix to combine.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 200°C fan forced. Transfer beef mix to an ovenproof pie dish. Cut each pastry into 6 squares and arrange, overlapping slightly, over pie filling. Brush with egg and bake for 25–30 minutes or until golden and bubbling. Scatter with remaining biltong to serve.