Country Beef Pot Pie Recipes

Steps:

• In a saucepan over medium heat, brown the pieces of meat on all sides. Pour in some water to almost cover. Bring to a boil and reduce heat. Simmer until meat is tender and falls apart easily; about 2 to 3 hours. Transfer meat to a large mixing bowl. Shred the meat slightly and add salt and pepper to taste.
• In another 2 quart saucepan over medium heat, pour in beef broth and add carrots and potatoes. Cook until almost tender; about 15 to 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• When the carrots and potatoes are done, transfer to the large mixing bowl with the beef; leaving the liquid in the pan. Combine the peas with the carrots, potatoes and beef.
• Dissolve the cornstarch with the 1/3 cup of water. Pour into the saucepan of beef broth, stirring constantly. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat; cook for 5 minutes.
• Line a 9 inch pie plate with one of the pie crust following the package directions. Place the beef mixture into the pie crust. Pour the gravy over the top of the mixture, then cover with the other pie crust. Bake in a preheated oven until the crust is golden brown; about 25 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Melt the butter with the olive oil in a heavy pot. Sear the meat over medium-high heat in batches until brown, 4 to 5 minutes; remove to a plate.
• Add the carrots, celery and shallots and saute until the vegetables start to wilt, about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium low, add the mustard, garlic and 1 tablespoon of the flour and saute for 1 minute. Add the mushrooms and cook for 2 minutes. Pour in the wine, beef broth and 1 cup water. Add salt and pepper to taste and stir. Bring to a boil. Return the browned meat to the pot and reduce the heat to low. Add the bay leaves and thyme sprigs, then cover and simmer for 30 to 45 minutes.
• After 45 minutes, mix the remaining 2 tablespoons flour with a little water and pour into the stew. Cook and thicken for 10 more minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool completely.
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the puff pastry sheets one by one to get rid of the creases. Set a 6- to 8-inch ovensafe skillet upside down on a pastry sheet and cut a circle around it, making it 1/2 inch larger than the dish. Repeat with the remaining 5 skillets using all of the pastry sheets; discard the scraps.
• Put the 6 skillets onto 2 baking sheets and fill the skillets with the cooled beef mixture. Sprinkle over some chopped bacon and 1/2 teaspoon chopped parsley on each.
• Top each skillet with a pastry circle, pressing along the edges to seal. Mix together the egg and 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl to make an egg wash. Brush each pastry lid with the egg wash. Bake until the pastry is puffed and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400°F Prepare pie crusts as directed on package for two-crust pie using 9-inch glass pie pan.
• Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add beef and onion; cook and stir until beef is browned. Drain.
• In small bowl, combine gravy, cornstarch, sugar and pepper; mix well. Add to beef in skillet. Stir in vegetables and potatoes. Cook about 5 minutes or until vegetables are thawed, stirring occasionally.
• Spoon mixture into pie crust-lined pan. Top with second crust; seal edges and flute. Cut slits in several places in top crust; sprinkle with sesame seed.
• Bake at 400°F for 35 to 45 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add shallot; cook and stir until softened, about 5 minutes. Add port and thyme; bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook until sauce is reduced to 1/2 cup, about 35 minutes.
• Bring chicken broth to a simmer in a small saucepan. Turn off heat and add half the mushroom slices. Let mushrooms soak, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Use a slotted spoon to transfer soaked mushrooms to a small bowl. Strain the chicken broth from the saucepan into a separate bowl, pouring it through a coffee filter or cheesecloth to remove any sediment.
• Dice the soaked mushrooms and transfer to the port sauce. Add the strained chicken-mushroom broth.
• Bring the sauce to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook and stir until reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 15 minutes.
• Mix cornstarch with 1/4 cup cold water in a bowl. Whisk cornstarch slurry rapidly into the simmering sauce until thickened, about 3 minutes. Add balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper.
• Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Saute beef until meat is still slightly pink in the center, 6 to 7 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Saute remaining mushrooms and onion in the beef drippings until tender, about 5 minutes. Add to the bowl with the beef.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Combine flour and salt in a bowl. Cut 2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter into the flour using 2 knives or a pastry blender until mixture is crumbly. Add 1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons cold water; mix until dough pulls away from edges of the bowl. Divide dough in half; set 1 portion aside and roll the other half onto a floured surface. Press dough into a 10-inch pie pan to form the bottom crust.
• Spread the vegetable-beef mixture over the crust in the pie pan. Pour sauce on top, spreading to the edges. Roll out the other half of the dough and cover pie with the crust; seal the edges.
• Bake in the preheated oven until flaky and golden, about 45 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes.

Steps:

• Procedure: Filling is made in 2 parts and then combined: the stew and the vegetables. The crust is partially baked before filling.
• The vegetables: Blanche the turnips and then the carrot chunks in rapidly boiling salted water until just tender, removing the vegetables from the water and immediately cooling them under running water to stop the cooking. Microwave the peas in a 1/2 cup of water for 20 seconds or pour some of the hot blanching water over them and then drain. Mix the vegetables together. This can also be done ahead, the same day as the pie will be served or even the night before, but don't freeze the vegetables.
• The stew: Cut beef into 1-inch chunks and dry thoroughly with a paper towel. Cut the bacon into 1-inch pieces and brown slowly in the casserole. Remove the bacon and set aside, and turn the heat to high. Brown the beef quickly in the bacon fat. Add olive oil if necessary. Remove the beef from the casserole and set aside with the bacon. Add the minced carrots, onions and celery and brown on medium high heat in the remaining fat. Remove the vegetables from the pot and add to the reserved beef and bacon. Add the clarified butter to the pot and sprinkle in the flour. Stirring constantly, brown the flour on medium high heat until it is a dark, nut brown. Return the bacon, beef and vegetables to the pot. Stir to coat them with the browned flour and cook for 1 minute on medium-high heat. Lower the heat, add the cayenne, wine, bouillon or stock, the tomato paste, the garlic and the herb bouquet tied in a cheesecloth. Stir to mix well and simmer for at least 3, preferably 4, hours, stirring occasionally. When done the meat should be very tender. Skim fat if necessary. Check for seasoning. Remove the meat from the gravy with a slotted spoon and set aside. Remove and discard the herb bouquet. Reserve the gravy in a separate container. The stew may be prepared to this point a 1 or 2 days ahead and kept refrigerated. It can also be frozen after preparation to be kept longer.
• The crust: Preheat oven to 400 degrees Process the flour, butter, shortening, and salt until mixture is like coarse cornmeal. Add the ice water and pulse processor a few times until dough begins to clump. Do not overprocess. Scrape dough onto a board, divide in half and put each half in a plastic bag. Working through the bag, quickly press the dough into a ball. Refrigerate dough for at least 1 hour. (May be frozen at this point for future use.) Roll 1 of the balls out to about 1/8-inch thick. Butter the tart pans and line with the dough. Roll the other ball of dough out and cut circular pieces about 1/8-inch larger than the individual tart pans (or 3/8-inch if using the single 9 or 10-inch pan). The circles for the top crust of the pot pie are cut larger because there will be shrinkage when it is baked. The edges can be crimped with a fork if desired. Leftover dough can be cut into decorative shapes for the top crust.
• Butter pieces of aluminum foil and line the crust in the tart pans with them. Fill the foil with dried beans or rice to a depth of about 1-inch -- this will keep the crust from puffing when it is baked empty. Place the top crust circles on a cookie sheet and prick with a fork. Bake for about 10 minutes. Crust should just start to brown. The top pieces will likely take a little less time. Remove the aluminum foil and return the beans or rice to their container. Leave the tart pan rings in place. The crust can be made up to 4 hours before the dish is assembled and served.
• Assembly: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. If you have made the stew and gravy ahead of time, warm them separately on the stove until they just begin to simmer. Add gravy back to the stew a little at a time until it is liquid enough but not too soupy. Stir well to mix. The proportion will vary according to the cut of meat used and the actual cooking time. Once you've made it a couple of times you'll know how you like it. If there is leftover gravy, keep it warm on the stove while you bake the pie. Mix the vegetables into the stew just before you assemble the pie. Spoon the filling mixture into the partially baked pie shell. It should fill it right to the top. There may be some filling mixture left over. This is not a bad thing. Bake for about 8 to10 minutes, until the crust starts to look quite brown at the edges and the filling is bubbling. Allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. Carefully remove rings from the pans and slide the pies onto warmed plates. If there is remaining gravy, serve on the side with the pie. Garnish with chopped parsley.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350*F Combine 1/2 cup tomato sauce and bread crumbs until all sauce is absorbed. Add onion, salt, ground beef, bell pepper & oregano. Mix well. In a deep pie dish, squish meat mixture all around the bottom and up the sides as you would a regular pie. Combine 1 1/2 cups tomato sauce, minute rice, 1/2 cup cheese, water & salt. Mix well. Spread the rice mixture on top of beef. Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove foil add additional 1/2 cup of cheese and bake for 10 more minutes or until cheese is melted. Slice like a pie and serve. Toppings may include: sour cream, chives, salsa, Tabasco, avocado, guacamole, etc.

Steps:

• Place a rack in lower third of oven; preheat to 400°. Heat oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high. Season 1/2 cup flour with salt and pepper. Add beef and toss to coat; shake off excess. Working in batches as needed to avoid steaming meat, cook beef, turning often, until browned all over, 8-10 minutes per batch. Transfer to a plate.
• Cook bacon in same pot, stirring often, until brown and crisp. Add 1/4 cup water and cook, scraping up browned bits, then add onion, leek, and carrot and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are starting to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and parsley and return beef to pot. Add brandy and simmer until liquid is almost completely evaporated, about 1 minute. Add thyme leaves, bay leaf, star anise, broth, and wine and season with salt and pepper; bring to a simmer.
• Mix 1 tablespoon flour and 1 tablespoon butter in a small bowl until smooth; stir into meat mixture. Cover pot and braise in oven until beef is very tender, 1 - 1 1/2 hours.
• Melt remaining 4 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and pearl onions and cook, stirring, until browned, 8-10 minutes. Stir in lemon juice; season with salt and pepper. Add mushrooms and onions to stew, cover pot, and return to oven. Cook until onions are very tender, 25-30 minutes. Let stew cool.
• Meanwhile, working with one at a time, roll out pastry sheets on a lightly floured surface until about 4" larger than baking dish (use a 2-qt. oval or an 8" square). Place 1 sheet on a parchment-lined baking sheet and chill. Transfer remaining sheet to baking dish. Lift up edge and let dough slump down into dish. Trim, leaving about 1" overhang. Transfer stew to baking dish. Brush edge of pastry with egg.
• Using a cutter, punch out a circle in the center of chilled pastry. Drape pastry over filling and trim to a 1" overhang. Press edges of dough together to seal and fold overhang under. Crimp edge, then brush top of pastry with egg.
• Bake until crust is deep golden brown, 30-35 minutes. Let pie cool slightly.
• Do ahead: Stew can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and chill.

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, melt butter. Add onion and cook for 1 minute. Stir in flour and pepper until blended. Gradually whisk in broth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in vegetables and beef; heat through. Transfer to two greased 10-oz. custard cups., In a small bowl, combine egg and milk. Stir in biscuit mix until smooth. Spoon evenly over meat mixture. Place on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 400° for 25-30 minutes or until bubbly and top is golden brown.

Steps:

• In a bowl, combine flour, cheese, salt, pepper and thyme; cut in the shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in water just until moistened. Form into a ball. Cover and refrigerate. , Meanwhile, in a large saucepan or Dutch oven, brown beef and onion in oil. Add mushrooms; saute for 1 minute. Add 1 cup broth, salt, thyme, garlic powder and pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 30 minutes. , Add potatoes, carrots and celery; cover and simmer 20 minutes longer or until meat is tender and vegetables are crisp-tender. Combine flour and remaining broth until smooth; gradually add to beef mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Stir in browning sauce if desired. Reduce heat; keep warm. , Roll two-thirds of the dough into a 14x10-in. rectangle. Line the bottom and sides of an ungreased 11x7-in. baking dish. Roll remaining pastry into a 6-in. circle; cut into six wedges. , Spoon beef mixture into crust. Place pastry wedges on top. Bake, uncovered, at 450° for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°; bake 30 minutes longer or until pastry is golden brown.