Beer-braised beef pies with cheese crust

Instructions

1. Preheat a stainless steel or cast-iron skillet over high heat until smoking.
2. Rub the steaks with a little olive oil, then season generously with salt and pepper. Cook the steaks on both sides until well browned – a bit of charring is ideal for a smoky flavour. Transfer to a pressure cooker and add 400 ml water. Cook on high pressure for 25 minutes. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, use the method in
   this recipe
   to cook the beef on the stovetop). Transfer the steaks to a baking tray or chopping board and reserve the cooking liquid. Using 2 forks, shred the beef steaks.
3. Heat a good drizzle of olive oil in a small non-stick frying pan over high heat. Add the sliced onion and cook, stirring regularly until dark brown and slightly charred. Set aside.
4. Heat a good drizzle of oil and 80 g butter in a large heavy-based saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic, chopped onion, carrot, celery, herbs and a good pinch of salt and cook, stirring continuously until soft and translucent. Stir in the shredded beef, reserved cooking liquid, beer, Worcestershire sauce and Pedro Ximinez, then add the red wine vinegar to taste.
5. Place the flour and the remaining 50 g butter in a small bowl and mash into a smooth paste. Stir the flour and butter mixture into the beef mixture and stir over medium heat until thickened. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Remove and discard the herb sprigs, then spread the mixture over a baking tray and refrigerate until completely chilled.
6. Meanwhile, to make the cheese crust, combine the flour, cheese, butter and copha in a food processor and pulse until a sandy texture forms. With the motor running, slowly add the chilled water until the dough just starts to come together. It should have small chunks of cheese and copha embedded so it looks a bit like salami. Transfer the dough to a large bowl and use your hands to bring it together into a ball. Divide the dough in half – one slightly larger than the other. Flatten into discs, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
7. Preheat the oven to 180ºC.
8. On a clean working surface, roll out the larger piece of dough on a lightly floured work surface until 4 mm thick. Cut out rounds wide enough to line ten 11 cm pie tins, making sure there is a little bit of overhang. Alternatively, you can make one large pie.
9. Fill each lined tin with the cooled pie filling so it is slightly mounded. Roll out the remaining piece of dough on a lightly floured surface until 4 mm thick. Cut out rounds wide enough to cover the pies, then carefully drape the pastry over the filling and slice away the excess dough.
10. Gently squeeze the edge of the pies to seal, then crimp the edges. Brush with plenty of egg wash, taking care to coat every nook or the pastry will be insipid and pale in these spots. Lastly, poke a hole in the middle of the pies with a skewer.
11. Bake for 45 minutes or until the pastry is the deepest golden brown possible, but without being burnt.