Beef shin pie

For the beef shin

Optional lean beef shin marrow bone – split (ask your butcher) 1 (6-8cm)
Vegetable oil 3 tbsp
Beef shin off the bone 1.5kg, cut into 4‑5cm chunks
Flaky sea salt 1 tbsp
Onions 2, diced
Large carrot 1, diced
Celery sticks 2, diced
Plain flour 70g
Beef stock 400ml
Bovril 40g
Guinness 440ml
English mustard 1 tbsp
Worcestershire sauce 2 tbsp
Hot horseradish sauce 1 tbsp
Black peppercorns 2 tbsp,
crushed

For the pastry

Self‑raising flour 400g, plus extra for dusting
Beef suet 200g
Salt 1 tsp
Freshly ground pepper ½ tsp
Water 240ml
Butter or oil for greasing
Egg 1
Whole milk 1 tbsp

1. For the beef shin: Start the pie filling the day before. If you are using the marrow bone, preheat the oven to 200C / gas 6.
2. Put the bone in an oven tray and roast for 25 minutes, then remove and scoop out the marrow from the centre while the bone is hot. Pour off and reserve any fat to fry the beef in later. Set the marrow and bone aside to cool and turn the oven down to 160C / gas 3.
3. Heat the vegetable oil in a large casserole dish, adding any beef fat from the bone.Season the beef-shin chunks with sea salt, then add in batches to the casserole dish and brown over a high heat. When the beef has good colour on all sides, remove it and set aside.
4. Add the onions, carrot and celery and turn the heat down to medium. Let the vegetables caramelise for 10-12 minutes. Add the flour and stir in well. Slowly pour in the beef stock, mixing well, then add the Bovril and Guinness. Mix in the mustard, worcestershire sauce, horseradish sauce and black pepper and bring to a simmer.
5. Return the browned meat to the pan, cover and put in the preheated oven to cook for 3.5–4 hours until the meat is meltingly tender and the gravy glossy.
6. Chop the cold marrow (if using) and stir in. Cool the mix to room temperature, then chill overnight.
7. For the pastry: combine the flour, suet, salt and pepper in a bowl. Slowly pour in the water and stir to make a shaggy dough. Turn it out onto a work surface and gently bring together, adding an extra splash of water if it feels too dry – or a dusting of flour if it feels overly wet.
8. You’ll see large chunks of suet in the pastry and this will act like butter when the pastry cooks, making a flaky crust. Wrap the pastry in clingfilm and leave to rest in the fridge for an hour.
9. Grease a pie dish with butter or oil. Divide the pastry into two lumps – roughly two‑thirds for the base and a third for the top. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the larger piece of pastry until it’s slightly wider than the size of the pie dish and about 0.5cm thick.
10. Carefully lay the pastry in the dish, making sure it sits evenly on all sides. Mix the egg and milk together and brush the edges of the pastry. If using the bone, position it in the centre of the pie.
    Fill the dish with the braised beef in an even layer. Roll out the second piece of pastry to the same thickness. If using the bone, cut a 5cm x 5cm cross in the middle of the pastry to accommodate it.
11. Lay the pastry on top of the pie filling, fitting the top of the bone through the cross. If not using the bone, cut a small cross in the middle of the pastry and insert a pie chimney if you have one.
12. Use your thumb or the back of a teaspoon to crimp and seal the pastry edges on all sides, then trim any excess pastry. Brush with the egg and milk glaze, then chill in the fridge for at least an hour.
13. Preheat the oven to 200C / gas 6. Bake the pie in the middle of the oven for 1 hour and 20–30 minutes until the top is golden and crisp and the middle molten.
14. Serve the beef shin pie with mash, peas and extra gravy – although it does have a pretty good built‑in gravy already.