Meat Pie (French-Canadian Tourtière de Maman)

This is meat pie is also known as Tourtière de Maman. Which is a French Canadian meat pie that is spiced to perfection. This recipe has been passed down from several generations and is a Christmas tradition in many homes.

Pastry Crust:
2½ cups all-purpose flour, unbleached
½ tsp. sea salt
1 cup butter or lard, grated
⅓ cup water, cold

Spices:
1 Tbsp. ground savoury
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground sage
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. celery salt
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. black pepper, freshly ground

Filling:
1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground pork
2 medium potatoes
1 onion
1 cup beef stock
1 egg, for egg wash

Preheat an oven to 375°F (190°C/170°C fan, Gas Mark 5).

Make the Pastry:
Combine everything together in a large bowl. Then add the grated butter or lard until the mixture is crumbly. Pro tip: chill the lard or butter prior and grate it before folding it in with your hands.

Add water and blend just until dough comes together nicely. Shape into a ball, wrap and chill in the refrigerator. Once the filling has been made, roll out the dough and place into the baking dish.

Make the Filling:
In a large pot of boiling water, add 2 medium sized potatoes with the skin on and boil till fork tender, remove from heat and soak in cold water and remove the skin easily that way.

Then in a large frying pan place a little bit of cooking oil then your onion, sauté till fragrant.

Add in your spices and sauté for a min before adding ground hamburger and pork along sauté till browned.

Then add in your beef stock and scrape down the sides to mix all the flavours together. Simmer on medium - low heat till the liquid has evaporated, roughly 30 minutes.

Using a potato masher either mash or grate your potatoes into the mixture , remove from heat and set aside to cool down for one hour.

Assembly:
Meanwhile prepare your crust according to the above directions. Once it's been chilled for one hour remove the crust and place on a lightly floured surface and divide it in half.

Roll each half out to form a large circle shape, one will be for the bottom of the crust the other for the top. Roll out your dough.

Place your bottom half gently over your pie plate and ladle in your filling (be sure the filling has come to room temperature prior) this ensures the pie crust does not become soggy.

Then fill to the top of the pie shell and press down with a ladle till compact.

Create your egg wash; simply beat 1 egg in a bowl. Brush the outside of the oval crust to ensure that the lid sticks together during cooking.

Next put the pie crust overtop and using kitchen scissors, cut around the outside edges to remove the excess dough and with your fingers pinch all around the crust to ensure its closed. Finish by brushing the entire top of the pie with remaining egg wash and with a knife make two cuts along the top to allow for ventilation while cooking.

Bake for 45 minutes till golden brown.

Let cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.

Cook's Notes:

• Allow the meat to cool down to room temperature before placing into the pie shell. This ensures that the pie shell remains crisp after baking and not soggy on the bottom.
• For best results, chill the lard prior to grating it. It folds into the flour very easily and can be blended with your hands to create a delicious pie crust using just your hands and a roller to thin out the crust to create the top and bottom pieces of the pie.