Corned beef, potato and onion plate
pie
We are off to England in about 3 weeks’
time, we are first meeting friends for a picnic, now before you say
"that's it he is now fully of his trolley" let me explain, I am a
member of a food board that had its seeds back in the days when the BBC had a
very good food website, alas they neglected it and there was lots of squabbles,
WUMs, Trolls Flamers and a lack of pure common decency, that the BBC couldn’t
or wouldn’t control. One of the members started up his own food web site and
soon many of us joined, while still popping in to the BBC board to join the few
sensible discussions and offer advice when needed. But the BBC then pulled the
plug and took away the Food Q&A facility, as we had already joined the
Wildfood Board, it didn’t really matter to us, but many old friends have disappeared,
such a pity.
Now you may well ask what the
hell has that to do with a plate pie. Well some of us from the old amicable BBC
Food Board would meet up now and again at different venues and have a chin wag,
a bite to eat and get drunk (well I did at the last one). There are quite a few
who live in or quite close to East Anglia and so they have a Picnic each year, yes
a good old knotted hankie, trousers rolled English Picnic. Linda and I have decided
to go this year (we have done Dublin, Cheltenham, London and a couple of
smaller ones) we are then going on to molest my Brother and Sister-in-law for a
few days down in Dorset. I am really looking forward to it and Linda needs a
bit of a Holiday. We are doing the savoury
pies for the spread, so now you know why I am making them, not that I am going
to keep them until the picnic, they are a trial, a sort of dry run and my mate
at work has been off sick and needs a bit of building up!
So
without further ado, let me introduce the one and only “ Ma Smith’s” Corned
Beef, Potato and Onion Plate Pie. Now “Wor Mam” never used herbs in her pastry
but the rest is as printed or would be if I had her recipe.
Filling
1 tin of
Corned Beef (please not Fray Bentos, if we ever meet I shall explain why, I
have been to Fray Bentos!!!!)
5 or 6
medium potatoes, peeled and 4 quartered and 2 diced
1 medium
or ½ a large onion chopped quite small
1 clove
of garlic, pressed
Plenty of
fresh ground pepper
Dice the
corned beef,
put the potatoes into 2 separate pans to cook and fry the onions
and garlic.
While the spuds are boiling and the onions cooking (very low heat
in a little oil) you can now make the:
Pastry
225g of
plain flour
50g of
lard
50g of
butter
½ tsp. each
dried marjoram, oregano and thyme (any herbs you wish but I had some left over
from last night)
Good pinch
of salt
Enough ice
cold water to bring it together (about 2 table spoons)
1 egg
beaten for the sealing and the wash
Make sure
all of the fats are cold, dice into cubes about 1cm², weigh out the flour, add
the herbs and salt mix well, add the fats and with your fingertips (I keep mine
cold by holding them under cold running water) rub the fats and flour quickly
together until it resembles soft bread crumbs, now add the water a little at a
time, mixing with the blade of a normal knife until it comes together, need it
into a ball, do not overwork it, pat flat wrap in foil and refrigerate until
ready to use.
The cubed
spuds will be ready first, drain and set aside, turn the heat off from under
the onions, they shouldn’t be too coloured. When the other spuds are soft, mash
them with a good knob of butter,
then mash in the Corned Beef, add the onions
and stir in, give it a good grinding of black pepper. Now add the potato cubes and fold into the filling, Filling finished!
Here you
will need a tin plate, “Wor Mam” used “Wor Dads” this he had brought back from
his last ship in 1946, but I don’t have that heirloom, I bought a one from
T-Max last time I was in Newry (funny coincidence, “Wor Dads” last ship was HMS
Dundalk, and Dundalk is just across the border in the Irish republic).
Grease
the plate with a bit of butter or lard, which ever you have nearest at hand.
Take the pastry out of the fridge and cut in half, roll out one half, large
enough to cover the plate.
Dress around the edges with the back of a knife, while turning the plate with one hand at eye level,
(that was how “Wor Mam” done it).
Place the filling on top, brush the lip with
beaten egg and roll out the second piece large enough to cover the whole lot,
put this on top and press the edges together with a fork again dress the edges.
Brush the
top with beaten egg (or as the Hairy Bikers say an eggy wash).
Put into the top
of a pre-heated (190°C) oven for 35-40 minutes (check as it gets near the end
of the cooking time, we don’t want it over done do we?)
Finished Job.
This
pastry was so short, it wouldn’t come up to the shins of a leprechaun, it was
wonderful and light and the herbs gave the pie a very nice finishing touch.
Now the
next one is bacon and egg, or even sausage, bacon and egg, I could well make
the Hairies one as this has whole eggs in it as did “Wor Mams”
