Meat mains
Curried beef pie with mixed root mash, tarka leeks and greens
A pie sounds like it's a slow-cooked affair, but this warming, curried beef pie relies on using lean mince so there's not much fat to render down, and it's topped with a quick to prepare root veg mash. We've added some healthy greens, tossed with an Indian-style tarka, a spicy seasoning of aromatic seeds and chilli flakes.
Cook's notes
You will need to be doing more than one thing at a time to get this cooked speedily: beef pie cooking, mash on, greens underway. But none of it is complicated and you'll have cooked a comforting, veg-packed dish to nourish you through a chilly evening. Omit the milk for a dairy free meal.
Ingredients
- 1 onion
- oil for frying, e.g. vegetable or sunflower
- piece of fresh ginger
- 2 carrots
- 1 potato
- ¼ swede
- 1 large or 2 small garlic cloves
- 300g beef mince
- ½ leek
- 150g spring greens
- 1 tbsp curry powder
- 250ml chicken stock
- 25g butter
- splash milk
- 1 tsp black mustard seeds
- ¼ tsp cumin seeds
- ¼ tsp chilli flakes – add to taste
- salt and pepper
Method
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Step 1
Peel and finely dice the onion. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a medium pan. Add the onion and fry on a low heat, stirring now and then, for 10 minutes. Add a splash of water if it looks like catching.
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Step 2
While the onion cooks, put a large pan of water on to boil. Finely grate enough ginger so you have a good 1 teaspoon worth (there's no need to peel it). Peel and chop the carrots, potato and quarter of the swede into 2cm chunks. Peel and very finely slice 1 large or 2 small garlic cloves (this is for the tarka later, so keep it separate).
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Step 3
Once the onion has cooked for 10 minutes, add the beef mince and ginger. Increase the heat a little and stir-fry, breaking up larger chunks of mince, until the beef has lost all its pink colour, about 5 minutes. While it cooks, halve the leek (you only need half, save the rest). Cut lengthways in half, finely shred.
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Step 4
Wash well.
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Step 5
Break up the spring green leaves, wash well, cut out the central ribs in a thin 'v' shape, then lay them on top of each other, roll into a cylinder and finely shred. Add the curry powder and the chicken stock to the beef. Bring up to a low, simmering boil and cook for 15 minutes, until the liquid has reduced and thickened slightly, but still has a sloppy consistency. If you do reduce it too much, you have a little stock spare to top up, or add a splash of water.
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Step 6
Meanwhile, add the carrots, potato and swede to the pan of boiling water. Cook for about 10-15 minutes, until tender. Drain, leave in the colander for 2 minutes to let excess moisture evaporate, then mash with the butter (if you have any, you could add a splash of milk too). Season to taste. Keep to one side. As the root veg boil, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large frying pan. Add the leeks.
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Step 7
Stir-fry on a low to medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the spring greens and stir-fry until just wilted, 3-4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl or plate. When the beef has cooked, season to taste and spoon into a baking dish. Top with the mash, smoothing it over with your spoon to cover the meat, then spike it up with a fork. Heat your grill to medium. Grill the pie until the top has crisped up a little, about 5 minutes.
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Step 8
Meanwhile, add 1 tablespoon of oil to the frying pan. Add the sliced garlic clove(s), mustard seeds, cumin seeds and some chilli flakes (add the chilli to your taste for heat). Stir-fry for a few seconds, until you hear the mustard seeds pop. Don't let the garlic get darker than a light golden colour.
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Step 9
Add the greens back to the pan and toss together to warm through. Serve the greens with the pie.