Game Pie

Serves: 6

Difficulty: Hard

Preparation time: 20 mins

Cooking Time: 120 mins

Tried and tested, can be served hot or cold

For the filling

• 200g diced braising venison
• 350g diced mix game, pheasant, partridge, rabbit, and hare leg meat
• 2 large onions sliced
• 100g smoked bacon, diced
• 10 mushrooms, sliced
• 1 tbsp redcurrant jelly
• 1 tbsp flour
• 2 sprigs thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 200ml red wine
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 300ml chicken stock
• 1 packet rolled puff pastry
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180oc
2. Heat a large pan and fry off the meat in batches until evenly coloured. Remove all the meat and fry the bacon and onions until slightly golden.
3. Add all the meat back into the pan and add the bay leaves, thyme, mushrooms and flour. Coat all the meat and allow to cook for a few minutes before adding the red wine, redcurrant jelly, Worcestershire sauce and chicken stock. Bring to the boil, turn down the heat and allow to cook for 1hr 15mins.
4. After cooking, season the mix and transfer to a pie dish of your choice about 25 cm diameters is perfect but a deep rimmed plate will work just as well.
5. Cover the top of the dish with the pastry and trim off the excess pastry. Crimp the edges with a folk and brush the top with a beaten egg.
6. Season with salt and bake in the oven for 30mins at 180oc or until golden brown.