Steak and Stilton Pie (Nottinghamshire Pie)

A part eaten steak and stilton pie in an enamel pot.

5 from 4 votes

Steak and Stilton Pie (Nottinghamshire Pie)

Steak and stilton pie is a crowd-pleasing and easy to assemble recipe that is packed full of exciting flavours. Also known as Nottinghamshire pie, this potato topped pie combines beef steak with leeks and Blue Stilton cheese to create a particularly tasty and satisfying dish that it would be a crime to miss out on.

This recipe is an adaptation of the original Nottinghamshire pie created by Roy Woods.

Prep Time30

Cook Time3

Total Time3 30

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: British, East Midlands, English, Midlands

Servings:

Calories: 885kcal

Author: Jane Coupland

Ingredients

For the pie filling

800 g Braising steak stewing steak/ chuck steak
30 g Plain flour all-purpose
60g Butter
400 g Sliced leeks weight after they have been stripped & trimmed
Fresh thyme
500 ml Beef stock
1 tablespoon Wholegrain mustard
⅛ teaspoon Black pepper
¼ teaspoon Salt

For the topping

900 g Floury potatoes suitable for mashing
45 g Butter
90 g Blue Stilton cheese preferably produced in Nottinghamshire
2 tablespoon Fresh breadcrumbs
Milk not always needed

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 160C/ 320F/ GM 2½
Chop the braising steak into small pieces (about 1.5cm cubes), toss in the flour
Melt ¼ of the butter in a casserole pot and fry ⅓ of the meat until brown all over. Remove from the pan, add in another ¼ of the butter and fry another ⅓ of the meat. Repeat with the remaining meat. Set it all aside
Add the final ¼ of butter to the pan and fry the leeks gently until soft (5-10 minutes). Stir often
Add the meat back into the pot along with any residual flour, the mustard, seasoning, 400ml of stock and a few sprigs of thyme. Cook for around 2 hours until the meat is tender, stirring halfway through
When the meat is almost cooked prepare the mashed potato: peel and chop the potatoes, then boil until soft. Mash, adding in butter and seasoning. Add a splash of milk if the mash appears too stiff to spread
Optional: remove the sprigs of thyme from the pie filling
Spoon the cooked meat into an ovenproof pie dish and top with the mash, spreading it out to cover the meat entirely. Use a fork to create texture or a pattern on the top of the mash
Sprinkle crumbled Blue Stilton cheese and breadcrumbs over the top
Turn up the oven to 200C/ 400F/ GM 6 and bake the pie for 30 minutes until golden

Notes

Don't rush the cooking of the meat. Two hours is the minimum it needs to cook for. Test a piece after this time and if it is still a little tough cook for another half hour or so
Add more stock as necessary to stop the pie filling from becoming too dry
The original recipe is much saucier, so feel free to make the filling as loose as you like by adding in more stock until you are happy with the consistency
Make the mash when the meat is nearly cooked. It's much easier to spread hot mash over the pie filling than it is to spread cold mash over it
You may need to add a splash of milk to your mash if it seems dry. All potatoes vary and some do need additional liquid added to them to turn them creamy and spreadable, whilst others do not
Upgrade the look of this steak and stilton pie by piping the mash onto the top for a fancier finish. Use a wide nozzle
Season this recipe cautiously. There's plenty of flavour already in it so be careful not to overdo the salt

Cooking the pie filling on the stovetop

If you prefer to stick with tradition and cook the steak and stilton pie filling on the stovetop simply follow steps 1-3 above, then let cook on low heat for 2 hours, stirring every 20 minutes to reduce the risk of the meat sticking to the bottom of the pan. Much more stock will likely be needed, so keep an additional 300ml in reserve and top up as necessary.

Making in advance and reheating leftovers

This is a great make-ahead recipe. Just fully assemble the pie then let it cool completely. Wrap and then either store in the fridge for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Let defrost fully before cooking. Allow an extra 10 minutes in the oven as it is being cooked from cold.

Note: blue cheese can be frozen but the flavour may deteriorate, so you may prefer to add the blue cheese at the point of cooking rather than adding it before freezing.

Any cooled leftovers can be stored in the fridge for 48 hours and reheated in the oven (cover with foil to stop it from drying out). Alternatively, leftovers can be reheated in the microwave. Ensure the pie is piping hot before serving.

Nutrition