Easy Beef Pot Pie with Puffed Pastry Crust

I am 70 years and until the week before last I had never made beef stew, in my slow cooker or otherwise. I have no idea why not because it was incredibly easy and tasted fantastic. The reason I finally made beef stew now is that I needed it as the base for a beef pot pie.

I chose this beef stew recipe because I had (almost) everything it called for other than balsamic vinegar, which I just left out. I also didn’t have thyme, but substituted oregano and all was well. The recipe also called for one cup of red wine; I cut that back to half of a cup, and upped the beef broth to two cups. This allowed the wine taste to be present without being overwhelming, but the wine can be skipped entirely and 2 1/2 cups broth used instead, if desired. Otherwise I followed everything as called for. The prep was simple, and it turned out beautifully.

To keep the crust part of the pie simple as well, I topped the stew with pre-made puffed pastry. The hard part was finding frozen puffed pastry – to seemed every store was sold out of it, as if everyone was using puffed pastry for Valentine’s Day. I ended up buying the final package remaining at Whole Foods, a bit expensive but the box contained enough for two dishes making the purchase a little less painful.

Anyway, if you’re looking for an easy, hearty, and scrumptious-looking dish, this beef pot pie is a winner!

BEEF POT PIE

• 1 TBSP olive oil
• 3 pounds chuck roast cut into 1″ pieces for stew, with excess fat removed
• Salt & pepper to taste
• 1 1/2 cups beef broth or beef bone broth (I used 2 cups)
• 1 cup dry red wine (I used 1/2 cup)
• 2 TBSP tomato paste
• 1 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp dried thyme (I substituted dried oregano)
• 1 tsp salt
• freshly grated black pepper
• 6 minced garlic cloves
• 1 large yellow onion, cut into chunks
• 4 large carrots, cut into 1/2-inch slices
• 1 pound potatoes, cut into 1/2″ cubes (I used small Yukon gold potatoes and cut them into fourths)
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup frozen peas

Add olive oil to large skillet and heat to medium high. Add the stew meat, season with salt and pepper, and sear each piece on both sides, about 4-5 minutes to a side. Place the meat in the bottom of the slow cooker, then blend the broth, wine, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, and balsamic vinegar in the skillet, scraping up the bits of beef drippings stuck to the pan. Pour the hot liquid over the beef in the cooker and add the salt and pepper, then place the garlic carrots, potatoes, and onions over the beef, and cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 4-5 hours.

Around a half-hour before serving, blend 1 cup of broth from the slow cooker into the flour with a whisk so there are no lumps. Mix this back into the beef and vegetables, and add the frozen peas. Turn the slow cooker temperature to high and cook with the lid off an additional 10-15 minutes, until the liquid in the cooker has thickened up.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Pour the hot stew into a baking pan – I used a 7″ x 11″ pan -and top with a piece of cold puff pastry dough (follow directions on the package for how to handle to dough). Bake for 20 minutes or until the crust is a golden brown and crispy throughout. Let the pie sit for 5 minutes, then cut, serve, and swoon! Makes six servings.