A minced beef and onion pie cut open showing the beef and vegetables inside

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Minced Beef and Onion Pies are a satisfying and comforting meal when served with mushy peas and mashed potato. This classic English/British meat pie is made with ground beef cooked with onions, carrots and delicious flavorings all wrapped in a flaky, homemade pastry.

A minced beef and onion pie cut open showing the beef and vegetables inside

With a double, top and bottom crust, these individual pies (or hand pies if you're in the U.S) are just classic English comfort food.

If you're familiar with British cuisine, you'll know we like our savory meat pies and this is the perfect recipe that reflects this. You can make these pies ahead and freeze them.

Also known as savory mince pies (or savoury mince pies if you're in the U.K.), different from the popular sweet mince pies (< click for recipe) that are served at Christmas time that are filled with a sweet mincemeat filling.

These pies are the typical pies that you will find in any high street bakery and are a popular quick, warm lunch on-the-go.

A minced beef and onion pie from overhead showing the golden pastry

What is a British Mince Pie?

Mince pies in the UK are similar to savory hand pies in the US. They come in individual sizes (these are 5-inch/13 cm rounds) as they are a popular on-the-go lunch that are sold in bakeries, which is how I made them for this recipe.
It can also be made family style in a 9-inch/23 cm pie pan. Just slice and serve.

How to Freeze Minced Beef and Onion Pies

Wrap the unbaked pies well in aluminum foil or plastic wrap and then into ziptop bags. Defrost in the fridge overnight and cook as instructed in the recipe. Serve with a side of mashed potato and mushy peas, it doesn't get anymore British than this.

The filling is similar to shepherds pie. Starting with ground beef, chopped onions and carrots all cooked with a beef stock and tomato paste with Worcestershire sauce to make a rich beefy filling. Traditionally carrots are not added, but I like to add them for sweetness and it gives the filling some color.

The pie on a white plate with a fork and mushy peas

After simmering the meat and vegetables, it's important to strain any liquid and fat to prevent getting soggy pies. It's also important to let the mixture cool before adding it to the pastry.

For this recipe I chose to make individual pies in 5-inch/13 cm round pie pans. There is pastry on the bottom as well as the top because in England we don't serve the pies in the dish, they are removed and served right on the plate.   Don't forget to serve with a side of mushy peas (see pic below).

A white bowl filled with mushy peas

Pie Pastry

This homemade pie dough recipe is so light, so flaky and buttery.  So easy to make and turns out perfectly every time. It is my go-to recipe for all my savory and sweet pastries like:

  • Homemade Sausage Rolls
  • Traditional Cornish Pasty
  • Steak and Ale Pie
  • Bourbon Pecan Pie

Leftover pies

These pies keep so well refrigerated for about 3 days. Keep any leftover pies in the tin, that way you can re-heat at 350°F/177°F for about 20-25 minutes. The pastry will stay flaky and light and will be as if you had just made it.

Another popular side dish to serve with savory pies is British Baked Beans (picture below). Made from scratch using dried beans and baked in a flavorful tomato sauce.

cropped-British-Baked-Beans-10.jpg

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 42 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 2 minutes

Ingredients

  • For the pastry:
  • 3 cups (450 grams) plain/all-purpose flour
  • 2 sticks/1 cup (226 grams) unsalted butter, cubed and kept cold until ready to use
  • Small pinch of salt
  • 1/2 cup (118 ml) cold water
  • 1 large egg beaten to brush on pastry

For the filling:

  • 1 pound (453 grams) ground beef, I like 80/20
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 6 ounces (170 grams) yellow onion, finely chopped
  • 5 ounces (141 grams) carrot, peeled and chopped
  • 1 tablespoon flour
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1/4 cup (59 ml) Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/4 cup (59 ml) beef stock (low sodium if possible) * see note
  • Salt & pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. To make the pastry in a food processor: Add the flour, butter and salt. Pulse until you get the texture of fine breadcrumbs. With the processor running, slowly drizzle in the cold water until it forms a ball. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and shape into a flat ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 10-15 minutes.
  2. To make the pastry by hand: Add the flour, salt and butter to a large bowl. Using your fingertips (or a pastry cutter) rub the butter and flour until it resembles breadcrumbs. Drizzle in the water and mix using a fork until the it starts to come together and holds together when pressed in your hand. You may not need all of the water.
  3. For the filling:
  4. Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C.Butter 4-5 inch (12 cm) pie dishes (or 1, 9 inch/23 cm round pie dish).
  5. Add oil to large saucepan and heat over medium heat. Add the ground beef and break up the meat and allow to brown. Add the onions and carrots, stir and cook for about 5 minutes to soften slightly.  Add the flour and stir well, cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce and beef stock. Simmer for 10 minutes until thickened and the liquid has reduced. Taste for seasoning, depending on how much salt your beef stock has, add salt and pepper to taste.  Strain off any fat that comes to the surface. Transfer to a bowl using a slotted spoon and allow to cool.
  6. Cut the dough in half and roll out onto a floured board. Cut out 4- 5 1/2 inch (14 cm) rounds out of the pastry, or just slightly bigger than your dishes. Refrigerate or freeze any leftover dough.
  7. Put the pastry into the dishes and smooth evenly, allowing the excess to hang over the side. Add 3 tablespoons filling into each pie dish. Brush the edges of the pastry with the egg wash.
  8. Roll out the other half of the dough. Cut 4 more 5 1/2 inch (14 cm) rounds. Lay each round over each pie and seal the edges with a fork.
  9. Brush all pie tops with egg wash.
  10. Place them onto a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Depending on your oven.

Notes

If you are not using low sodium, you may want to adjust the salt amount.

Nutrition Information

Yield

4

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 811 Total Fat 37g Saturated Fat 19g Trans Fat 1g Unsaturated Fat 15g Cholesterol 137mg Sodium 460mg Carbohydrates 98g Fiber 5g Sugar 11g Protein 21g

This nutrition calculation is provided by Nutronix that is only a guideline and not intended for any particular diet.

A large piece of fried cod laying on top of chips/French fries