Meat pie, pâté a la viande, tourtière….there are so many names for the popular Quebec dish! The idea is a mixture of cooked ground meats baked between two flaky pastries.
Where I’m from in Quebec, the holidays simply wouldn’t be joyous without a meat pie on our Christmas tables. There are a gazillion versions, typically passed down from generation to generation, and every family claims theirs is the best and THE recipe.
My one criticism of the meat pie is that depending on how fatty the meats are, the pie can be dry. In my family, we use a mixture of pork and beef and it’s still what I prefer. Once in a while, I add small cubes of potatoes and that’s tasty too. This year, I saw someone on one of my Canadian Facebook pages that said her family uses mashed potatoes in their meat pies. What!!?? Then I thought…mmmm….wouldn’t that make the meat mixture creamy and not crumbly/dry? The answer is 100% YES!! These were the best meat pies I’ve ever had and I’ll always make them with mashed potatoes going forward.
For this Quebec Tourtière recipe, I make a double batch of my buttery Fail Proof Pie Crust recipe and for the two, double-crusted meat pies. Simply omit the sugar in the crust recipe as this is a savory pie.
Ingredients:
- 2 large or 3 medium Russet potatoes, cut into chunks
- 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
- 1 ½ pounds ground beef (80%/20% fat)
- 1 ½ pounds ground pork
- 2 small onions, diced
- 1 cup brewed medium roast coffee
- 1 cup beef broth
- ¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp. ground clove
- 2 tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. black pepper
- 4 9” pie crusts
- 1 egg + 1 Tbsp. water stirred well
Directions:
- Place the potato pieces in a medium saucepan and cover with water. Over high heat, bring the water to a boil then turn the heat down to medium and simmer for about 20 minutes, until the potatoes are fork tender. Drain very well and return the potatoes to the pan to dry for a few minutes then mash well with a potato masher. Set aside.
- In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, warm the oil then add the ground beef and the ground pork and cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until no longer pink. Add the onion and continue cooking for 3-4 minutes until the onion has softened. Add the coffee, broth and all the spices and stir well. Cook over medium heat for 10 minutes until some of the liquid has evaporated. Add the mashed potatoes to the meat mixture and still until well-distributed and the potatoes have absorbed the liquid.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Place a pie crust in each of two 9” pie plates. Add enough of the meat mixture to the two pies so that the meat is a bit above the height of the pie plate (you may have some leftover meat which is delish eaten out of a bowl as a side treat). With wet fingers from dipping in water, wet the crust on the lip of each pie to create the ‘glue’ that will adhere to the top crust. Cover with the remaining two crusts and crimp the bottom and top crusts together to ensure they’re sealed. Cut some slits in the top crusts to create a way for extra moisture to escape. Brush the egg mixture over the pies. Place the pies in the oven and bake for 45 minutes, until the pies crusts are golden brown.
- Enjoy the pies right away or cool completely and place in zip top bags then in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months. To reheat, bring the pies to room them and bake in a 325-degree oven for about 10 minutes.
Makes two 9” meat pies serving 6-8 each.
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