Flaky pastry, rich and tender steak and a creamy, crispy mac and cheese – these mini pies are beyond delicious!
If you’ve never had the pleasure of tasting the combination that is mac and cheese + steak pie, you’re in for such a treat. These little pies are rich, cheesy, beefy, flaky and all around completely mouthwatering. You’re gonna love them! Follow me…
Steak Pie Filling
The filling is a cross between a steak pasty filling (similar to my Steak Bakes) and a classic steak pie situation (like my Steak and Potato Pie). We’re going to give the beef a nice long simmer so it’s nice and tender and it has a gorgeous, deep and rich flavour. When doing so, there are two important things to consider:
- Type of beef – You want something that’s suitable for slow-cooking/braising, i.e. something with marbled fat. This will ensure the beef breaks down nicely and stays tender. I used 2x ribeye steaks, but something like beef chuck works perfectly. Do not use lean beef.
- Consistency – It’s essential that the filling is nice and thick. If it’s watery, it’ll make the pastry go soggy, and they just collapse. To ensure it thickens properly, you’ll need to simmer with the lid off towards the end.
Process shots: add beef to pot (photo 1), brown then remove (photo 2), fry onion, garlic, carrot, celery (photo 3), stir in tomato puree and flour (photo 4), stir in wine, stock, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaf and beef (photo 5), simmer (photo 6).
Recipe Tip
I recommend making the steak filling ahead of time and storing in the fridge until needed. Not only does this break up the long recipe process, but it ensures the flavours all mingle together and the consistency properly thickens (not a deal break if you don’t).
Mac and Cheese
Yes, normal people would put some pastry on top of that steak filling and call it a day. But this is me, so naturally I’m using mac and cheese as the crust for the filling. Trust me – it works.
For this particular recipe, you’ll want the mac and cheese nice and thick (but certainly not dry), just so it holds its shape a little better when you plonk it on top of the pies. I love using a combo of Cheddar, Gruyere and Mozzarella, but you can get away with just Cheddar and Mozzarella.
Process shots: melt butter then stir in flour (photo 1), whisk in milk then stir in seasoning (photo 2), stir in cheese (photo 3), stir in cooked macaroni (photo 4).
Mini Steak Mac and Cheese Pies
For the pies, we’ll be using shortcrust pastry (aka pie pastry). I use store-bought, but feel free to whip up your own if you fancy it. Shortcrust pastry works nicely because it’s nice and sturdy, so all the filling is in safe hands.
Blind baking the pastry
This step is essential. I did initially test these without blind baking, but because there’s so much filling (and saucy filling at that), the pastry doesn’t crisp up. At least not enough to create a sturdy ‘cup’. As such, you’ll want to pre-bake the pastry without the filling to give it a head start. I like to weigh down baking paper with uncooked rice, mainly because it’s usually what I’ve got on hand, but also because it weighs down the paper evenly to prevent the pastry from puffing up.
Process shots: slice pastry and place in muffin tin (photo 1), prick with fork (photo 2), weigh down with baking paper and rice (photo 3), bake (photo 4), add steak filling (photo 5), add mac and cheese then bake (photo 6).
Serving Mac and Cheese Steak Pies
Once they’re golden and bubbly, they’re good to go! These are perfect for literally any sort of gathering – just watch them get gobbled up.
For more mini pies, check out my Mini Chicken and Chorizo Pies and Mini Cottages Pies!
Alrighty, let’s tuck into the full recipe for these mac and cheese steak pies shall we?!
How to make Mac and Cheese Steak Pies (Full Recipe & Video)
Mac and Cheese Steak Pies
Equipment
- Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
- Suitably Sized Heavy Based Pot with Lid (for cooking steak filling)
- Wooden Spoon
- Jug (for stock)
- 12 Hole Muffin Tin (see notes)
- Large Pan & Whisk (for mac and cheese)
- Large Pot & Colander (for cooking macaroni)
- Baking Paper
- Uncooked Rice (for blind-baking the pastry)
Ingredients
Steak Filling
- drizzle of Olive Oil
- 450g / 1lb Steak/Beef suitable for slow cooking, sliced into 1" pieces (see notes)
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/4 tsp Black Pepper
- 1 rib of Celery, finely diced
- 1 small/medium Carrot, finely diced
- 1 small/medium Onion, finely diced
- 2 cloves of Garlic, finely diced
- 1 tbsp Tomato Puree (Tomato Paste in US)
- 2 1/2 tbsp Plain Flour
- 80ml / 1/3 cup Dry Red Wine
- 480ml / 2 cups Beef Stock
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 Bay Leaf
Mac and Cheese
- 200g / 7oz Macaroni
- 45g / 1.5oz Butter
- 45g / 1.5oz Plain Flour
- 480ml / 2 cups Milk
- 200g / 7oz Cheese (see notes)
- 1/2 tsp Mustard Powder
- 1/4 tsp EACH: Garlic Powder, Salt, White Pepper
Pies
- 2x 320g/11.3oz sheets of Shortcrust Pastry (see notes)
- 20g / 1/4 cup Parmesan
Instructions
- I recommend making the steak filling ahead of time and chilling it in the fridge overnight if you have time (see notes). Not a deal-breaker if not, you can still go ahead with the recipe.
Steak filling
- Season the diced beef all over with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper. Add a drizzle of oil in a large heavy-based saucepan over high heat, then add all the beef, spreading it out as needed. Brown both sides, then remove and place in a bowl to one side (doesn't need to be cooked at this point, just get some colour on it to develop flavour).
- Lower the heat to medium, then add the onion, carrot and celery, topping up with oil if needed. Fry until it all starts to soften and turn golden, then add the garlic and fry for another 30 seconds or so. Stir in the tomato puree and fry for 30 seconds, then stir in the flour (it might clump up a little, which is fine).
- Pour in the wine and stir to combine with the flour to make a paste, then pour in the stock, stirring as you go to avoid lumps forming. Add the Worcestershire sauce and bay leaf, then stir in the beef + all the resting juices. Use your wooden spoon to scrape any flavour from the base of the pot.
- Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low so it's gently bubbling away. Add the lid and cook for 1 hour and 30 minutes (you can check a few times to scrape the base of the pot). After this, remove the lid and simmer for a further 20-30 minutes, until the beef is tender and the sauce is nice and thick. If you need to simmer slightly longer, then do so – you don't want the sauce watery at all (see video for visual reference).
- Remove from heat and use two forks to roughly shred the beef (some larger pieces here and there are fine). Preferably, pour it into a bowl and cover overnight in the fridge. If you don't have time, just let it completely cool to room temp (it should form a skin on top).
Pastry
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F.
- Slice 12x 10.5cm/4" circles from the sheets of pastry. Lightly grease the tin holes, then place in the pastry, ensuring you gently press it against the tin, creating 12 'cups'. Use a fork to prick the base a few times, then cut out 12 squares of baking paper (you can use the stuff the pastry came in) and place them into the cups. Pour in enough uncooked rice to fill the cups, then use a spoon to gently press down.
- Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, then remove the baking paper and rice and cook for a further 5-10 minutes until the pastry looks light and golden.
Mac and Cheese
- Add the macaroni to a large pot of salted water and cook until al dente. Drain when done.
- Melt the butter in a large pan over medium heat, then stir in the flour to create a roux. Gradually pour in the milk, whisking as you go to avoid lumps forming, then stir in the seasoning.
- Simmer for a couple of minutes to thicken the sauce, then turn off the heat and stir through the cheese until it melts. Stir through the macaroni, then place to one side.
Pies
- Spoon the steak filling into the pastry cups that have now been blind-baked, then top with mac and cheese (you may have a little leftover, just spoon that straight into your mouth). Sprinkle with parmesan then bake in the oven at 180C/350F for 20-25 minutes, or until golden, crisp and bubbly. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- 100g / 3.5oz Cheddar
- 70g / 2.5oz Gruyere
- 30g / 1oz Mozzarella
- Steak filling – perfect as it helps develop flavour and allows the consistency to fully thicken.
- Pastry – you can blind bake the pastry then allow to completely cool and tightly store at room temp over night.
- Mac and Cheese – this will dry out if you make it ahead of time, so I tend not to.
- The whole pies – main issues is the mac and cheese not coming out half as creamy as if they were made fresh. If I have leftovers I tightly store them in the fridge then give them a quick blitz in the microwave and finish in the oven until piping hot through the centre again.
Your Private Notes:
Nutrition
Looking for more?
You’ll find plenty more delicious comfort food like this in my Debut Cookbook ‘Comfy’
