British Style Meat Pie (Low Carb And Gluten Free)
This is a British style meat pie recipe with low carb ingredients and lots of cooking tips. Your meat will turn out mouthwateringly tender in a luscious gravy with a fun cauliflower crust.
Servings 4
Calories 543kcal
Ingredients
- 2 pounds beef chuck roast cut into thick steaks
- 3 tablespoons of avocado oil
- 1 onion minced
- 1 small carrot diced
- 2 cups of gluten free chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon of gluten-free tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon of gluten-free tomato sauce
- 2 teaspoons of gluten-free Worcestershire sauce I use Lee & Perrins
- 1 teaspoon of thyme
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- pepper to taste
- 1 cup of red wine
- 1 tablespoon of powdered gelatin
- 3 tablespoons of butter
- For cauliflower crust:
1 head of cauliflower
- 1/2 cup of water
- 1 egg beaten
- 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese grated
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- pepper to taste
Instructions
- Take the meat out of the refrigerator an hour before you’re ready to cook, if you can, to bring it to room temperature. Pat the meat dry with paper towels. Additionally, pound the meat with a meat tenderizer to soften the fibers of the meat. You don't want to pound it too hard, but a light pounding with the rough edge of a meat mallet will do the trick. Trim excess fat, remove any gristle, and set aside.
- In a large pot, cook onion in oil until caramelized (about 5 minutes). Transfer onions to a bowl and set aside.
- Next heat 3 more tablespoons of oil in your pot for a minute or two. Then season your meat with salt and place it in the pot to sear.After about 3 minutes, flip the meat over and sear the other side for another 3 minutes.This will add tremendous flavor to your pot of stew.
- Transfer your meat to a cutting board and deglaze the pot with wine scraping up the brown bits. Simmer until the wine is reduced by half (about 5-7 minutes).
- Meanwhile, cut the meat against the grain into strips and then each strip into one-inch cubes. It will just be seared on the outside, not cooked all the way through.
- Return the caramelized onions and beef cubes to the pot. Add chicken broth, carrots, garlic powder, tomato paste, tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and thyme.
- Now let that simmer for 1 hour with the lid slightly ajar to keep the temperature low. We want this to cook low and slow, not boil.
- After 1 hour, prepare your gelatin.First, sprinkle the powdered gelatin into 1 cup of cold water and let it sit for 5 minutes. This is called blooming.Add this gelatin mixture to your stew, and it will dissolve evenly. Add butter and stir. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- For the cauliflower crusts: Preheat your oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and brush with olive oil.Pulse a few florets of cauliflower at a time in your food processor until the cauliflower pieces are the size of couscous, about 3 cups.Next bring ½ cup of water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add the cauliflower to the pan. Stir. Turn the heat off and cover the pan. Let the pan sit covered for 10 minutes.Then remove the lid. Transfer to a cheesecloth and twist cheesecloth into a pouch. Squeeze out as much of the moisture as possible, almost 1 cup of liquid. It’s important for the cauliflower rice to be dry.
- Then place in a large mixing bowl and add egg, cheese, salt and pepper. Mix well.
- Divide into 8 sections on the oiled parchment paper. Shape into circles to fit each crock or ramekin. Bake for 10-15 minutes and set aside.
- Assemble your pot pies: Using a spatula, gently place one baked cauliflower crust on the bottom of each oven-safe crock or ramekin. Fill each with your luscious beef mixture and top with another cauliflower crust.Score each top with a sharp knife for ventilation. Bake for 20 minutes until bubbly.
Notes
- Today I have a 2 pound chuck roast cut into two thick steaks. A flat iron steak would also work well or even a ribeye.
- I sear the meat before cutting it up so it turns out melt in your mouth tender and juicy. If you're starting with beef cubes, try not to cook them all the way through at first. You only want a slight sear for added flavor.
- Don't have avocado oil? No problem. You can use extra-virgin olive oil or any oil you prefer. You don’t need to have a high flame. Just keep the flame on medium and make sure the oil doesn’t start to smoke.
- Since the size of heads of cauliflower can vary, be sure to divide your crusts into thin circles.
- I used Knox unflavored gelatin from the supermarket. Next time I'll probably go with Vital Proteins gelatin as it's made from grass fed beef.
- I wrap the steamed cauliflower in cheesecloth to squeeze out the excess water. You can use a clean thin dish towel if you don't have cheesecloth.
- Make ahead. This recipe reheats well. I think stews like this are even better the next day. It would be best to store the stewed meat with the gravy in a separate air tight container in the fridge or freezer. The cauliflower crusts should be stored separately because they would get soggy in the gravy. Then warm up the meat, assemble the pies, and bake when you're ready to enjoy them.
- You will have gravy left over from this dish that can be refrigerated in a jar for 4-5 days to pour over meals you'll make for the week.
- If you would like to make one 9 inch pie: divide the cauliflower batter into 2 sections. Press one section into a thin crust in the bottom of an oven-safe pie dish and shape the other section into a thin 9 inch top crust on an oiled parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake your crust at 450°F for 10-15 minutes and set aside.
Then turn the oven down to 350°F and continue to follow the recipe for the filling.
When the filling is ready, fill the crust lined pie dish with meat mixture and carefully top with the cauliflower top crust.
Score the top with a sharp knife for ventilation.
Bake for 20 minutes until bubbly.
Nutrition
Calories: 543kcal | Carbohydrates: 12.2g