Warm Up With Bourke Street Bakery's Winter Recipe for Beef, Beer, Bacon and Potato Pie
Rolling the lifelong love affair that is beer and pie into one big mouthful.
In partnership with 
"One night, as I was bathing in a cool light amber ale I had a revelation to combine together the holy grail of bacon, beer and beef, encase it in butter pastry, then top that with cheesy potato mash." Bourke Street Bakery co-owner Paul Allam isn't afraid to mix beer and baked goods. Rather than enjoying the two separately, Paul uses beer in his pies when the occasion calls for it — and we're calling for it.
"Beer and baked goods are the perfect symbiosis," he says. Allam's well-versed in beer's ability to enhance certain flavours and complement others. Certain beers with a more crisp edge, like a Little Creatures Original Pilsner, can cut through heavier, more buttery dishes, refreshing and reviving the palate, while more hoppy beers, like a Kosciuszko Pale Ale, can help you soldier on through spicy food. We were keen to test this glorious secret ingrebrdient theory for ourselves, so we asked Paul for a cheeky recipe. So what's he cooked up for Concrete Playground? One heck of a hearty beef, beer, bacon and potato pie. So much alliteration, so little time.
Paul actually uses beer in a lot of his recipes, not just pies. "We made beer marshmallows to challenge the perception of ourselves as men," he says. "We also made dark ale ice cream and ale jubes, then with the leftover marshmallows and jubes, I salted some peanuts, mixed them altogether and made a beer rocky road ice cream. I ate the whole tub while watching a replay of the 1984 Canterbury and Parramatta NRL grand final."
So what's Paul's favourite beer to pair with his baked treats? "Depends on the baked good," he says. "With a meat pie, I would say it's a darker ale with a touch of bitterness to counteract that sweet wagyu beef shin and tomato sauce. With a lager, I would honour its cold fermentation with a sourdough sandwich."
So, back to that pie. Pick up a six-pack of pale ale for cooking with and of course, pairing with afterwards. Aprons on. Let's do this.
BOURKE STREET BAKERY'S BEEF, BEER, BACON & POTATO PIE
Ingredients:
833.75gm onions
747.5gm beer — use a pale ale like James Squire 150 Lashes
500gm celery
50gm garlic
2.5gm thyme
750gm tomatoes
50gm malt vinegar
150gm potato starch
2.75gm white pepper
833.75gm bacon
13.75gm salt
2.5kg beef mince
Potato and cheese topping for pie:
1kg potato peeled
150gm milk
0.875gm white pepper
0.375gm nutmeg
5.875gm salt
75gm emmental cheese
100gm mozzarella
75gm butter
Pie directions:
Dice and sweat onions, garlic, celery thyme.
Add diced bacon and cook off until golden.
Sauté mince over medium high heat in a separate pan breaking it apart until just cooked.
Add beef to the onion mix & add tomatoes and pepper, salt and vinegar.
Cook for about 45 mins over medium heat then bring to the boil, add potato starch which has been dissolved in about half a cup of water.
Check consistency of the filling with a large spoon if its running off the spoon add a little diluted potato starch.
Cool in fridge.
When ingredients are cold fill pre-lined pie bases with the pie mix.
Potato topping directions:
Bring potatoes to the boil in a generous saucepan of lightly salted water.
Boil until beginning to fall apart then drain very well and mash.
When completely mashed with no lumps add butter, cheeses, milk salt and pepper.
You need to pipe the potato mix when it's still warm do not let it cool completely.
Using a piping bag pipe potato on to the top of the pie completely covering to form a lid.
If you love discovering more things you can do with beer (and some surprising facts, like beer being 99.9 percent sugar free on average), visit www.beerthebeautifultruth.com. You'll find information on fusing beer and food, matching different styles of beer with your meals, and how particular foods can enhance the distinct flavour of a well-brewed beer. You can even find out a few nutritional myths around beer, and bust 'em while you're at it.
Images: Kimberley Low.
