Venison Meat Pie is something that is guest-worthy and, for the most part, fool proof.  Feel free to use the less tender cuts of meat and scraps for this because they are slow cooked first before being added to the pie crust.  You could substitute beef for the venison.  This is one of my husbands favorite meals.  We cook it in a 9×13 pan, but if you are a smaller family you could halve the recipe or make the full recipe, fill a traditional pie pan, and freeze the rest for a future meal.

I sometimes double the vegetables to make the meal go further and fill the pan up more.  If you like to peel your veggies, save the skins and ends in a freezer bag for making stock.

Ingredients:

• 1-2tb vegetable oil
• 2lbs stew meat
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, sliced or quartered
• 2 garlic cloves (of course, use more if you wish), minced
• 2/3 c beef stock
• 2c Guinness
• Salt and pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• flour
• Pie crust

Method (Choose an oven proof skillet or dutch oven):

1. Heat your skillet over medium high heat.
2. Preheat your oven to 325F.
3. Dab your stew meat dry, add salt and pepper.
4. Once your skillet has warmed, add about a tablespoon of oil and let it heat on high.  Finally, add about half of your stew meat to begin browning.  The idea here is not to cook your stew meat, but just brown the sides.  Scoot them around in the skillet with a spoon from time to time, but overall this should be a fairly fast process.
5. Remove meat, add another tablespoon of oil, let it heat, repeat with the remaining stew meat.
6. Remove meat, set aside, then add your carrots and onions to brown them a little.
7. Once carrots and onions have a bit of color, add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
8. Add the stew meat back to the pan along with the beef stock and guinness, salt and pepper to taste, and bay leaf.  Cover. Heat to boiling, then place in the oven.
9. Cook mixture for about two hours, until meat is falling apart, then remove from the oven.
10. Raise heat in your oven to 400F
11. Prepare your casserole dish or pie pan with a layer of pie dough.  You will need two crusts – top and bottom.
12. Remove meat and veggies from the skillet, heat the skillet over high heat and add in a few tablespoons of flour.  whisk well to combine, and continue stirring as the mixture heats.  It should thicken as it comes to a boil.  Add more flour, a bit at a time, if necessary. Once it has thickened to a gravy like consistency, add meat and veggies back in and turn off the heat.
13. Pour mixture into casserole dish lined with a pie crust.  Lay top crust on top of the meat mixture and press edges to seal.  Cut a few vent holes in the top, then bake for 30-40 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.