Mrs Appleyard's meat pie

 

1 kg stew beef
5 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon chilli powder
6 dried shitake, rehydrated in 3 cups warm water
1 big tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon marmite
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1 bag shallots
2 biggish carrots
1/2 cup peas

Soak the mushrooms for a while. Dredge the beef in flour and spices. Brown the meat in butter in a dutch oven. Chop the mushrooms. In their broth, dissolve the tomato paste and marmite. Pour this over the beef, adding the mushrooms, herbs and salt. Simmer for 2 hours. Meanwhile peel the shallots: top and tail, then douse in boiling water for 2 minutes to loosen the skins. Square the sides of the carrots and cut them into nice dice. Half an hour before the end, add the onions and carrots. Ten minutes before the end, add the peas. Pour this into a large glass casserole and top with biscuit dough. When the biscuits are golden, pour over some melted butter.