• 1 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 sticks celery, chopped
• 1 kg stewing beef (such as chuck or brisket), cubed
• 2 heaped tbls flour
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 440ml can of Guinness
• u00bc cup water
• 1 cube beef stock crumbled
• u00bd tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 3 sprigs thyme, picked from stalk
• salt, for taste
• 1 roll store-bought puff pastry
• -t1 egg, beaten

• In a large pot, heat the butter and olive oil. Add the onions, garlic, carrots and celery. Gently fry for 3 minutes, or until the onion is translucent. Add the beef and brown slightly.
• Stir in the flour, then add the tomato paste.
• Add the Guinness and stock. Stir to combine.
• Add the pepper, and thyme. Taste and season with salt if needed.
• Cover with a lid and allow to simmer for 1 ½ hours. Remove the lid, stir and cook for a further 15 minutes or until the steak is tender and the gravy is rich and thick.
• Cool the filling.
• In the meantime, preheat your oven to 190 degrees.
• Roll the pastry out evenly with a floured rolling pin to the thickness of a R5 coin and line a pie dish.
• Tip the cool pie filling into your dish.
• Roll out another piece of pastry to place over the top of the pie dish. Press to seal and crimp around the edges with a fork. Lightly brush the top with beaten egg, cut a slit to allow the steam to escape, then bake the pie for 40 minutes, or until the pastry is cooked, puffed and golden.