Beef pho pot pie

What happens when you take two winter favourites and combine them? Magic, that's what. The rich flavours of pho united with the comforting texture of puff pastry result in a sensational new creation.

Credit: Duncan Lu

• serves

  4

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  2:45 hours

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 750 g chuck steak, cut into small chunks

For beef marinade

• ½ tbsp fish sauce
• ½ tsp anchovy salt (see note)
• ¼ tsp MSG
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp sugar
• ¼ tsp cracked black pepper

For the pie

• 3 tbsp neutral cooking oil
• 50 g butter
• 1 brown onion, diced
• 2 small carrots, cut into small chunks
• 1 small daikon, cut into small chunks
• 1 tsp sea salt
• ¼ tsp anchovy salt
• 250 g par-cooked beef tendons (see note)
• ⅓ cup plain flour
• 1 pho spices sachet (see note)
• 1 L water or just enough to cover
• 200 g fresh pho noodles (see note)
• 1 sheet puff pastry
• 1 egg, beaten

Marinating time: Overnight

Cooling time: 1 hour

Instructions

1. Combine all the marinade ingredients and marinate the chuck steak overnight.
   
2. Add cooking oil to a large casserole pot on medium heat, and sear the marinated beef in batches, then set aside. In the same pot, on medium-low heat, add the butter, onion, carrots and daikon and saute until fragrant. Return the seared beef to the pot, add the flour and par-cooked beef tendons and saute for 2-3 minutes.
   
3. Add pho spices, a pinch of salt, a pinch of anchovy salt and enough water to cover, bring to the boil then cover with a lid and simmer on low for 2 hours.
   
4. Season to taste with fish sauce, anchovy salt, MSG and sugar then allow pie mixture to cool.
   
5. Once cooled, add fresh pho noodles and fold through. Add the mixture into a large casserole dish (min. 1.3 L capacity) and place the puff pastry on top. Brush with the beaten egg.
   
6. Place in a 200C fan-forced pre-heated oven for 15 minutes, then turn to 180C for 20 minutes or until golden. Serve hot.

Note:

• Anchovy salt is a byproduct of the fish sauce fermentation process. If you don't have anchovy salt, you can substitute it by adding more fish sauce. 1 teaspoon anchovy salt = 2 tablespoons fish sauce

• You can par-cook the beef tendons by adding 250g raw beef tendons to a pot of boiling water. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 1 hour. Drain well, and reserve to add to the recipe.

• Pho noodles and pho spice packets can be found at select grocers. To make your own pho spice pouch, you can place 8g coriander seeds, 8g fennel seeds, 4g star anise, 5g cassia bark, 3g black peppercorns, 4g licorice root, 4 g black cardamom, 18g rock sugar and 1g cloves into a piece of clean muslin and secure tightly with cooking twine.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.