Ingredients

(Serves 6)

• 1 kilo venison haunch, cut into small pieces
• Knob of butter
• 2 English onions, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 1 celery stick, chopped
• 1tbsp flour, plus extra for dusting
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 500ml Guinness
• 2 tbsp redcurrant jelly
• 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 500g block puff pastry
• 1 egg, beaten and mixed with a little milk

Method

1.  Heat oven to 180°C.
2. Heat a large pan with a knob of butter and brown off all the venison in small batches.
3. Once browned, set aside and brown off all the vegetables and fresh thyme in the pan. This locks all that wonderful meat flavour into the vegetables.
4. Deglaze the pan with the Guinness, Dijon mustard, redcurrant jelly and red wine vinegar.
5. Once at boiling point, stir in the flour and cook out until the Guinness sauce takes on a nice consistency and shine.
6. Lay all the venison in a casserole dish and cover with the Guinness sauce.
7. Roll the pastry to a £1 coin thickness and lay gently over the dish. Pierce three small slits in the pastry to allow steam to rise out of the pie.
8. Egg wash generously as this will give the pie a lovely crust once cooked and keep the pastry buttery and soft.
9. Cook the pie for around 45-55 minutes until the pastry is golden brown.