Quebec Tourtiere

Quebec Tourtiere

From the Dec. 18, 2013, Toronto Star.

Turned out so well! We served this with salsa and a green salad.

Quebec has many variations on tourtiere, chunky meat, ground meat, potatoes, breadcrumbs or oatmeal to thicken, but Julian’s favourite is based on a recipe served in a modest East-End Montreal restaurant, Chez Clo. In the tradition of Jehane Benoit, a renowned Quebec culinary personality and cookbook author of a generation ago, the pastry for this tourtiere uses lard. For sheer flakiness, lard is best.

Pastry:

• 5 cups (1.25 L) all-purpose flour
• 4 tsp. (20 ml) baking powder
• 2 tsp. (10 ml) salt
• 1 pkg. (1 lb./454 g) cold lard, cubed
• 1 large egg
• 4 tsp. (20 ml) white vinegar or lemon juice
• Ice water

Filling:

• 2 lb. (908 g) medium ground beef
• 1 lb. (454 g) lean ground pork
• 2 large onions, diced
• 1 cup (250 ml) diced tender celery stalks, with leaves
• 1 cup (250 ml) chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1 1/2 cups (375 ml) water
• 2 tsp. (10 ml) dried summer savory
• 1 tsp. (5 ml) each ground cinnamon and cloves
• 1 tsp. (5 ml) each salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. (2 ml) nutmeg
• 3/4 cup (175 ml) large-flake rolled oats
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 Tbsp. (15 ml) milk

Pastry: In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. With a pastry blender, cut in lard until mixture looks crumbly, with some larger pea-sized pieces. In a liquid measuring cup, use a fork to blend egg and vinegar. Add enough ice water to make 1 cup (250 ml). Drizzle slowly over dry ingredients, tossing them with a fork to make a ragged dough that clumps together. Press dough until smooth; form into 4 discs. Wrap discs individually with plastic wrap; refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes. (Make-ahead: Refrigerate for up to 3 days. Let come to room temperature before rolling.)

Filling: In a large heavy pot or Dutch oven combine beef, pork, onions, celery, parsley, water, savory, cinnamon, cloves, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, constantly breaking up meat and stirring until meat has lost is pinkness and is crumbly, about 15 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until liquid has almost evaporated, about 1 hour. Remove from heat, stir in rolled oats. Let cool. (Make-ahead: Let cool for 30 minutes; refrigerate uncovered until cold. Cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day.)

On a floured counter and using a floured rolling pin, roll out 1 of pastry discs to a scant 1/4-inch (5 mm) thickness. Line a deep 9-inch (23 cm) pie plate with pastry, leaving edge untrimmed. Fill with half of meat mixture. Moisten pastry on rim of pie plate with water. Roll out a second disc of pastry; unroll over filling. Trim and flute edges to seal. Repeat for second pie. (Make-ahead: Double-wrap with heavy-duty foil. Freeze for up to 1 month. Let thaw in refrigerator; add about 10 minutes to the baking time. Cut steam vents in centre of each pie. In a cup, mix egg yolk with milk and brush over surface of both pies. Bake in bottom third of a 400F. (200C.) oven until pastry is golden and filling piping hot, about 40 to 45 minutes.) Let stand for about 5 minutes before serving.

Serve Quebec Tourtiere with pickled beets, chili sauce or salsa. Each pie makes 6 to 8 servings.

TIP: It’s easy to see when the pastry is golden brown, but to test for the doneness of the filling, try this technique. Insert the pointy tip of a paring knife through one of the steam vents into the filling. Let it stay for 15 seconds. Remove and feel; if the knife is piping hot, the tourtiere is done.