Steak, Guinness and Cheese pie

Original recipe: http://www.jamieoliver.com

olive oil 3 medium red onions, chopped 3 cloves garlic, chopped 2 carrots, chopped 2 sticks celery, chopped 4 field mushrooms, sliced 1 kg beef brisket or stewing beef, 2cm cubes rosemary, chopped salt freshly ground black pepper 440 ml Guinness 2 heaped tablespoons plain flour 150 g Cheddar cheese , grated puff pastry 1 egg

Preheat the oven to 190ºC/375ºF/gas 5. In a large ovenproof pan, heat a lug of olive oil on a low heat. Gently fry onions in oil for about 10 minutes. Turn the heat up, add the garlic, carrots and celery and scatter in the mushrooms. Mix everything together before stirring in the beef, rosemary, a pinch of salt and a level teaspoon of pepper. Fry fast for 3 or 4 minutes, then pour in the Guinness, stir in the flour and add just enough water to cover. Bring to a simmer, cover the pan with a lid and place in the preheated oven for about 1½ hours. Remove the pan from the oven and give the stew a stir. Put it back into the oven and continue to cook it for another hour, or until the meat is very tender and the stew is rich, dark and thick. A perfect pie filling needs to be robust, so if it’s still quite liquidy, place the pan on the hob and reduce until the sauce thickens. Remove from the heat and stir in half the cheese, then season carefully and leave to cool slightly. Line the pie dish with pastry. Add stew to the dish and sprinkl over the remaining cheese. Place more pastry over the top of the pie dish. Brush the top with beaten egg and bake for 45 minutes until the pastry is cooked.