Mini Meat Pies (Australian Party Pies)

Beef pie on a plate with tomato sauce and more pies in the background.

Mini Meat Pies (Australian Party Pies)

Move over bakeries, Australian Beef Party Pies are the simple homemade answers to crunchy bliss. Crispy flaky pastry meets beef gravy perfection in these tiny bites. Freeze them for make-ahead party food or a quick snack when you need them most.

Course Snack

Cuisine Australian

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 25

Total Time 45

Servings pies

Calories 106kcal

Author Wandercooks

Cost $10-$15

Equipment

Ingredients

500 g beef mince
1 onion finely chopped
2 cloves garlic finely chopped
4 mushrooms roughly chopped
2 carrots grated
½ cup red wine shiraz or cabernet sauvignon works well
½ tsp smoked paprika
½ tsp nutmeg
2 tbsp instant gravy mixed into 1 cup boiling water, for an extra thick sauce add another 2 tbsp of gravy
¼ cup beef stock
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 puff pastry sheets partly thawed
2 shortcrust pastry sheet partly thawed
2 tbsp olive oil for cooking
1 egg lightly beaten

Sauces:

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 180˚C / 360˚F.
Remove 2 frozen sheets of shortcrust pastry and puff pastry and leave them on the bench to thaw.
2 shortcrust pastry sheet, 2 puff pastry sheets
Heat the olive oil in a large pan and throw in the onions and garlic. Stir them around and cook until nicely fragrant and you just want to eat them all up (around a minute or so). You know, that amazing “Oh my god as if that’s only onions and garlic” smell.
1 onion, 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 cloves garlic
Add the beef mince and cook until nicely browned, then pour over with red wine and sprinkle in the smoked paprika and nutmeg. Next, add in the mushrooms and grated carrots. Cook down until all the liquid has evaporated, stirring occasionally so nothing sticks and burns.
500 g beef mince, 4 mushrooms, ½ cup red wine, ½ tsp smoked paprika, ½ tsp nutmeg, 2 carrots
Now reduce the heat to medium and add in the tomato paste, beef stock and that glossy brown gravy. Give everything a good stir. Remove from the heat and start working on those pie crusts!
¼ cup beef stock, 2 tbsp tomato paste, 2 tbsp instant gravy
Use a large circular jar or bowl to cut out circles roughly 12 cm / 4.5 inches in diameter for the shortcrust pastry bases, and 8 cm / 3 inches for the puff pastry tops. Note: Sizes may vary slightly depending on the size of your muffin tray.
2 puff pastry sheets, 2 shortcrust pastry sheet
Press the shortcrust bases out into a muffin tin, then scoop in some of the beef filling until they’re full to the top. Don’t overfill, as this will cause the pies to leak while cooking and pop the tops off.
Next, place the puff pastry lids over each pie and press around the edge of each lid with your finger to seal them.
Baste with the beaten egg and pierce the tops 4 times with a skewer. Pop them in the oven to bake for around 25 minutes or until the tops are flaky and golden brown.
1 egg
Serve hot with your favourite sauces such as tomato sauce/ketchup, bbq sauce, Worcestershire sauce or takoyaki sauce.
tomato sauce/ketchup, bbq sauce, Worcestershire sauce, Takoyaki Sauce

Video

Notes

The Pastry - To speed things up, we’ve used frozen shortcrust pastry and frozen puff pastry sheets today, but feel free to make it from scratch if you have the time. We used two sheets of each for this recipe. The key to the bakery style texture is to use shortcrust pastry on the bottom (for crumblyness) and puff pastry on the top (for the flakyness). If you’re pastry sheets are straight out the freezer, this is the best time to prise them apart. Carefully pull from a corner, it’s even easier if it has the plastic in between each sheet, as you can use it as a pull tab. Go slowly, and you’ll hear the sheet slowly come away from the pile. This should avoid the sheet snapping while frozen.
Vegetables - We love slipping in a little extra health factor when we can – the grated carrot is perfect as it cooks down to nothing, while mushroom is just a favourite of ours that works well with beef. Feel free to swap things out for your own preferred vegetables or omit them altogether for a real classic simple beef pie.
Spices - The nutmeg and smoked paprika give a nice hint of extra spice, without overtaking the flavour too much. Feel free to sub out the nutmeg for the more peppery mace if you have it.
Red Wine - A dry red works well, we usually keep a cheap cask/box of shiraz (or cabernet sauvignon) in the cupboard as this lasts the longest and is great for adding to all sorts of dishes without breaking the bank.
Beef Mince - We used premium Aussie meat – going with Angus beef mince. You can also use chicken, pork or turkey mince for a different flavour.
Olive Oil - Always try and get extra virgin olive oil if you can. You can also substitute with butter, vegetable or canola oil here in a pinch.
Thick Gravy - If you like a really thick gravy, add in an extra tablespoon or two of instant gravy mix and stir through to get it just how you like it. If you push a spoon through the sauce and liquid pools in the space, it’s not thick enough yet, so let it cook down a little longer.
Taste As You Go – if it needs more flavour add more gravy, spices or a pinch of salt and pepper.
Airfryer Instructions - If you’ve got Airfryer muffin pans, you can cook your meat pies in your airfryer. Pre-heat for 5 minutes to 180°C / 360°F, follow the recipe as normal, then cook in the airfryer for around 25 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. If already cooked, you don’t need the muffin tins and can reheat the pies directly from the fridge or freezer in the Airfryer as well. Pre-heat for 5 minutes to 160°C / 320°F. Then cook for around 10-15 minutes from the fridge and 20-25 minutes from the freezer until heated through.
Storage - You can freeze or refrigerate the pies. After cooking them in the oven and allowing them to cool, you can keep them in an airtight container for 3-5 days in the fridge or for a couple of months in the freezer. Then just reheat in the oven to keep the crispyness in the pastry, or if you’re in a hurry, you can warm up in the microwave instead.

Nutrition