I am a meat eater and I am not afraid to admit it. The media is filled with horror stories of animals being loaded, terrified and ill-treated, onto trucks and hurried through the abattoir process to meet targets. Animals are dying in crates before even making their destination, and lets not even begin to talk about the UK horse meat scandal.
I love meat, but I want to know that the meat I consume has not been ill treated (and that it really is what it says it is on the packaging), and so I buy local as much as I possibly can. Our family diet has changed over the years as my education into how supermarket-destined meat has been reared and slaughtered. We eat substantially more vegetables, grown and delivered by our fantastic organic vegetable box providers – keen supporters of the slow food movement. The meat we occasionally consume is usually fully traceable and the cattle producing our dairy can be seen happily munching away on the grass in their vast fields as we drive by one of the nearby farms.
I do believe that consumer buying choices are changing producer and supplier behaviour. I spent the last week traveling the length and breadth of Shetland on The Food Trail, speaking with the crofters themselves, standing among fields of cattle and chatting with butchers. The message I got was the same: respect the animal. The Food Trail features local producers, retailers and eateries who all grow, sell or prepare food using local produce. Choosing local meat on restaurant menus means that it was reared and slaughtered with a high degree of respect. One establishment has gone as far to rear their own animals on a neighbouring croft so they know exactly how well the animals have been treated (cattle photo, above).
Respect the animal is the message driven home in a superb article by Alastair Hamilton in the Autumn 2014 issue of the 60 North magazine, where he visits and writes about the Shetland abattoir.
My motto here is respect: respect the animal. Give it time, because we have all the time in the world. We’re lucky. We’re not up against the clock. If it takes half an hour to get a cow from the marts into the abattoir, so what? If it takes twenty minutes to get it into the right position to stun it, it doesn’t matter. The animal is treated with respect and the carcass is treated with respect. That pays off in the quality of the meat.” – Lauraine Manson, manager of the Shetland abattoir
Our local abattoir offers a certificate of authenticity, meaning you can guarantee that the meat that you buy is really locally sourced. We live on a small island in the middle of the north sea where crofts are run on a small scale by families. There are no factory farms. Factory farms – they’re the one attracting all the bad press. Factory farms are not ok, and the inequality in the way they treat their animals is the focus for this year’s Blog Action Day, falling on the 16th of October.
I was directed to this day, organised by Compassion in World Farming, by a thought provoking blog post by Sally over at My Custard Pie. I spent a great deal of time thinking about what she’d written and what the day stood for. Apologies that my thoughts have been posted on the following day, but these things take time to craft. The key message I gleaned from the Compassion in World Farming website is that we should shun factory farming both for the animals who suffer and the millions of people who feel the damaging effects of their practices.
Eating less meat, but higher quality grass-fed meat, produced by small scale farmers the world over, is a suggested solution. There is the argument about the environmental damage caused by the over consumption of meat in the western world. Again, moderation is key. There is a superb article in the Scientific American emphasizing sustainability and whether humans should eat meat at all. Through a complete coincidence, I found this thought-provoking article in Modern Farmer: Farm Confessional – What Butchering Your Animals Really Feels Like. I urge you to give it a read and then think about your food choices.
We’re lucky we have these choices, as there are so many in the world who don’t.
This last week, after chatting with a local butcher, I picked up a packet of beef stewing steak. This locally produced beef, combined with organic locally grown vegetables and rich stout from Britain’s most northerly brewery made for one awesome slow cooker beef and ale pie.
I’ve made this slow cooker pie with as much local produce as I could: orange and yellow carrots from my veg box, grown just a few miles from my house (as the crow flies – the road itself winds a bit!); local butcher beef from the butcher’s nearest to my house, a spoonful of slow cooked Taing onion marmalade made by Shetlandeli, a new artisan food company based on the west side of Shetland who make as much of their products as possible with locally grown vegetables, and a generous glug of Sjolmet Stout Shetland Ale, brewed and bottled in Britain’s most northerly brewery, Valhalla Brewery in Unst.
You might be wondering why there is a picture of a cow on the ale bottle label (pictured far right, above, on the labeling machine at the brewery). ‘Sjolmet’ was a distinctive colour of a Shetland cow with a strong, dark body and a light-coloured head (much like the ale!). The colour has long since died out in the rare breed of Shetland cattle, but lives on in this full-bodied ale.
I was told by the brewery owner, Sonny, that this ale worked really well in steak and ale pies, and oh my, he was right! As this pie uses high quality ingredients extra beef stock is not required. Slow cooking brings out the natural flavours in the ingredients and the resulting pie filling, flavoured with thyme and plenty of whole black mustard seeds (because I love black mustard seeds!) really is something else. Thick, rich and ideal for these colder Autumnal evenings. I’m really rather pleased with this recipe.
If you can’t wait an additional 15 minutes to turn the filling into a pie this recipe does go really well with mashed potatoes/celeriac with a side of steamed greens. Leftovers reheat very well too, if there are any!
If you don’t own a slow cooker and would like the chance to win one, visit my Giveaways page.
Shetland Beef & Valhalla Ale Slow Cooker Pie
Ingredients
- 500 grams good quality stewing steak cubed into 3/4 inch pieces
- 50 grams plain flour
- Shetland sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 50 grams butter
- 2 red onions halved and finely sliced
- 2 tsp black mustard seeds
- 1 tbsp tomato puree
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp Shetlandeli Taing onion marmalade (optional)
- 2 tbsp dark brown sugar
- 300 ml Valhalla Brewery Soljmet Stout
- 2 large Turriefield carrots chopped into 1 cm dice
- 1 small Turriefield bulb garlic separated into peeled cloves
- 2 Turriefield fresh bay leaves
- 3 Turriefield thyme sprigs, leaves only or 1 tsp dried thyme
- 300 grams puff pastry home made or shop bought
- 1 small free-range egg mixed with 1 tsp cold water
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Instructions
- Place flour in a medium sized bowl and season well with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Dredge your stewing steak with the seasoned flour and set aside.
- Melt half the butter in a saute pan over a medium high heat and sear the meat on all sides until browned but not cooked through. Place the meat in the bottom of the slow cooker.
- Add the remaining butter and turn the heat down to medium. Gently saute the onions until they begin to soften. Stir in the mustard seeds, tomato puree, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar and ale, bringing to the boil and scraping up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan.
- Add the onion mixture to the slow cooker along with the carrots, garlic, bay leaves and thyme.
- Set the slow cooker to low and leave for seven hours.
- Preheat oven to 230 C.
- Spoon the filling into four individual casserole dishes (or one pie dish) and top with the puff pastry. Use a finger dipped in cold water rubbed along the edge of the pie dish to get the pastry to stick to the dish.
- Brush with the beaten egg/water glaze and bake for 15 minutes, or until the puff pastry has risen and is lovely and golden.
Notes
Linking up with Karen over at Lavender & Lovage and her Cooking with Herbs challenge. This month it’s all about parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme – Scarborough Fair herbs. Also linking up with Recipe of the Week by Emily over at A Mummy Too, Cook, Blog, Share with Lucy at Supergolden Bakes and Tasty Tuesdays at Honest Mum. Also linking up with my own Shop Local food blogging challenge.
OTHER SLOW COOKER BEEF RECIPES
Slow Cooked Beef Brisket with Celeriac Mash and Wild Mushrooms by Ren Behan
The Simplest Beef Casserole by Fuss Free Flavours (& a farm visit!)
Slow Cooker Rolled Brisket with Red Wine & Thyme by Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary
Beef in Beer and Slow Cooked Beef Vegetable Casserole by Fab Food 4 All
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Disclosure: slow cooker provided by Crock Pot UK, Valhalla Ale supplied by the brewery, Taing onion marmalade supplied by Jill at Shetlandeli. All opinions expressed are our own and this is not a paid post. I was not expected to create a recipe by any of these suppliers.
Chunky Guacamole
Always so many great recipes. Looking for some inspiration. Thanks for sharing.
This is making my mouth water just reading through it!
What a great hearty pie and you’ve cooked it to an absolute ‘t’
Delicious, may have to make hubby this for Father’s Day
This looks delicious and a lovely crispy and flaky top
This is a fantastic recipe, very tasty
I need to use the local butcher more often. The farmers are more likely to have treated their animals well.
That looks delicious… so warming & perfect for the cold days we are experiencing.
Looks a perfect recipe for this time of year.
This has made me so hungry! but also made me consider what I can do to do more. I completely agree with the sentiment but I must admit that since things took a turn for the worst financially I am guilty of buying meat at the supermarket without really considering its origin and focusing more on the price. But as I agree with the sentiment then it is my responsibility to do something about it and I will definitely be paying more attention from now on and buying or not accordingly! – thanks for the friendly nudge and reminder!!!!
I could so eat this right now! Yummy! x
I love a good steak and ale pie or stew and yours looks amazing. I too am seeking out traceable meat and completely agree with you that the power is in our hands. I had never heard of Blog Action Day before, so thanks so much for bringing it to my attention – it is exactly the sort of ethos I like to support.
It looks glorious! I love the glossy rich beef with crisp pastry topping, its proper pie weather now!
I am not perfect but I do try to buy most of meat from local butcher man or the highest welfare we can afford in the supermarket. Fortunately I’ve managed to convince my dearest you don’t need meat in every meal and it leaves extra pennies to buy the better stuff with too!
Sounds fabulous and just what we need at this time of year x
This sounds fantastic, and I agree – if you want to eat meat, you have to make sure it’s ethically sourced
You are right – we are lucky to have choices. I truly believe we should use that ability to choose in a constructive and thoughtful way. This was a wonderful read by any standards and so credible as your research and your own food choices. Thanks so much for the mention and I’m touched that my post was such a catalyst for your thoughts.
P.S. This is exactly the kind of food I like to eat….mmmm
Thank you Sally! You know, after nearly three years of blogging I still have that stage-fright feeling just before hitting publish. I wasn’t sure how this post would be received and I’m delighted to hear it’s all been positive (so far!). Thank you for your lovely comment and for the inspiration behind this post.
I couldn’t agree more with your sentiments. Always know where your meat comes from. It is less than you’d like and make sure it lasts! This pie is perfect. In every way. We have a local Lincolnshire ale I may use to recreate this x
Thank you Dom, do let me know what you think of the recipe if you do try it! 🙂
As a vegetarian it is great to see that meat eaters are at least starting to think properly about where their food comes from and animal welfare. And my non-vegetarian husband will love this recipe so thank you from both of us! #tastytuesdays
My pleasure Lina, and thank you for your comment!
This sounds gorgeous, I use my slow cooker a lot. Always trying new dishes and I make a beef and ale pie, but not thought to do the meat in the slow cooker.
Really good to hear about the beef production there. I wish it was like that everywhere, animals need to be treated with the compassion and respect deserved for their life being used.
I think with regards to meat production everywhere this is a time of change. If people refuse to buy factory farmed supermarket produce than the suppliers will have to change their behaviour. The power is in our hands!
I totally agree with you that it’s better to eat less meat and of better quality. Your pie looks absolutely amazing and I love beef cooked in beer as they really are good bed fellows:-) Thank you for including my recipes:-)
Thanks Camilla, glad you like the look of the recipe and I’m pleased my opinions are shared among my respected food blogger friends 🙂
About to lick the screen, how tender and crispy and utterly perfect does that all look, you are a genius! I totally agree with your sentiments too, I’ve really started to limit my red meat but what I do eat is quality and it’s made such a difference to how I feel (about animals and also within). Thanks for linking up to #tastytuesdays
Oh thank you Vicki! 🙂
That looks incredibly good! We’re trying to eat less meat too, but of a better quality, despite being massive meat-lovers (my husband is French after all!). We have our own beef and ale slow cooker recipe but yours looks so good I’m going to have to give it a whirl.
#TastyTuesdays
Thanks Sophie – let me know what you think of it if you do make it!
Love the pie and thanks for talking about animals and I too am a meat lover but times am put off with the media circus etc.
Thank you, and I know what you mean about the media circus.
What a delicious looking pie and using a local beer too. I think the supermarkets have a lot to answer for with driving down the quality of meat for the mass market. I wish everyone could still buy their meat from local butchers but not everyone has the opportunity. I feel terribly guilty if I don’t use mine enough.
We’re quite lucky in that our local butcher meats are sold in village shops throughout the islands, so we don’t have to go direct to the butcher. We just go to our corner store!
That looks really tasty. I never think of using my slow cooker like this.
Thanks Jenny 🙂 I don’t use my slow cooker nearly as often as I should. I’ve seen so many inspiring recipes during Crocktober, things I never would have thought to do and simply must try
Oh my that looks so tasty, i must give this a try. Thank you for sharing. 🙂
Thank you 🙂
I love the way you name your dishes. How can you make a pie sound so posh? I have to say that one looks like it lives up to its name though, mmmmmmmmmmmmmm.
Heehee, why thank you! I didn’t realise it sounded posh until you mentioned it!
LOVE this recipe – great post too.
Thanks Jan! 🙂
What a thoughtful post. I am a meat lover myself and worked for 6 months on the Meat Cookbook and I think I agree with your sentiment which is echoed in the book: ‘eat less meat but of the best possible quality, ethically sourced and treated’. The cost can sometimes be prohibitive but it is something to strive for.
I love your recipe – I am a sucker for beef stew and beef pie, it’s just the perfect fall/winter food. Thanks for linking to #CookBlogShare it’s always great to have you join.
Thank you Lucy, I am glad it read ok and delighted you like the look of my recipe 🙂