Tourtiere

[Alix]

This is a recipe from a friend of mine, its a keeper.

1 pound of ground pork per pie (or 1/2 lb pork and 1/2 lb of ground beef)
1/4 of an onion
1 tsp of sage
1/2 tsp of poultry seasoning
salt and pepper to taste (dash of celery salt if you like)
Mix and cook till meat turns brown,
If excess juice, then pour it out but you do want some juice otherwise the pie will be dry/tough.
Put browned meat mixture into the pie shell,
put top crust on and bake till golden brown.

If the sage is really strong, then cut back on the amount, otherwise taste test to be sure.

Edit: I also use a LOT more onion. I do the whole onion myself, but I thought I'd put in the recipe as it was given to me, not my edited version!

 

[Zhizara]

"Edit: I also use a LOT more onion. I do the whole onion myself, but I thought I'd put in the recipe as it was given to me, not my edited version!"

Me too! If it's got ground meat in it there's a whole onion too. I haven't EVER heard of "too much onion" in a dish. The only time I use less is if I'm running low on onions and haven't got enough to last until I go shopping. Then I'll use half.

 

[4meandthem]

I don't see any binder.Does the pie stay together when cut or do you eat more like a pot pie scooping it out?

 

[Andy M.]

Tourtiére de andre

I created this recipe some years ago as a melding of several recipes I saw online. According to what I read back then, the pork and the oatmeal were traditional. Here is the recipe. A friend of mine who loves tortiére and always gets it when he skis in Canada said it's great.

TOURTIÉRE DE ANDRE

1½ Lb Ground Pork
1 Onion, minced
½ C Celery, minced
2 Garlic
¼ C Parsley, minced
¼ tsp Ground Clove
½ tsp Savory, dry
TT Salt & Pepper
½ C Water
¼ C Rolled Oats
1 Pastry for a 9” Pie
1 Egg
1 Tb Milk

Place all but the last four ingredients into a large fry pan. Bring the pan to a boil and simmer for 30 – 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Adjust the seasonings in the last 5 minutes.

Stir in the oats and cook a minute more. Remove from the heat and cool.

Place the bottom crust in a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate. Put the cooled meat mixture into the crust.

Cover the pie with the top crust. Cut a generous vent hole in the top crust.

Whisk the egg and milk together and brush onto the piecrust.

Bake for 35-40 minutes. Cool 10–15 minutes before slicing.

 

[Alix]

I don't see any binder.Does the pie stay together when cut or do you eat more like a pot pie scooping it out?

No binder. When I make it, its a bit more like a pot pie in consistency. Having said that, you are supposed to make sure its not too liquidy so that it stays together better.

I've never had tourtiere that has a binder in it, Andy's recipe sounds yummy though.

 

[taxlady]

I use Madame Benoit's recipe and it uses grated potato. I always use three kinds of meat and one of them has to be pork. I have done it with ground venison, ground moose, ground lamb, ground rabbit. They all turned out good, except the one time I didn't use pork it wasn't as good. It isn't soupy at all. I personally dislike pot pies.

 

[DaveSoMD]

A friend of mine from Toronto made this for us once and used ground venison and savory. YUM!!!! I've never had it with beef or pork. I may have to to try it that way.

 

[lyndalou]

I have used a mashed potato for a binder. I also brush some beaten egg yolk on the bottom crust so it doesn't get really soggy.
I use a slotted spoon to transfer the meat /potato mixture to the pie crust. Leaves just enough moisture. Can't wait to make these at Christmas.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Keep the recipes coming, I've made one document devoted to Tourtiere. Plus the other ideas and suggestions.

 

[forty_caliber]

This looks great. I'm going to have give this one a try.

.40

 

[LPBeier]

My recipe is like Andy's, an amalgamation of my Mom's, my catering/apprenticeship boss's, and two others.

I use potato in mine.

I will have to get it out and add it here! But these sound great.

 

[mudbug]

love this pie (OK, love all pies - there, you made me say it!)

here's a discussion from long ago about the same lovely dish

http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/f21/tourtiere-canadian-french-meat-pie-1735-5.html

 

[Claire]

I not only keep all the "juice,", but actually add a little water towards the end of cooking the meat/onion/herb mixture, then use some instant potato flakes to thicken. Makes it so that the slices come out looking very nice and together. In my grandparents' tourtieres, the meat was strictly pork and pretty heavy and fatty. So now I use one tube of Jimmy Dean Sage Sausage and a pound of white ground turkey to lighten it up a bit. Oh, and a rib of celery rather than celery salt. It is not unusual for my family members to call me when they're doing it for hints. My husband would just die if I didn't make this at least annually, and even without the holidays it makes for great buffet food for a brunch if you need to bring something to a potluck.

 

[Zhizara]

Now that I realize what you guys are talking about, here is the very first recipe I tried at the age of 13. It just looked so good in that ad that I just had to try it. It ended up being one of the longest running family favorite I ever made.

I made it again recently and it was just as wonderful as before. The only change I made was to make it in my glass casserole dish, I just patted the dough into the bottom and up the sides. I like a glass dish or pie pan for this so I can check the bottom and make sure it's done. I didn't have any Accent to add but it was still good. The Accent does make it a little better, but many people have problems with it.

Hamburger Onion Pie – 1959 Recipe Clipping | RecipeCurio.com

 

[Bolas De Fraile]

I love pies.

 

[Claire]

I always thought my use of instant mashed potato flakes for thickening or a breading was a guilty little secret, but on the latest show I saw, Jacques Pepin did as I've done for years and used some instant flakes to thicken his potato leek soup with less heavy cream. Now I feel, heck, if Jacques can do it, so can I. Ditto one time I read that after a party is over, he thinks nothing of mixing the dregs of a bottle of red and one of white to drink while he picks up the mess. My mom, memere, and aunts used to use mashed or grated potatoes on occasion, but the instant really makes for a pretty slice.

 

[taxlady]

I once had some fabulous potatoes in a very upscale restaurant. I asked if it was possible to have the recipe. The waiter said he would ask the chef. She came out and said, that she would be happy to give me the recipe, but she was embarrassed to admit, that they required instant mashed potatoes.

Make instant mashed potatoes very thick and add almond extract.
When the potatoes are cool, shape it into balls (~1.5 -2 inches in diameter) and roll them in sliced almonds.
Bake

Mine were never as good. Maybe the almonds need to be toasted, maybe I should have brushed with butter.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I always thought my use of instant mashed potato flakes for thickening or a breading was a guilty little secret, but on the latest show I saw, Jacques Pepin did as I've done for years and used some instant flakes to thicken his potato leek soup with less heavy cream. Now I feel, heck, if Jacques can do it, so can I. Ditto one time I read that after a party is over, he thinks nothing of mixing the dregs of a bottle of red and one of white to drink while he picks up the mess. My mom, memere, and aunts used to use mashed or grated potatoes on occasion, but the instant really makes for a pretty slice.

Frozen, shredded hash browns are my guilty secret for fast potato soup.

 

[taxlady]

I was reluctant to post my tourtiere recipe because it is taken so closely from a recipe book. I have typed it up. I have written the directions myself. The recipe list is pretty much straight from the book, but multiplied by three, because I always make at least three. I make a whole wheat crust, but it isn't perfected yet, so I won't post it. Use any decent pie crust recipe and add a pinch of turmeric for colour if you use white flour. Or use ready made pie crust.

Tourtière based on a recipe from Madame Benoit Cooks at Home by Jehane Benoit copyright 1976 ISBN 0-07-082775-3

This makes three pies

• 1 lb. lean ground pork
• 1 lb. other ground meat, usually beef
• 1 lb. other ground meat, usually lamb, sometimes chicken or turkey
• 1 tlbsp salt
• 1.5 tsp savory
• 3/4 tsp ground cloves
• 6 medium potatoes, grated
• 3 small onions, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 - 1.5 cups water

• 3 pie shells with tops
• 1 egg
• 2 tblsp water

Put all but the last three ingredients into an appropriately large pot.
Bring it to a boil, while stirring it so all the meat is broken up into very small pieces.
Once it is boiling, turn it down to a simmer and put a lid on it.
Simmer for 30 minutes.
Stir occasionally.
Take it off the heat and let it cool to near room temperature.

If you use the smaller amount of water, you may need to add some, if you use the larger amount, you may need to simmer longer to reduce the liquid. The mixture should be moist, but there should not be any liquid.

Fill the cooled meat mixture into three pie shells and cover with pie dough.
Pinch the dough at the edges.
Cut decorative vents in the upper crust or prick evenly all over with a fork.
Brush the top with the egg that has been beaten well with the two tablespoons of water.

Bake in a 400 F oven until the tops are golden.

Madame Benoit's recipe is for 1/3 of this. She uses only pork. She puts it into 6 - 8 tartlet moulds or individual pie plates.

I'm attaching the recipe as a PDF.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Copied and pasted, Thanks!