New Zealand Potato Top Pie

Overview

potato top pie in a pie mould

New Zealand Potato Top pie

By Amy // Posted Aug 28, 2021 // Category Savoury

My New Zealand Potato Top Pies are inspired by the ones I used to get at bakeries in Auckland. I absolutely adored them, eating them in a strange yet necessary ritual of eating the topping first, then the remaining pie. 

It’s taken a while to get the potato right. I wanted the it to be creamy, and soft in the middle but slightly crispy on the outside. I eventually decided to use Duchess Potatoes as the topping for its  decadence as well as how attractive it looks when it’s piped. 

The potato topping with the minced filling that is flavoured with rosemary is amazing. It’s more of a gourmet pie for sure, and is definitely worth the trouble of making it. I would imagine this to be a perfect pub-styled dinner to serve to loved ones and friends. 

The pastry is store bought shortcrust pastry to make this recipe less time consuming and easier to make. It’s a good solid foundation for the pie and also adds a good crumbly texture to it, too. 

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tips

1. Ingredients

I used lean mince to make the pies a little healthier, but you can use normal mince as well. Remember to look back at the ingredient list to see how you should prepare/cut the vegetables. Another important thing is that shortcrust pastry needs to be thawed before you use it. Simply leave it on the counter for around 20-30 minutes before you need to use it. 

The best potatoes to use are ones with a higher starch content. Floury potato varieties like King Edward, Yukon, Desiree, Kipfler, and Yukon are all excellent choices to use.

2. Equipment

I used a 6 individual pie moulds(click on link) (13cmx3cm) that I got from Amazon. Other than this, you need two large pots, and a potato ricer or masher. If you want to pipe the potatoes, you would need a large star nozzle and a piping bag.

When blind baking the pastry, you need baking beads. If you don’t have them, you can use uncooked rice, dried lentils and other dried pulses instead.

3. Blind baking

Blind baking is the process of baking the base without the filling so that you won’t get the dreaded soggy bottom. It’s important that you poke holes into the base so that you can let the steam escape while baking. You can skip blind baking, but just remember that your base will end up a little soggy.

4. Use cold filling

It is recommended to use cold fillings so that it doesn’t spill out of the pie. Hot fillings tend to bubble further when baking causing it to spill and not look as neat as can be. 

5. Double the recipe

I doubled the recipe and made myself a cottage pie at the same time as making my potato top pies. In a large heatproof casserole dish, place the cooked mince at the bottom and top with the mashed potatoes. Or you can also just make 8 individual potato top pies and freeze the ones that are leftover. 

*Disclosure: The links to Amazon products are affiliate links. I will be paid a commission if you use this link to make a purchase.

RatingDifficultyIntermediate

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Potato Top Pie on a blue plate with tomato sauce

Yields6 Servings
Prep Time40 minsCook Time30 minsTotal Time1 hr 10 mins

Mince Filling
 400 g lean mince beef (I used 10% fat)
 2 tbsp oil
 ½ large onion, thinly diced
 1 garlic clove, minced
 4 tbsp plain flour, (30gr)
 500 ml beef stock
 1 tbsp tomato paste
 ½ tsp Worcestershire sauce
 1 tbsp fresh chopped rosemary, stalks removed
Pastry base
 3 sheets of shortcrust pastry (store bought)
 baking beads (to blind bake)
Duchess Potato Topping
 750 g potatoes for baking (Desiree, Yukon)
 ¼ cup cream (60ml)
 2 tbsp salted butter (60gr)
 ¼ tsp nutmeg
 2 egg yolks
 ¼ tsp black pepper
 oil spray

Mince filling
1

Season the mince with salt and pepper. Heat up a large pan on a medium-high heat and add the oil. Once the pan is hot, add half of the mince and brown. Break up the mince to smaller pieces. Once browned, transfer the mince to a large bowl and repeat the browning with the remaining uncooked mince, add more oil if necessary. Transfer to the large bowl.

2

Next, add the thinly diced onions and cook until translucent, add more oil if necessary. Add the garlic and cook for a minute. Put the browned mince back into the large pan. Sprinkle the flour over the minced beef and onions and toss to coat.

3

Stir in tomato puree and add the beef stock. Add the chopped rosemary and Worcestershire sauce and bring to a boil. Once it's started to boil, transfer to the lowest heat and let it simmer for around 45 minutes. Add a little water if the consistency is too thick. Stir very often so that the mince doesn't start to burn. At the very end, season with salt and pepper to your liking. Let the filling cool.

4

Leave the 3 sheets of shortcrust pastry on the counter to defrost.

Potatoes
5

Prepare the potatoes while your mince filling is simmering. Peel and chop the potatoes. Put the potatoes into a large pot filled with cold water and let it come to a boil at a high heat. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and let the potatoes cook until soft in the middle, you'd be able to pierce it easily with a fork. Drain the water from the potatoes.

6

Mash the potatoes, preferably with a potato ricer. Add the cream, butter, nutmeg, egg yolks and pepper into the mashed potatoes and mix well. Optional - Get a piping bag with a large star tipped nozzle and fill the bag with the mashed potatoes. Set aside.

Blind baking
7

Preheat the oven at 180C (350F) when the mince filling has mostly cooled to room temperature.

8

Let your shortcrust pastry get to room temperature before using. Get your 6 individual pie moulds (mine are 13cmx3cm). Find a round bowl that is larger than your pie mould and cut out 6 circular pieces of shortcrust pastry using your bowl. You should be able to get 2 pie bases with each sheet of pastry. Press the shortcrust pastry into the pie moulds. Trim the excess pastry from the sides and poke some holes in the bottom using a fork. Place some baking paper into each pie mould and place baking beans on top of the baking paper. Blind bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes.

To assemble
9

Take the baking paper and baking beans out. Fill each pie with mince filling, be careful not to overfill. Top each pie with mashed potato, or pipe the potato on top of each pie. Spray the tops of the potato with oil to help it crisp up in the oven. Bake for 30 minutes or until the potatoes are golden.

10

Serve hot with tomato sauce. These pies can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Heat in the oven before serving the frozen pies.

Ingredients

Mince Filling
 400 g lean mince beef (I used 10% fat)
 2 tbsp oil
 ½ large onion, thinly diced
 1 garlic clove, minced
 4 tbsp plain flour, (30gr)
 500 ml beef stock
 1 tbsp tomato paste
 ½ tsp Worcestershire sauce
 1 tbsp fresh chopped rosemary, stalks removed
Pastry base
 3 sheets of shortcrust pastry (store bought)
 baking beads (to blind bake)
Duchess Potato Topping
 750 g potatoes for baking (Desiree, Yukon)
 ¼ cup cream (60ml)
 2 tbsp salted butter (60gr)
 ¼ tsp nutmeg
 2 egg yolks
 ¼ tsp black pepper
 oil spray

Directions

Mince filling
1

Season the mince with salt and pepper. Heat up a large pan on a medium-high heat and add the oil. Once the pan is hot, add half of the mince and brown. Break up the mince to smaller pieces. Once browned, transfer the mince to a large bowl and repeat the browning with the remaining uncooked mince, add more oil if necessary. Transfer to the large bowl.

2

Next, add the thinly diced onions and cook until translucent, add more oil if necessary. Add the garlic and cook for a minute. Put the browned mince back into the large pan. Sprinkle the flour over the minced beef and onions and toss to coat.

3

Stir in tomato puree and add the beef stock. Add the chopped rosemary and Worcestershire sauce and bring to a boil. Once it's started to boil, transfer to the lowest heat and let it simmer for around 45 minutes. Add a little water if the consistency is too thick. Stir very often so that the mince doesn't start to burn. At the very end, season with salt and pepper to your liking. Let the filling cool.

4

Leave the 3 sheets of shortcrust pastry on the counter to defrost.

Potatoes
5

Prepare the potatoes while your mince filling is simmering. Peel and chop the potatoes. Put the potatoes into a large pot filled with cold water and let it come to a boil at a high heat. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and let the potatoes cook until soft in the middle, you'd be able to pierce it easily with a fork. Drain the water from the potatoes.

6

Mash the potatoes, preferably with a potato ricer. Add the cream, butter, nutmeg, egg yolks and pepper into the mashed potatoes and mix well. Optional - Get a piping bag with a large star tipped nozzle and fill the bag with the mashed potatoes. Set aside.

Blind baking
7

Preheat the oven at 180C (350F) when the mince filling has mostly cooled to room temperature.

8

Let your shortcrust pastry get to room temperature before using. Get your 6 individual pie moulds (mine are 13cmx3cm). Find a round bowl that is larger than your pie mould and cut out 6 circular pieces of shortcrust pastry using your bowl. You should be able to get 2 pie bases with each sheet of pastry. Press the shortcrust pastry into the pie moulds. Trim the excess pastry from the sides and poke some holes in the bottom using a fork. Place some baking paper into each pie mould and place baking beans on top of the baking paper. Blind bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes.

To assemble
9

Take the baking paper and baking beans out. Fill each pie with mince filling, be careful not to overfill. Top each pie with mashed potato, or pipe the potato on top of each pie. Spray the tops of the potato with oil to help it crisp up in the oven. Bake for 30 minutes or until the potatoes are golden.

10

Serve hot with tomato sauce. These pies can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Heat in the oven before serving the frozen pies.

New Zealand Potato Top Pie
Nutrition Facts

Servings 6


Amount Per Serving
Calories 411
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 21.7g34%
Saturated Fat 6.4g32%
Cholesterol 82mg28%
Sodium 365mg16%
Potassium 625mg18%
Total Carbohydrate 33.9g12%
Dietary Fiber 4.4g18%
Sugars 3g
Protein 19.4g39%

Calcium 3%
Iron 8%
Vitamin D 44%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

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