Method

Season the beef generously with salt and pepper. Heat half the oil in a heavy based saucepan or casserole dish over a medium heat. When the oil is sizzling, brown the beef in batches, so that the heat stays high. Transfer the browned beef to a plate.
Add the rest of the oil to the pan and sweat the onion, garlic, carrot and celery for 5 minutes, or until the onion starts to soften and colour. Return the beef to the casserole and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add the beef stock and the port and stir well. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 45 minutes, stirring from time to time.
Stir in the cornflour paste and parsley and simmer for another 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.
When ready to bake the pies, preheat the oven to 200degrees centigrade and lightly grease 6 x 12 cm pie tines.
Roll out the suet pastry to around 5mm thick. Cut circles in the pie tins, leaving about a 2 cm overhang.
Spoon in the filling, so the pies are three-quarters full. From the remaining pastry cut 6 x 12 cm circles to form the pie lids. Lightly brush the rim of the pies with egg wash and place the lids on top. Press the edges firmly to seal, then trim off any excess pastry. Make a small cut in the pastry lidso that the steam can escape as the pie bakes. Brush with a little more egg wash and bake for 20 minutes until the pastry is cooked on the underside and the top is a lovely golden brown.
Crush the minted peas with a fork or blitz them to make a coarse puree. Serve each pie on a generous spoonful of mushy peas with mash and gravy on the side. Douse in tomato sauce and enjoy.

Suet Pastry
Makes around 850 g

It may be out of favour with health fanatics, but suet pastry is indispensable for making steamed puddings - savoury or sweet. It actually has a bit of a dual personality: when steamed, it is pale, soft and spongy; when baked, it is golden, flaky and crisp.
You can buy suet from your friendly butcher. It should be stored in the freezer and will keep for 3 months. Use it straight from the freezer as it’s easier to grate.

Grate the suet onto your work surface and sprinkle on about 100 g of the flour. Use a long, sharp knife to chop the suet with the flour; this prevents it from becoming sticky.
Transfer the suet to a large mixing bowl and stir in the remaining flour and salt. Use your finger tips to rub the suet into the flour, but leave it a little rough and lumpy, it helps it to rise.
Add the water, a little at a time, until the mixture just comes together. Knead for 2-3 minutes, until elastic and springy. Wrap in plastic wrap and refigerate for 30 minutes before using. When rady to use, roll the pastry out on a lightly floured work surface and line a tart tin or pie dish. Unlike other pastries, suet pastry doesn’t need to be blind-baked.
The pastry will keep in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Minted Peas
Serves 6

This is my favourite way of cooking peas. To turn them into mushy peas, simply mash them as coarsely or smoothly as you like with a fork, or blitz them in a food processor.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sweat gently for about ten minutes, or until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the peas to the pan and pour on the water. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 5 - 8 minutes, or until the peas are cooked the way you like them (Adrian likes them well cooked). There should still be a little buttery liquid in the pan, but boil for a bit longer if the peas look too wet. Stir in the mint and season with salt and pepper.

Creamy Buttery Mash - Optional
There must be a hundred different ways of making mashed potatoes - nearly all of them good. This is my way. I always peel the potatoes before cooking them whole. I find if you cut them smaller they tend to absorb more water. One thing that's certain is that really good mash is not diet food. It needs lots of cream and butter. I can never make enough of this mash for my customers at La Luna Bistro.

Peel the potatoes and put them in a large saucepan of cold, salted water. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer until tender.  This will take up to 50 minutes, depending on the size of the potato.  When the potatoes are cooked, tip them into a colander to drain.

Add the cream and butter to the hot saucepan.  Push the hot potatoes through a mouli or potato ricer, straight onto the cream and butter.  Beat with a wooden spoon, then season to taste.

Nanna’s Gravy
When it comes to real comfort food, you can keep your fancy jus and your restaurant-inspired reductions: nothing beats nanna's gravy.  And no matter how much she's overcooked the veggies, somehow her gravy always makes up for it.  Let's be clear from the start; this isn't a thin, refined sort of gravy at all. It's thick and tasty and you need lots of it to pour over your roast potatoes and meat.

Much of the flavour for nanna's gravy comes for free, from all the stuff that's left in the bottom of the roasting tin. The body of the gravy comes from flour, or from squishing some of the veggies through a sieve - and damn it all, sometimes from both!

The best thing about Nanna's gravy is that you can knock it up pretty easily while the meat is resting in a warm place.
 
Remove roast meat from tray and reserve juices.

First, pour away most of the fat, leaving just a little in the bottom of the tin with the roasting juices. If you're going with the flour-thickened version, sprinkle in a generous teaspoon of flour, and stir over a medium heat to make a gunky brown paste. Alternatively, chuck in a cup of mixed diced veggies - carrot, celery, onion and garlic - and stir well.

Whichever method you're using, at this point you need to put the roasting tin back into a very hot oven for about 10 minutes, until the paste darkens, or the veggies colour.

Next, return the tin to the stovetop and slosh in a cup of wine, stock or water.  With a wooden spoon, stir everything about vigorously, reaching right into the corners and making sure you scrape up all the crisp bits of goodness that are stuck to the bottom of the tin. Cook over a medium heat, stirring continuously, until the mixture thickens.

Add more stock, or the cooking water from your veggies, until the gravy reaches a consistency you like. You do need to let it bubble away for a good 5 minutes or so - especially if you're using flour. And don't forget to taste the gravy to see whether it needs a bit more wine, a pinch of salt or pepper, or even a touch of mustard or a spoonful of redcurrant jelly (this is especially good with roast lamb).

When you're happy with your gravy you can pour it through a fine sieve, using your wooden spoon to squish through as many of the vegetables as you can. Alternatively, for an authentic 'nanna' touch, don't strain your gravy at all - a few chunky bits won't worry anyone, and they'll taste delicious.

Book: Meat by Adrian Richardson, Hardie Grant Publishing, RRP: $59.95