Mince and cheese pies are a New Zealand classic for a reason. Crispy buttery pastry, intensely savoury minced beef and a creamy, oozy melted cheese topping? Yes, please! I love making these as mini pies for the ultimate party bite.
An oozy, gooey, crispy and DELICIOUS mince and cheese pie truly is a Kiwi classic. You’ll find them in every café, supermarket and deli in New Zealand and they always deliver indulgent flavour. They’re one of those things that are weirdly acceptable at any time of day – great as a mid-morning snack, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner or a cheeky bite after a late night! I like making these as mini party pies using a muffin tin, but you can make bigger individual pies or one large pie with this recipe.
When I moved to the UK, I was so surprised that these pies just weren’t a thing here. You can get a pie in a pub, but they’re very different. They tend to be made with short-crust pastry (or often with just a pastry lid which is UNACCEPTABLE and not a real pie) and using minced beef doesn’t seem to be done, let alone mince and cheese.
I tried for a long time to perfect my mince and cheese pie recipe – and I’ve got there. I was after an intensely rich, umami-dense minced beef filling and the perfect melted cheese topping. I’ve found a couple of key tricks to achieve this.
Three tips for making the BEST mince and cheese pies
- You need to cook the mince down until you’ve got a very thick gravy – it can’t be watery at all or it’ll turn to mince soup once you put it in the pastry.
- Use béchamel. This is a departure from the classic, but hear me out on this because it works. Whenever I think of a mince and cheese pie, that oozy, gooey filling is top of mind. And that includes the cheese. When you heat cheddar (which is what you’d normally use in a mince and cheese pie) the oil will separate from the solids of the cheese and it just doesn’t result in that oozy, gooey result. But a cheesy béchamel does just that. I learned this trick when working at a wonderful café in Auckland (Herne Bay Food Store) – they use béchamel in their famous pies so I knew I had to use it as well.
- Make sure both the mince and the béchamel are COLD when you add them to the pastry. I often make them the day before I want to make the pies if I’m organised enough, but you’ll want to pop them in the fridge for at least a couple of hours to cool completely. This will help the pastry crisp up in the oven, and lessen the chance of a pie-filling explosion.
Ingredients
It might look like there are a lot of ingredients here, but most are things you probably already have in your cupboard. And if you don’t have them, they’re easy to find in a supermarket.
- The beef mince filling. This is PACKED with umami flavour powerhouses – Worcestershire sauce, fish sauce and anchovies – along with beef stock and a little corn flour to help the gravy thicken up nicely. Try to go for a good quality mince that isn’t too lean – you want that fat for flavour.
- The cheesy béchamel sauce. You’ll need milk, flour, butter and cheese. I often like to use a mix of strong cheddar and a little blue cheese so you end up with a really cheesy sauce, but you can use your favourite cheese here, as long as it’s 1 1/2 cups in total. I’ve also added a bit of miso paste for an extra shot of umami, but you can leave that out if you like.
- The pastry. When I have time, I love making these with a homemade rough puff pastry, but a good quality store-bought, all-butter puff pastry will do just fine. Try to get an all-butter one if you can, the flavour is just so much better. You’ll need 2 sheets of pastry to make 12 mini pies.
How to make them
Start with the mince filling. Add your onion and a little olive oil into a pan, then add garlic and anchovies and cook for a couple of minutes. Go in with the mince and cook, stirring, until it starts to brown. Add cornflour, then fish sauce, Worcestershire sauce and beef stock. Stir and let the mixture simmer for about 15 minutes until thickened nicely. Remove from the heat and let it cool completely – ideally at least an hour in the fridge.
For the cheesy béchamel, melt your butter in a large saucepan over medium heat, then add flour, whisking to combine into a paste (roux) and keep whisking to cook out the raw flour for a few minutes. Slowly pour in the milk, whisking as you go. Keep stirring as it thickens up and starts bubbling. Add the salt, nutmeg, miso paste (if you’re using it) then all the cheese, stirring as it melts into the sauce. Remove from the heat and let cool.
Once your mince and cheesy béchamel is cool, you can assemble the pies. I like using a muffin tin to make mini party pies, but you can use larger pie dishes or make one big pie too. Lay one sheet of pastry over the tin and gently press the pastry down into the holes. If the pastry breaks, don’t worry too much, just patch it up. Add about 1.5 tablespoons of the mince, then top with a couple of teaspoons of the cheesy béchamel.
PRO TIP: Don’t overfill your pies. The filling will bubble up as it cooks in the oven and if the pies are too full, you risk them exploding and lots of the filling spilling out.
Brush the edges of the pastry around the filling with a little egg wash (just a whisked egg, or you can use milk or water) to help the top layer stick. Lay another sheet of pastry over the filled pies and press down to seal. I like to use a round cookie cutter or the rim of a glass to cut out the excess pastry to form the pastry lids. Remove the excess pastry, then seal around the edges of the pies using the back of a fork. Brush the tops of the pies with the egg wash again, then pierce them with a fork so that the pies have space to vent while cooking.
Bake for 30 minutes at 200C/390F or until the pies are looking golden and crispy on all sides. Let them sit for about 5 minutes in the tin before carefully removing them and placing them on a wire rack. I like to do this with a butter knife. You’ll find they’ll pop out quite easily if they’re cooked through – the pastry will be crispy and should release easily.
PRO TIP: If you’re using a muffin tin, sometimes I find that the pies around the edges cook faster than the ones in the middle, so keep an eye on them (check after 20 minutes). You can remove the pies around the edges if they’re ready, then cook the middle ones for a little longer if needed.
Got a question?
You don’t have to – I love the oozy factor but you could just use grated or thin slices of cheese.
Yes! They freeze really well after being cooked. Just pop them in zip lock bags to store, and then you can cook from frozen for 20 minutes at 180C/390F fan.
You could also form the pies, cover them tightly with cling film, and freeze them pre-baking in their tray. Then just bake from frozen for about 40 minutes at 180C.
This is all about helping to keep the pastry cold, so it doesn’t go soggy and sad in the oven. If you add hot fillings to cold pastry, the pastry will start to melt immediately and won’t crisp up as it bakes. This is especially important when you’re making mini party pies because you need the bases to be crispy and hold up (so that people can easily eat the pies with one hand). If you’re making a large pie and you’re planning on serving it with a knife and fork, you might not be quite as bothered about a crispy bottom.
You most likely overfilled them – I have done this before!! They’ll still taste great, but it is super annoying after all that work. Try to fill them ALMOST right to the top, leaving a little space at the top. It could also be because the top lid of the pastry wasn’t sealed properly to the base – make sure you’re using an egg wash around the rim of the pastry and pressing down firmly with a fork to seal them up. And make sure you pierce the lids of the pies so there’s somewhere for the steam to go.
Like this? Here are more New Zealand recipes to try
If you make these pies, let me know how you get on in the comments below!
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New Zealand Style Mince and Cheese Pies
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 12 mini pies 1x
Description
Mince and cheese pies are an absolute New Zealand classic for a reason. Crispy buttery pastry, intensely savoury minced beef and a creamy, oozy cheese topping? Yes please!
I love making these as mini pies for the ultimate party bite which always go down a storm.
Ingredients
For the mince –
- 500g/1lb good quality beef mince
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 anchovies
- 2 tablespoons cornflour
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 350ml/1.5 cups beef stock
For the béchamel –
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons plain flour
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup strong cheddar cheese, grated
- 1/2 cup creamy blue cheese, grated (use more cheddar if you’re not into blue cheese)
You’ll also need –
- 2 packs of ready-rolled puff pastry (try to find an all butter puff pastry)
- 1 egg, for the egg wash
- Muffin tin or pie dish
- Butter, for greasing
Instructions
- Make the mince. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the diced onion and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and cook, stirring for a couple of minutes until starting to soften. Add the crushed garlic and 2 anchovies. Stir, letting the anchovies dissolve into the oil, for a couple of minutes. Add the mince and cook, stirring, until it browns. Add the 2 tablespoons of cornflour, give it a mix through, then add 1 teaspoon fish sauce, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce and 350ml/1.5 cups beef stock. Stir and let the mixture simmer for about 15 minutes until thickened nicely. You want it to be really thick and not liquidy at all, so keep simmering if it’s still a bit runny. If it’s too runny, it will leak out of the pastry in the oven. Remove from the heat and let cool totally. PRO TIP: Ideally you want to pop the mince in the fridge for at least a couple of hours – I’ll often make the mince a day or two before I want to serve the pies.
- Make the cheesy béchamel. Melt the 2 tablespoons of butter in a large saucepan over medium heat, then add 2 tablespoons of flour, whisking to combine into a paste (roux) and keep whisking to cook out the raw flour for a couple of minutes. Turn the heat to low and slowly pour in the milk, whisking as you go. It’ll thicken, then thin as you keep whisking. Keep stirring as it thickens up and starts bubbling. It should end up like a very thick gravy. Add the salt and nutmeg, then all the cheese, stirring as it melts into the sauce. Taste, and add a little more salt if you think it tastes a bit bland (this will depend on how salty your cheese is). Remove from the heat and let cool.
- Assemble the pies. When you’re ready to cook your pies, get your oven heating to 200C/390F fan and get your muffin tin (or pie dish) out. Grease the tin with butter. There are a couple of ways to assemble your pies. You can either take the whole sheet of pastry and lay it over the tray, then push it into the tin, or you can cut out rounds and line the tin that way. I normally use the whole sheet of pastry because it’s quicker! Whichever way you choose, make sure you press the pastry firmly into the bottom and sides of the tin, and that there is an overlap of pastry over the top of each hole so that the top has something to stick to. Spoon about 1.5 tablespoons of the mince into the pies, then top with about 2 teaspoons of the cheesy bechamel. The key here is to not overfill your pies (I have done this so many times and it’s VERY sad when they explode in the oven!) The filling will bubble up inside the pastry, so you do need to leave a little room and make sure your pastry lid is sealed really well.
- Egg wash and seal the pies. Whisk your egg in a bowl with a fork, then brush the whisked egg around the edges of the pastry. This is going to help the pastry lids stick. Top the pies with the other pastry sheet, pressing down firmly to seal. Use the edge of a large glass to trim the excess pastry by pressing down around the edge of each pie. Seal around the edges of each pie by pressing down all around with the back of a fork. Brush the tops of the pies with the egg wash again, then stab the tops with a fork to create holes, so they have space to vent.
- Cook the pies. Bake for 30 minutes, until golden all around and super crispy. Let cool for a few minutes in the tin before carefully removing them and placing them on a wire rack. Enjoy while hot with a good tomato sauce on the side! PRO TIP: Sometimes when I’m using a muffin tin I find that the pies around the outside of the tin cook quicker than the ones in the middle – so check them after 20 minutes and see how they’re going. If the ones around the outside look finished, remove them from the tray and keep cooking the ones in the middle.
Notes
The pies freeze really well. Just pack them into zip lock bags after cooking, and then you can cook them straight from frozen at 180C/360F for 20 minutes.
A classic mince and cheese pie is made with grated cheese or cheese slices rather than the béchamel, so if you want to skip making it, you can just use cheese by itself.
You can make this as one big pie instead of mini party pies, or smaller individual pies.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 45
- Category: baking
- Method: oven
- Cuisine: new zealand
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 pie
Keywords: mince pies, party pies, savoury pies
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