The PIE...

Make sure your meat is dry before you salt & pepper then gently brown it in the pan all over, then sprinkle with flour add the following:

Chopped Garlic 2/3 cloves

1 White Onion

2 Sticks of celery finely sliced

2 Carrots

Fresh Thyme

Fresh Bay Leaf

Save the button Mushrooms as add later so they don't disappear and cook to nothing.

Add Beef oxo cubes x 2

Add a big glug of red wine

Let it Cook 2 1/2 hrs on 180 in the oven or keep on a medium/low heat on the hob. 

Cook until the meat is tender.

Ted keeping an eye on things, very interested in the cooking...

Let it reduce by half/ish and keep tasting it, make sure it's rich-If too runny mix in some cornflour- add the powder to water stir it up so there's not lumps then add it to the stew.

Part boil Potatoes 15mins in boiling salted water, then let the potatoes cool, give them a light shake in the pan so they're bashed up a bit then pour the oil over the potatoes, make sure they're covered all over, then add numerous bulbs of garlic and fresh rosemary.

Roast for 45/50mins until golden turn every 20 or so minutes.

Roll out the pastry -use whatever you can if you haven't got a rolling pin. Add crispy fried sage and grated cheese for extra calories.... You can roll pretty much anything into the pastry including nuts, herbs, fried onions.

Cook for 10/15mins but keep an eye it, I put foil in the bottom so the bottom didn't rise, I probably didn't need to cook this first.

Cooked...then add your filling.

Make it fancy.

Cabbage, greens are a must with pie

Finely sliced/shredded is also...

Perfect crispy potatoes... :-)

Tips for Pie cooking:

Try to make sure you get the pie central in the oven so the pastry cooks evenly

When rolling the puff pastry try and make sure it's evenly rolled out so one side doesn't puff up more than the other.

Make sure your inside isn't too runny (think that's more of a preference thing)

Keep a good eye on the pastry when its cooking, make sure your ovens hot enough.

YUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM