Renuka’s Samoosa inspired Pâté en Croûte 

Tamarind Date Chutney:

15 meejol dates
2 tablespoons tamarind paste
Water
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1 teaspoon cumin powder
½ teaspoon ginger powder
Salt to taste
Red chillies chopped

Aspic 

1 cup beef broth
7.5 mls gelatine powder 

Method:

Step 1: 

1. Melt butter and water in saucepan until melted and hot but not boiling.
2. Place dry ingredients in stand mixer. Insert paddle attachment.
3. Mix dry ingredients until combined 
4. Slowly add hot water until mixture comes together. 
5. Don’t overmix
6. Cover with cling and flatten into a disk. Refrigerate for 15 minutes

Step 2: Onion 

1. Add butter ghee to a pan on medium heat
2. Add chopped onion and sauté together with cumin seeds, chopped chilies, coriander seeds, ginger and garlic, cumin powder,  garum masala,salt.
3. Once sautéed, remove from heat and let it cool.

Step 3: Meat filling

1. In a bowl add lamb and beef mince. Add salt to taste, crushed garlic and crushed ginger
2. Add freshly chopped coriander and freshly chopped mint.
3. Mix to combine.
4. Add more cumin and coriander powder. 
5. If you like it spicy, add fresh chopped chillies.
6. Place mix in fridge to cool for 15 minutes.
7. Once cool, add the onions as well as 1 cup crispy dry fried onions. 

Step 4: Tamarind date chutney 

1. Add 10 seedless meejool dates  to a saucepan
2. Add water just to cover the dates
3. Place on medium heat and boil for about 6 to 10 minutes until dates are very soft and water has dried out.
4. Remove from heat and leave to cool.
5. To the dates, start with 1 tablespoon of tamarind paste. Add spices and salt. Mix and taste. If more tamarind is needed, add in small batches. Can add chopped red chillies for heat . Chutney is done.

Step 5: Assembly

1. Roll out 2/3 rds of the dough on a lightly floured surface to 5mm thickness
2. Grease a loaf tin with non stick spray
3. Place rolled out pastry into loaf tin
4. Ensure the dough reaches all corners of the tin.
5. Wet hands and take small balls of meat and place in pastry case. Make one layer of meat, then add seedless chopped mejool dates. Make another meat layer filling. Add fried crispy onion then do a last layer of meat filling ensuring you leave a 3 cm gap at the top of the tin.
6. Roll out the remaining dough to make a lid for the pastry. 
7. Cover and seal both bottom and top dough together. 
8. Make 3 indents with your finger into the dough  making sure you don’t make a hole into the meat .
9. Fill the holes with foil made into cones
10. Egg wash the top of the pie. Scatter on cumin seeds and bake in a preheated oven at 170 degree Celsius for about 1 and ½ hour.
11. Check the meat temp with a meat thermometer after 1 hour.
12. The pie is done when the crust is golden and the internal temp of the meat filling reads 78  degree Celsius. Leave pie to set before removing from baking tin

Step 6: Aspic

1. Heat 1 cup of beef broth. Once boiled. Switch off heat
2. In a bowl add 7.5 mls of powdered gelatine and enough cold water to cover the granules. Leave to bloom for a few minutes.  
3. Add bloomed gelatine to beef stock and whisk vigorously to combine. 
4. Once pie is removed from oven, allow it to cool for a few minutes before pouring the beef broth through the foil cones.
5. Refrigerate pie until gelatine has set.
6. Cut and serve pie with date and tamarind chutney.