Tourtiere ...

[Reverend Al]

My wife is Metis, mostly of Scottish heritage from the Orkney Island area, but there are a few branches of the family from Quebec as well so this is a favorite recipe in most Metis families. Here are a few variations of slightly different Tourtiere recipes and if you're feeling like being adventurous in a culinary way these should keep you busy for a while! Enjoy ...

TOURTIERE

(French Canadian Metis Meat Pies)

This recipe is designed to make four (9 inch) meat pies.

3 lb. ground, very lean pork
3 lb. ground, very lean sirloin
(ask the butcher to grind all the meat once again - it makes it much easier when you're stirring it in the pot.)

Use a pot that is large enough to accommodate all this meat and give you enough room to stir it without meat flying all over the stove top. Put the meat in the pot and set your large burner for the medium to low heat. Don't try to mix the meat until it becomes warm and make sure to add 6 oz. of water into the pot with the meat. Use a large bowl and combine the secret meat pie ingredients listed below:

1 large regular onion (which I put through the food processor - it looks like mush when I'm through with it)
2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1/2 t. celery salt
1/2 t. dried parsley
1/2 t. cinnamon
1 t. chopped fresh basil

Mix this stuff together in a large bowl and make sure it's all well blended - in other words - stir it a lot!

The pot full of meat is now beginning to cook. Set the temperature at medium and pour in the onion and spice mixture. Start stirring the contents until the meat is cooked and the lumps are gone. The meat pie mixture should be thick with some juice but not too watery. If you feel it's too watery add 1/2 cup of instant mashed potato flakes to thicken. Turn the burner down to low heat for the last 5-10 minutes of cooking and get the pie plates ready. Prepare four 9" pie plates, fill evenly with 1/4 of the meat mixture in each bottom crust, then cover with a top crust. Make sure that you cut 4 slits in the top crust to allow steam to escape while baking. Cook these pies at 350° or until the crust turns a golden brown. Estimated time is about 1 hour.

For freezing Meat Pies:

Wait until the pies are completely cooled and then wrap in foil.

For unthawing and cooking Meat Pies:

Loosen the tinfoil and cook for 1/2 hour at 325°. Remove the tinfoil completely and let pie cook for another 10 minutes.



TORTIERE Recipe

3/4 lb ground pork (or substitute ground bear)
3/4 lb ground beef (or substitute moose or deer)
Small minced onion
2 large potatoes (grated)
2 large carrots (grated)
1/2 cup boiling water
1 clove garlic chopped
1.5 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp sage
1/4 tsp cloves

Brown the meats, then add the water and spices. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Add the potatos and carrots and cook for about 45 minutes.
Pour the mix into a piecrust and cover with pastry pie top. Bake for 10 minutes at 450 degrees and then for about 30 to 40 minutes more at 350 degrees.



Tourtierre St.Jean (Metis meat pies)

Dice equal parts of Rabbit, or other game meat(s), or pork, and veal. Mix with diced potatoes,and finely diced onions. Dice everything else to about 3/8 inch.

Toss it all in a deep roasting pan (6-8 inches) lined with pie pastry that you've left hanging way over the edges. Add a cup of water white wine etc. lotsa salt and pepper. Fold the pastry over the pie and bake 250 f. for about 4 hours, then turn up heat to brown crust.



Easy Tourtiere

For the lightest pastry, make sure you're working with cold butter and lard, and don't overwork the dough.
Ingredients

• 8 oz button mushrooms, trimmed
• 1 small onion, quartered
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tsp vegetable oil
• 1-1/2 lb lean ground pork
• 2 tbsp quick-cooking rolled oats, (not instant)
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp dried savory
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1 egg, beaten

Really Flaky Pastry:

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cubed
• 1/2 cup cold lard, cubed
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp vinegar
• Ice water

Preparation

In a food processor, pulse together mushrooms, onion and garlic until finely chopped. In large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat; cook mushroom mixture, stirring occasionally, until no liquid remains, about 5 minutes. Transfer to bowl; set aside. In same skillet, brown pork, breaking up with spoon, about 8 minutes. Stir in rolled oats, salt, pepper, thyme, savory and cloves. Return mushroom mixture to pan along with 1/3 cup water; cook over medium-low heat, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until almost no liquid remains, about 10 minutes. Transfer to bowl; cover and refrigerate for 45 minutes. (Make-ahead: Cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.)

Really Flaky Pastry: Meanwhile, in bowl, whisk flour with salt. Using pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in butter and lard until in coarse crumbs with a few larger pieces. In liquid measure, beat egg with vinegar; add enough ice water to make 2/3 cup. Drizzle over flour mixture, tossing with fork until ragged dough forms. Divide in half; press into discs. Wrap each and refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes.

Combine egg with 1 tbsp water to make egg wash. On lightly floured surface, roll out 1 of the pastry discs to scant one-inch thickness; fit into 9-inch pie plate. Spoon in filling. Roll out remaining pastry. Brush pie rim with some of the egg wash; cover top with pastry. Trim, leaving 3/4-inch overhang. Gently lift bottom pastry rim and fold overhang under rim; press together to seal. Brush pastry with egg wash; cut steam vents in top. Bake in bottom third of 400º oven until hot and golden brown, about 50 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.



Classic French Canadian Tourtiere

Ingredients

• 2 lb ground pork
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and grated
• 2 medium onions, minced
• 1-1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp savory
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1 minced garlic clove
• 1/2 tsp sage
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 cups dry breadcrumbs
• 1 beaten egg, plus 1 tbsp. water

Preparation

Pastry: Prepare pastry dough for 2 - 9" double crust pies, seasoned with 1/4 tsp tumeric and 1/4 tsp savory. Roll out 1/2 pastry and fit into 9 x 13" rectangular baking dish OR 2 8" pie plates. Chill.

Filling: Place all filling ingredients except bread crumbs and egg in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir to blend. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in enough bread crumbs to absorb all excess moisture. Cool mixture and place in pie shell. Roll out remaining pastry and place on top of meat. Seal upper and lower crust and crimp edges. For added luster, brush pastry with water and egg mixture. Slit the crust well to allow steam to escape. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes until golden brown. Serve hot with gravy.



Romeo Morin’s Tourtiere

Chop up leftover roast pork and mix it with some leftover mashed potatoes. Chop one onion, brown it in butter, and add to the mix. Add salt and pepper, to taste. Put this in the bottom crust and cover with the top crust. Cut some slits in the top, and bake in a 350º oven for 50-60 minutes, until brown.
Alternatively, you can brown some ground pork, drain the fat and use that as a meat, and that is just as good. Recently, I have sprinkled a bit of Allspice in the mix, and added a little bit of minced garlic.

For another version, which seems to be true to most of the Tourtiere that I have had in restaurants: Put about 2 lbs. of ground pork in a large pan and brown. Then, drain the fat.

Add 1 cup of water
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. allspice
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 tsp. pepper

Simmer for 1/2 hour, stirring often. Remove from heat, and add 3 cups bread crumbs. Mix well and allow to cool. Put it into the pie crust and top with a crust. Bake 30 minutes in a 425º oven. (Chef Louis Baltera, Chateau Frontenac, Quebec)

The following recipe for Stirred Pastry is the crust that I use most often as it is easier to make than a traditional flaky crust, and does not rely on lard, or vegetable shortening (which has unhealthy transfats).

Stirred Pastry

In a bowl, mix together 2 cups flour, 1 1/2 tsp. salt, 1 1/2 tsp. sugar.
In a cup, stir together 1/2 cup salad oil (preferably canola), and 1/4 cup milk.
Pour over the flour, and stir until no dry flour shows.
Divide into 2 balls. Refrigerate if not using immediately. (Cold dough doesn’t stick so readily to everything)
Roll out the dough between two pieces of wax paper, peel off one piece, and flop the other piece, with the crust, over the plate. Then remove the wax paper, so that the dough falls into the pie plate. Fill the crust with the Tourtiere mix and then treat the top crust in the same manner.

[brass410]

thanks Al..... I just gained 19 lbs reading that, and am drooling like a dog de Bordeaux. Gonna test this out this week.

[JWFilips]

No Matter what Recipe: I know I would love them all! Just love meat pies.
My BIL 's Canadian neighbor always sends one over to him for Christmas. He isn't fond of it so I get It ! Yum!
Thanks for posting

[Reverend Al]

We have a monthly potluck dinner here in Victoria that is organized by the Victoria Metis Association and for one of them my wife decided to make an extra effort and make a number of these Tourtieres in a small "mini" version. They didn't last very long and she got a lot of compliments about them ...

Here are a few more traditional Metis recipes for you:

Favorite Metis recipes from the Louis Riel Institute of Manitoba

Li Gallette - Bannock

3 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp baking powder
1/2-cup lard
1 1/2 cups cold water

Mix

Knead 5 to 8 minutes

Roll 1/2 thick
Bake at 375° F until done


Meatballs (Boullettes)

2 lbs lean hamburger
2 medium onions
diced salt
pepper
2 tbsp flour

Mix hamburger, onions and flour

Season to taste with salt and pepper

Make into meatballs about 2 inches in diameter
Place in pot of boiling water for about 1 hour.


Barley Soup

Simmer soup bones, boiling beef or chunks of wild meat in water, with onions, a bit of salt and pepper until meat is tender and broth is good. Add barley, small chunks of carrot and potatoes and continue to simmer for at least another hour, eat and enjoy!


Classic Metis Soup

Sauté ground or chunks of meat with diced onions, celery, carrots and potatoes, when cooked, add water, a bit of macaroni, a can of tomatoes, a bit of salt and pepper and simmer for another half an hour. It’s very good with bannock.


Soupe au Pois – Pea Soup
Simmer ham bone or chunks of ham in water with finely diced onions, sp
lit green or yellow peas until everything is tender. Add diced carrot for colour and simmer for another half hour, salt and pepper to taste.


Soupe au Bean – Bean Soup

Soak white beans overnight, drain and add fresh water, a bit of salt pork, or ham bone, onion and simmer for a few hours, very basic, very good!


Wild Rice and Prairie Chicken (Partridge)

1 cup cooked wild rice
1/2 cup margarine
breast of one partridge
1/4 cup onion minced
1/4 cup chopped celery
1 can chopped mushrooms
season with salt, pepper and season salt.

Fry onions, celery and mushrooms in margarine until lightly browned. Add all ingredients. Cook about 10 minutes (you can add soy sauce if you wish). Stuff partridge with wild rice mixture and wrap partridge in tin foil. Roast until done.


Boulette Soup

Get a pot and peel and cube about 3 inches worth of potatoes into the pot. Chop some onions and put in with the potatoes as you like. Sprinkle some salt over it and cover the mixture with water. Take some lean ground beef and put it in a bowl and sprinkle in salt and pepper to your liking. If you like garlic, add about 2 tsp of crushed garlic. Make little boulettes (meatballs) about the size of a spoon. Add your boulettes (meatballs) to the pot and cover until it starts boiling. Lower the temperature and let simmer stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are done and the boulettes (meatballs) are cooked thoroughly and you do not see any pink in the middle of the boulettes (meatballs). You will then add milk and pepper to make a nice base for the soup. To thicken the soup you will mix 4 t.b.s.p of flour with a ¼ cup of water. Stir the paste into the soup and let it simmer for an additional 5 minutes. Serve with bannock.


Saskatoon Jelly

3 cups of berry juice, ½ cup of lemon juice, 7 ½ cups of sugar, 1 bottle of liquid pectin (certo). Clean and prepare berries. Place about 4 lb. in kettle and crush. Heat gently until juice starts to flow and then simmer covered for 15 minutes. Place in jelly cloth and squeeze out juice. Squeeze and strain juice from 4 lemons and put aside. To make jelly - measure sugar and juice into a large saucepan and mix. Add lemon juice and combine well. Bring to a boil over high heat and all at once, add pectin, stirring constantly, then bring to a full rolling boil and boil hard for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Skim and pour quickly into sterilized jars and seal.



Tourtiere (meat pie)

Pastry: 5 cups of flour, 2 teaspoons of salt, 4 teaspoons of baking powder, 1 lb of lard, 1 cup of hot water, 4 teaspoons of vinegar, 1 well-beaten egg. Measure flour, salt and baking powder into large bowl. Stir together to distribute all ingredients. Add lard. Cut into pieces with knife. With pastry cutter, cut in lard until whole mixture is crumbly. Mix hot water, vinegar and well-beaten egg together. Pour slowly over flour mixture stirring with fork to distribute. With your hands, work until it holds nicely together.

Filling: 5 lbs of ground pork, 2 lbs of lean ground beef, 6 medium onions, salt and pepper to taste, and 3 garlic cloves Place all ingredients into extra large saucepan. Add water to cover about 3/4 of the meat mixture. Bring to a boil and simmer for approximately 30 minutes. Stir occasionally. Cool slightly. Line pie with pastry. Fill with meat mixture. Dampen outer edge with water. Cover with pastry (make slits in top crust). Press edges to seal. Bake in 350 F oven until golden brown. These freeze well and may be left in the freezer for 4-5 months. This recipe makes approximately 7 pies.


Indian Relish

12 large tomatoes, 12 large apples, 9 medium onions, 3 cups sugar, 1 pint vinegar, 1 tsp. Pepper, ½ tsp. Celery salt, ½ tsp. Clovers, 1 tsp cinnamon, mixed spiec and ½ cup of salt. Blend all ingredients. Cook until thick. Seal in sterile jars.


Pouchine au Sac - Pudding in a bag

½ cup of beef suet, chopped fine and free from skin, ½ cup of brown sugar, 1 cup of raisins, ½ cup of currants, 1 teaspoon of pastry spice, 2 cups of flour, ½ teaspoon of salt, 4 teaspoons of baking powder, ¾ cup of milk. Mix all dry ingredients together and add milk. Pour mixture in a 5 lbs. cotton bag or 2, 1 qt. sealers. Fill jars half full and serve with sauce. Sauce: ½ cup of white sugar, 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, 1 cup of boiling water, 2 tablespoons of butter, ½ teaspoon of lemon extract, ½ teaspoon of vanilla.


Onion Stuffing

2 1/2 quarts toasted bread crumbs (measure after toasting) 1 1/4 cups butter or margarine 1/3 cup minced onion 1/2 cup chopped celery 2 tbsp. dried parsley leaves 2 tsp. salt 2 tsp. poultry seasoning 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix well. Stuff the wild goose lightly and crop cavity of a large. into the body and crop cavity of a large wild goose, ready to cook.


Spiced Venison Roast

5 pound venison roast, 1 tbsp. cinnamon, 1 tbsp. ginger, 1 tbsp. sugar, 2 bay leaves, 1 tsp. salt, 1 tbsp. vinegar, 2 cups tomato juice, 2 onions, chopped, 1/2 tsp. pepper.
Brown the roast all over. Combine remaining ingredients. Add cover and cook 3 hours in a moderate oven, or until done to taste. Serves about 8 hungry folks.


Trout Sandwich Filling

1 cup flaked trout 1/4 cup mayo 1/2 of a green pepper cut very thin Salt & pepper
Mix all ingredients together well. Ready for sandwiches.


Rose Hip Jam

Note: Do not gather berries until after the first frost and preserve the same day as picked. Boil 4 cups of berries with 2 1/2 cups of water until the berries are tender. Force through a sieve to remove seeds. Add 1 cup of sugar to 2 cups of pulp. Mix thoroughly and bring to simmer slowly. Cook for 10 mins. Bottle. A layer of sugar spinkled on the top helps to improve the flavour.


Flax Seed Tea Home Remedy (try at your own risk)

Make a tea that sooths a bad cough. Put 2 tbsp. of whole flax seed into a teapot and add a slice of lemon and a pint of boiling water. Steep, strain and sweeten with honey.


Elk Burger Dumpling Stew

1 1/2 lbs. lean elk, ground 1 1/2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper onion juice 1/3 cup fat 1 tbsp. flour 2 cups hot water 1 cup tomato juice 1 tbsp. chilli sauce 1 recipe dumplings

Mix elk with salt, pepper and onion juice, shape lightly into small cakes and sear in fat in hot frying pan until well browned; remove cakes. Stir flour into dumplings in pan, add water, tomato juice and chilli sauce and bring to a boil. Return cakes to pan and drop 1 tbsp. dumpling mixture ontop of each, cover tightly and cook 10 minutes. Approximate yield: 6 portions.


Cornstarch Blancmange (Cornstarch Pudding)

3 tablespoons of cornstarch 2 to 4 tablespoons of sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 cups of milk 1 teaspoon vanilla
Mix cornstarch, sugar and salt with 1/2 cold milk. Scald remaining milk in a double boiler. Add cornstarch mixture gradually to scalded milk, stirring constantly. Cook until thickened and smooth. Cover and cook 25 mins. Stirring occasionally. Cool and add vanilla. Serve hot or cold. If you would like you can use brown sugar to make it taste like caramel or you can use coco to make chocolate pudding.


Wild Rice and Cheese Casserole

1 cup of Wild Rice 3 cups of water 1/2 cup chopped onion 1 cup of grated cheese 1/4 teaspoon of salt 3 cups of sliced mushrooms 3 tablespoons of butter 1 can (19oz) stewed tomatoes Wash the rice under cold water. Put the rice into 3 cups of water and parboil for 5 minutes. Let soak in the same water for one hour. Cook rice in boiling water for an additional 20 minutes. Drain rice if necessary. Sauté onion and mushrooms for about 5 minutes. Toss all ingredients in a 2 quart casserole and bake at 350 for 1 hour.


Pemmican

2 lbs. of lean buffalo or beef 1/4 cup dried berries (blueberries or saskatoons) 5 tablespoons of animal fat
Cut the meat into long strips and hang in the sun to dry for several days. When completely dry, pound each strip until broken into flakes then mix together the flakes and dried berries. The meat, berries and melted fat can be mixed into a bowl. When the fat has cooled the ingredients can be rolled into large balls and stored into plastic bags. Pemmican can be eaten as is, cooked like hamburger, or boiled with flour and water to make soup.


Roasted Muskrat

Remove the ribs, head and white gland (sacs) from around the back legs. Boil water and place the muskrat in the boiling water until they are cooked. Remove the muskrat and heat a frying pan with lard. Place the muskrat in the frying pan and add salt and pepper for taste.

[MT Gianni]

Thanks Reverend, that looks like an awesome filling for a Pasty.

[Reverend Al]

Of course you need to make some Bannock to go with it ...



There are a number of versions, but this one is my favorite and the one I make the most. A variation of this that my brother-in-law makes which is very good is one where he uses 1 cup of whole wheat flour and 1 & 1/2 cups of white flour.

Best Métis Bannock

Preheat your oven to 375 or 400 degrees (ovens vary), and while you're waiting assemble the following ingredients.

Dry ingredients

2 1/2 cups of white flour (or optionally 1 cup of Whole Wheat flour and 1 1/2 cups of white flour)

6 tsp of baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 tbsp sugar

1/3 cup of any suitable shortening (lard, bacon fat, butter, margarine, etc.)

Wet ingredients

2 large eggs

1 cup of sweet milk

Combine first four dry ingredients and mix very well. Add whichever shortening you'll be using to the dry mix and use a pastry blender to blend until the mix forms fine well mixed crumbs. Combine the 2 eggs with the milk and mix well (I do it right in the measuring cup), then add to the flour mixture. Stir with a spatula to form a soft dough, and kneed as little as possible after placing the dough on a hard surface dusted with bench flour. Add a bit more bench flour if needed to form a soft or "satin" looking and feeling dough that is no longer sticky to the touch. Form the dough into a rough square or rectangular loaf and place on a baking sheet or in a suitable size baking pan. Parchment paper placed underneath the loaf will help to prevent scorching on the bottom. Using a fork, prick holes onto the entire top of the loaf. Bake on an upper rack, well off the oven element, for about 20 minutes or until lightly browned on top.

[JWFilips]

Man; There are some great recipes floating on this thread !
Thanks guys
Jim

[jonp]

My family on the mothers side is from Quebec and we had tourtiere on Christmas. Boy do I miss that homemade crust made with real lard.