Tourtière, a French-Canadian meat pie, is a delightful and iconic dish that embodies the culinary heritage of Québec. Wrapped in a flaky, golden-brown crust, it is a comforting and flavorful meal that can be enjoyed all year round. This article presents two variations of tourtière: the classic pork version and a modern vegetarian alternative. Both recipes are explained in detail with easy-to-follow instructions, making them accessible to home cooks of all skill levels. Whether you prefer the traditional meat-based filling or a plant-based option, this article has got you covered. Get ready to embark on a culinary journey and discover the authentic flavors of French-Canadian cuisine with these two delicious tourtière recipes.
Check out the recipes below so you can choose the best recipe for yourself!
TOURTIERE (FRENCH CANADIAN MEAT PIE)
This French Canadian meat pie is hearty, satisfying, and easy to make so it's a great choice for a holiday main course. Visually impressive, relatively affordable, and best served at room temperature, so a tourtiere doesn't require any kind of precise timing.
Provided by Chef John
Categories Meat and Poultry Recipes Pork Ground Pork Recipes
Time 2h15m
Yield 8
Number Of Ingredients 28
Steps:
- Place flour, salt, and frozen butter slices into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse on and off until butter is about the size of peas, about 30 seconds. Stir vinegar into cold water; drizzle water/vinegar into the flour mixture. Pulse on and off until mixture is crumbly and holds together when you pinch a piece off, about 10 seconds. If dough isn't pressing together, drizzle in another teaspoon of water.
- Transfer mixture to a work surface. Press it together until it becomes a lump of dough. Wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour.
- Mix salt, pepper, thyme, sage, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, mustard, clove, and cayenne together in a small bowl.
- Place potato quarters in a saucepan; cover with cold water. Add 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Bring to a boil over high heat; reduce heat. Simmer until cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes. Scoop out potatoes and transfer to a bowl; save cooking liquid. Mash potatoes with a potato masher.
- Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add chopped onion and a pinch of salt. Cook and stir until onions turn golden, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Stir garlic, celery, and spice blend into the skillet with onions. Stir until onion mixture is evenly coated with the spices, about 30 seconds. Add ground beef and ground pork. Ladle about 3/4 cup of the potato cooking liquid into the skillet.
- Cook and stir until meat is browned and has a very fine, almost pastelike texture. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until meat is tender and most of the liquid has evaporated, about 45 minutes. Stir in mashed potatoes. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
- Divide chilled dough into 2 pieces, one just slightly larger than the other. Roll the larger piece out into a 12-inch circle on a lightly floured work surface. Place in a 9-inch deep dish pie plate. Roll top crust out into a circle about 11 inches in diameter. Cut small slits in the top crust to allow steam to escape.
- Fill bottom crust with the meat mixture; smooth out the surface. Whisk egg and water together to make egg wash. Brush edges of the bottom crust with egg wash. Place top crust on the pie and press lightly around the edges to seal. Trim excess dough from the crust. Crimp the edges of the crust. Brush entire surface of the pie with egg wash.
- Place in preheated oven. Bake until well browned, about 1 hour. Let cool to almost room temperature before serving.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 663 calories, Carbohydrate 47.3 g, Cholesterol 159.2 mg, Fat 40.5 g, Fiber 2.6 g, Protein 26.9 g, SaturatedFat 21.4 g, Sodium 1074 mg, Sugar 1.5 g
TRADITIONAL FRENCH CANADIAN TOURTIERE
Originally from my grandma's recipe box, the secret of this delectable Christmas treasure is found in the ground cloves and chicken seasoning. We've always made our tourtieres en grand (in large quantity), as they freeze great making them a terrific quick fix throughout the busy holiday season!
Provided by kathleen
Categories Meat and Poultry Recipes Pork Ground Pork Recipes
Time 1h45m
Yield 64
Number Of Ingredients 11
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
- In a large pot, mix the pork, beef, onion, and water. Season with salt, pepper, allspice, cloves, cinnamon, and chicken seasoning. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer 30 minutes.
- Drain liquid from pot into a bowl. Transfer remaining meat mixture to a separate bowl and chill until ready to use. Place bowl with liquid in the refrigerator and chill 1 hour, or until fat has congealed on the surface.
- Scrape and discard fat from the chilled liquid. Spoon the meat mixture into pie crusts. Add 1 tablespoon of reserved liquid to each pie. (This prevents them from becoming to dry.) Place top crust on top of each pie and pinch edges to seal. Cut slits in top crust so steam can escape.
- Bake in preheated oven until golden brown, about 50 minutes. Serve immediately or freeze until ready to use.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 467.6 calories, Carbohydrate 23.1 g, Cholesterol 71.3 mg, Fat 31 g, Fiber 2.1 g, Protein 22.7 g, SaturatedFat 9.7 g, Sodium 588.2 mg, Sugar 0.4 g
TOURTIERE (FRENCH CANADIAN MEAT PIE)
This dish is traditional in French Canadian homes at Christmas. It freezes well, and is handy for company.
Provided by Bluenoser
Categories Savory Pies
Time 1h
Yield 2 pies, 2 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 18
Steps:
- In large skillet, brown meat with onion and garlic. Drain fat.
- Stir in water, celery, carrot, boullion and bay leaf.
- Bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat and simmer 7-8 minutes.
- Remove from heat and add potatoes and spices.
- Spoon into pie shells. Cover with pastry topping.
- Combine egg yolk, water and brush lightly on crust.
- Bake 375°F 30-40 minutes.
- Serve with brown gravy and salad.
TOURTIERE A L'ORIGNAL (FRENCH CANADIAN MOOSE MEAT PIE)
This is my Memere's tourtiere recipe, tweaked a bit, but don't tell her that. One does not mess with a French woman's meat pie recipe, lol. All the men in my family are moose hunters. This is one way we use the ground moose meat. Moose meat is very lean so do not cut back on the ground pork.
Provided by queenbeatrice
Categories Savory Pies
Time 1h15m
Yield 2 pies, 12 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 14
Steps:
- Combine Pork, moose, onion, garlic, spices, water and sauces in a skillet and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat and cook uncovered for 20 minutes, or long enough to remove pink from meat. Mixture should be moist, not watery.
- Add enough potatoes to absorb the liquid. Cool.
- Fill crust, cover with top crust and seal edges. Cut vent holes.
- Combine egg and water and brush over pastry crust.
- Bake at 425 for 10 minutes, reduce heat to 350 and bake 30 minutes or until lightly browned.
ALICE'S FRENCH CANADIAN MEAT PIE - TOURTIERE
This is my mother's recipe that she got from her mother, who was born in Montreal Canada. We have had these pies every Christmas since I was a little kid. It would not be Christmas in our family without mom's tourtieres! Thanks mom for the recipe and all the wonderful holidays you gave us over the years!
Provided by Dr. David
Categories Pork
Time 1h
Yield 2 pies
Number Of Ingredients 12
Steps:
- Cook meat in a skillet on medium heat until brown, then drain and place meat in a large bowl.
- Add potatoes a little at a time to meat.
- Add seasonings and mix.
- Add more seasonings to taste.
- Place pie dough on 2 pie plates.
- Add half of mixture to each pie.
- Cover each pie with remaining dough.
- Seal the edges of pies and cut 5 to 6 vent holes on the tops of pies.
- Brush top of pies with melted butter.
- Bake 20 - 30 minutes at 350°F or until crusts are golden brown.
THE BEST TOURTIÈRE ( FRENCH-CANADIAN MEAT PIE)
Steps:
- In a saucepan, combine the ground pork, water, ground clove, allspice, salt, pepper and onion. Cook over moderate heat for 30 minutes, stirring often to prevent sticking. Remove from heat; add the mashed potatoes and mix well. Cool. Meanwhile, line two 9-inch pie plates with pastry. When meat mixture is lukewarm, divide it between two pie shells and spread it out evenly. Brush around outer edge of pastry with the beaten egg. Place top crust on the tart and press gently around the edge to seal. Trim pastry, crimp edges and cut steam vents in top crust. Decorate as desired. Bake in a hot oven, 425 degrees F, for 40 minutes. Serve hot.
TOURTIERE (FRENCH CANADIAN MEAT PIE)
This common recipe is a favorite among those living in Quebec and those whose ancestors migrated from there.
Provided by Member 610488
Categories Pot Pie
Time 1h30m
Yield 6-8 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 17
Steps:
- The dough can be made in advance. You will need 1 pound of dough to make this pie. Blend the shortening, flour and cold water together in the bowl of a stand mixer on low speed, using a dough hook. Mix until well blended.
- Remove the dough from the bowl, wrap in plastic wrap and put it on a sheet pan. The dough can be stored for up to 1 week in the refrigerator, but allow it to come to room temperature before rolling.
- Cut the dough in half and roll out 1 piece of dough to fit into a 10-inch pie plate. Fit the dough circle into the bottom of the pie pan, pushing it snugly against the edges. Roll out the other piece of dough and set aside until ready to use.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over medium heat. Add the potatoes and blanch until al dente. Drain and set aside to cool.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, add the beef, pork, and the onions.
- Brown the meat, then discard the grease. Add the potatoes and moisten the mixture with the beef soup base. Add instant potato powder along with cinnamon, nutmeg, garlic, black pepper and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Mix well.
- Pour the filling into the dough lined pie plate. Level it off and cover with the remaining circle of dough. Pinch the edges of the bottom layer and top layer of dough together and create the knuckle-like pie edge ridges. Trim off any excess dough using a sharp knife.
- Brush the top of the pie with the egg wash. Make a few slits in the top crust to allow the steam to escape.
- Bake until cooked through and the top of the pie is golden brown, about 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 695.4, Fat 45.6, SaturatedFat 15.1, Cholesterol 82.1, Sodium 92.2, Carbohydrate 44.2, Fiber 2.6, Sugar 2.4, Protein 26.1
TOURTIERE (FRENCH CANADIAN MEAT PIE) - DAIRY FREE
This recipe makes 3 pies. A delicious meat pie that can be served with a wide variety of things. It is our Christmas Eve tradition to serve this with eggs and pan fried potatoes, but it is also yummy with mashed potatoes and veggies or anything else you can think of.
Provided by Chelle_N
Categories Savory Pies
Time 2h15m
Yield 3 pies
Number Of Ingredients 12
Steps:
- Place meat onion, celery, garlic and salt and pepper in sauce pan, cook until meat is granular.
- Put into dutch oven and fill pot until liquid covers the meat. If not enough consomme then add water.
- Cook for 1 hour.
- When done (mixture should still be "wet"). Remove from heat and mix in:.
- ½ to ¾ tsp cinnamon.
- ¼ tsp clove.
- Pinch of savory.
- Fill 3 bottom pie shells (quite full) and wet edges with egg/water combination.
- Put top crust on all 3 bottoms and using a fork, press down edges to seal.
- Slice top a few times to allow steam to escape.
- Bake at 350°F for 45 minutes or until deep golden.
- *You can add sprinkles of flour to meat mixture to thicken.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 2268.9, Fat 154.3, SaturatedFat 51, Cholesterol 414.7, Sodium 2042.3, Carbohydrate 86.7, Fiber 7.8, Sugar 1.8, Protein 125.8
FRENCH CANADIAN TOURTIERE
Traditionally French Canadian. We had this every Christmas Eve with more in the freezer cause it's so good. You could use only hamburger instead of pork and beef, but it just wouldn't be authentic!
Provided by hippychick
Categories Savory Pies
Time 35m
Yield 1 pie, 6-8 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 9
Steps:
- Cook all the ingredients together in a pot over medium heat till the meat has lost its pink color but is still moist.
- Cool then put mixture into an uncooked pie shell.
- Top with crust and bake at 425°F for 20- 25 minutes or till crust is golden brown.
TOURTIERE : FRENCH-CANADIAN MEAT PIE
Steps:
- Combine first 3 ingredients and cook for 2 hrs, stirring occasionally. Add salt and pepper, to taste. Add mashed potatoes and spices and mix well. Place meat filling in pie crust. Top with upper pastry crust. Bake at 400 - 10 minutes then, 375 for 20 minutes..
FRENCH CANADIAN TOURTIERE
Traditional French Canadian Tourtiere (meat pie), served on Reveillon (Christmas Eve).
Provided by Rayna Jordan
Categories Meat and Poultry Recipes Pork Ground Pork Recipes
Time 2h
Yield 8
Number Of Ingredients 11
Steps:
- In a saucepan, combine pork, beef, onion, garlic, water, salt, thyme, sage, black pepper and cloves. Cook over medium heat until mixture boils; stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to low and simmer until meat is cooked, about 5 minutes. Allow to cool to room temperature.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
- Spoon the meat mixture into the pie crust. Place top crust on top of pie and pinch edges to seal. Cut slits in top crust so steam can escape. Cover edges of pie with strips of aluminum foil.
- Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes; remove foil and return to oven. Bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool 10 minutes before slicing.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 404.6 calories, Carbohydrate 22.1 g, Cholesterol 55.3 mg, Fat 26.6 g, Fiber 1.9 g, Protein 18.4 g, SaturatedFat 8.1 g, Sodium 748.9 mg, Sugar 0.7 g
FRENCH CANADIAN TOURTIERE
There are almost as many recipes for this traditional French Canadian meat pie as there are French Canadians. I come by this one honestly as my father is of francophone heritage - his ancestors settled in Quebec back in the 1600s. Our family tradition is to serve this on Christmas Eve with beef gravy and petite pois (tiny sweet peas).
Provided by shopkeepervicki
Categories Savory Pies
Time 55m
Yield 1 pie, 6-8 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 10
Steps:
- In a large saucepan, mix first 8 ingredients. Bring to a boil, simmer and stir until meat loses its pink colour.Continue to simmer 30 minutes, uncovered, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in mashed potatoes. Cool at least two hours.
- Press filling in to uncooked pie shell.
- Place pastry on top of filling, crimp edges to seal. Top crust can be brushed with egg or milk before baking.
- Cut a hole in the centre, about the size of a dime.
- Bake at 425 F for 25-35 minutes.
- Allow to cool and set at least 20 minutes before serving with beef gravy and petite pois (tiny sweet peas). You can also bake only until top is slight browned and then freeze in advance of holidays or for a last-minute meal idea - reheat at 400 F for 15 minutes and then allow to sit for about 5 minutes before serving.
FRENCH CANADIAN TOURTIERE
Steps:
- 1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). 2. In a saucepan, combine pork, onion, garlic, water, and spices. Cook over medium heat until mixture begins to boil; stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to low and simmer slowly stirring occasionally until meat is cooked and water is so reduced so that a spoon of liquid taken from the surface does not reveal any separate oil/fat "cells", about 90 minutes. 3. Spoon the meat mixture into the pie crust. Place top crust on top of pie and pinch edges to seal. Cut slits in top crust so steam can escape. Cover edges of pie with strips of aluminum foil. 4. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, remove foil and return to oven. Bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown. Let cool 10 minutes before slicing.
Tips:
- Use high-quality ingredients. This will make a big difference in the final flavor of your tourtière.
- Make sure your meat is well-seasoned. The spices and herbs will help to flavor the meat and make it more delicious.
- Don't overcook the meat. Overcooked meat will be tough and dry.
- Use a good quality pastry dough. The pastry dough should be flaky and golden brown.
- Chill the tourtière before baking. This will help the pastry dough to set and make it easier to handle.
- Bake the tourtière at a high temperature. This will help to create a crispy crust.
- Let the tourtière cool slightly before serving. This will help the filling to set and make it easier to slice.
Conclusion:
Tourtière is a delicious and hearty dish that is perfect for a winter meal. It is a traditional French-Canadian dish that is made with ground pork, beef, or veal, potatoes, onions, and spices. The tourtière is then wrapped in a pastry dough and baked. Tourtière can be served with a variety of sides, such as mashed potatoes, vegetables, or salad. It is a delicious and satisfying meal that is sure to please everyone at the table.
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