Vintage Chinese Pie (Pâté Chinois)
This vintage Chinese pie recipe is a cozy French-Canadian-style casserole with seasoned ground beef, sweet corn, and creamy mashed potatoes baked until golden and bubbly.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: French Canadian
Ingredients
Scale
For the Mashed Potato Topping
- 3 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
- 4 tablespoons butter
- ½ cup warm whole milk or half-and-half
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
For the Ground Beef Layer
- 1½ pounds ground beef
- 1 small yellow onion, finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup beef broth
For the Corn Layer
- 1 (14.75-ounce) can cream-style corn
- 1½ cups whole kernel corn, drained
- 1 tablespoon butter
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Optional Topping
- Fresh chopped parsley
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Grease a 9×13-inch baking dish.
- Add the potatoes to a large pot and cover with cold salted water. Bring to a boil and cook for 15 to 18 minutes, until fork-tender. Drain very well.
- Mash the potatoes with the butter, warm milk, sour cream, salt, and pepper until creamy. Set aside.
- While the potatoes cook, brown the ground beef and onion in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook until the beef is browned and the onion is softened. Drain excess grease, if needed.
- Stir in the garlic, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Cook for 1 minute.
- Sprinkle the flour over the beef and stir well. Slowly pour in the beef broth, stirring until the mixture thickens into a savory gravy. Spread evenly in the prepared baking dish.
- In a small bowl, stir together the cream-style corn, whole kernel corn, butter, and pepper. Spoon evenly over the ground beef layer.
- Spread the mashed potatoes over the corn. Use the back of a spoon to make soft swirls across the top.
- Bake uncovered for 25 to 30 minutes, until bubbling around the edges and lightly golden on top. Broil for 2 to 3 minutes, if desired, for deeper color.
- Let the casserole rest for 10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle lightly with fresh parsley.
Notes
- For a more traditional pâté chinois, leave off the parsley and keep the three classic layers of beef, corn, and potatoes.
- Leftover mashed potatoes make this recipe especially easy.
- Use gluten-free flour or cornstarch, plus gluten-free Worcestershire sauce, if needed.
- Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Find it online: https://www.firsthomelovelife.com/vintage-chinese-pie-recipe/