Tourtière (French Canadian Meat Pie)
Tourtière is a succulent pie filled with spiced meat and pieces of potatoes simmered in broth to give it more flavour and tenderness. It is popular in the colder months and around Christmastime in Eastern Canada.
Tourtière is a beloved meat pie recipe from Quebec, Canada, where I grew up. It’s a true familial meal everyone loves to eat, kids included, especially around the holiday season. It is usually served with ketchup for the little ones or homemade ketchup (chutney) for the grown-ups. Even if this dish is simple to make, it requires a little time, so usually, they are made in batches and frozen. This version is made with a personal twist of maple syrup and some extra spices to give it a festive touch.
Origins
It is considered a traditional dish in the Province of Quebec, although nobody agrees on the exact recipe. Some make it with potato cubes; others mash or omit them altogether. However, everyone agrees that the original version, Tourtière du Lac-St-Jean (Center of Quebec region), is made of wild meats and simmered for about 8 hours. This original Tourtiere is more complex and labour-heavy, mainly for special occasions like Christmas or New Year’s Eve. This is a simpler variation for everyday life and more accessible since it’s made without wild meat.
The Spice Mix
Open to interpretation, some traditionalists would say not to put anything other than salt and pepper. Even the garlic was not part of the first Tourtiere recipes. So I decided to ask Quebecers online what spices they use for theirs, and I’ve got a lot of cinnamon, clove, mustard seeds, celery salt, and allspice. I went ahead and used a bunch of spices I considered Holiday-ish. They are all optional, but it’s divine if you want this fantastic aromatic meat! I put in an extra spicy paprika to kick it up a notch, which I like. This added heat is barely noticeable, especially with the added maple syrup, just enough to make it memorable on the tastebuds!
The Meat
Once more, not everyone agrees on this; the original version was made with wild meats (moose, deer, rabbit, partridge, etc.) and usually a piece of salted lard, similar to bacon. Most people mix ground pork, veal, beef, and sometimes chicken. For this version, I went with the most common and more accessible mix: the good old ground beef and pork.
A Holiday Meal
Everyone in Quebec agrees that Tourtière is a Holiday dish! Well, it must be eaten, let’s say, at least once around the holidays. It’s a meal you can make year-round; some even do mini versions for kids, but it’s mandatory to enjoy one around Christmastime! It usually comes with a homemade tomato chutney or ketchup. It’s traditionally served with a lovely green salad and pickled veggies on the side, like pickles, onions, beets, etc.
FAQ
Can I freeze Tourtiere?
Oh, yes, it’s a typical dish to make ahead of time. First, cover it with aluminum foil, then wrap it in plastic until airtight. It lasts for a few weeks in the freezer. Store it with uncooked dough and cook for ten more minutes; then, the recipe indicates to heat it thoroughly!
What are the most used spices?
Cinnamon and clove are the most used spices. There are tons of variations, but those two are common ones. You can put the cloves whole and pick them up or make powder with a mortar.
What type of mould/recipient should I use?
The usual mould is a deep-dish pie plate with a smooth-sided (no undulations), 45 ° angle, and a 30cm (12 inches) large pie recipient. It could be metal, pyrex, silicone, or ceramic, as long as it goes in the oven. Unlike sweet pies, this one usually stays in its mould.
Tourtière (French Canadian Meat Pie)
Equipment
- 1 pie mould 30cm (12inch) x 5cm (1 inch) deep.
Ingredients
- 250 ml chicken broth or meat broth
- 2 pre-made pie dough round
- 2 potatoes medium sized
- 1 egg
- 30 ml olive oil or butter
Filling
- 400 g ground veal or beef
- 400 g ground pork
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves finely chopped
- 30 ml maple syrup
- 1 tsp yellow mustard
- 4 cloves in powder better
- ½ tsp cinnamon powder
- ½ tsp ginger in powder
- ½ tsp paprika
- ⅓ tsp nutmeg
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Heat a skillet or large pan over medium-high heat and cook the onions with the olive oil for about 5 minutes.
- Cook the potatoes in a small pot of water until tender, about 30 minutes.
- Add the meat, garlic and all the spices to the pan and cook until brown,
- Add the broth and let it simmer for about 40 minutes or until almost all the liquid is evaporated.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F), add the bottom pie dough to the mould and cook for 5 minutes.
- Once the potatoes are cooked, cut into small cubes, add to the meat and mix.
- Once cooled, add the filling to the bottomed pie dough and cover with the other pie dough. Press the sides to close the pie and make a cut or hole on top.
- Beat the egg in a small bowl and brush it over the pie with a sprinkle of salt.
- Cook in the oven at 180°C (350°F) for about 40 minutes or until golden.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Did You Make This Recipe?
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This looks comforting and delicious, thanks for sharing!
Thanks!
I’m making a gluten-free pie crust and giving it a try today on an unusually chilly day here for May. My Grandma did these without pre-cooking anything and they were a family favorite. I’m following your recipe (minus a few things ) and doing a pan brown gravy for over. Thanks for the recipe. 🩵
Interesting with gravy! I hope you enjoy!
My grandma made it meat pie with my sister and mom ab
Great recipe!
Thanks!
My mother was French and she really knew how to cook and bake. Toutiere was served during Christmas holidays. I can’t wait to try this recipe. Thank you
Yes, up in French Canada it’s popular to eat around the holiday season! I like it all winter long though! Also, a great meal to duplicate and freeze one for later use.
Homemade pie dough probably be better. It kind of fell apart with the frozen brand. Instead of water I used boiled chicken stock with 2 bay leaf, cloves, beef ramen seasoning packet. Let that steep as tea. Delicious. I added the other spices a bit to the beef and a bit to the potatoes.
Sure! Homemade dough is always better, it’s just a timer saver the pre-made dough, which is usually great for busy parents. Glad you had your creative twist to it!
It brought back beautiful family memories, of my grandmother’s lost recipes. I could never get it quite right. Thank you
Glad it could bring back lovely memories for you! For me too actually!
Just reminds me when I was younger yum yum yum
It a memory dish for many Canadians! Me included!
Made it today, wife made Tomato chutney. Meat pie was great, more moist than the Tourtiere my mom (from Quebec)made, which I always found too dry. Right blend of spices gave it great flavour. Used veal and ground pork.
Glad you liked it!
I thought it very good, but mine came out so dry, not sure why, maybe I added too much powdered clove.
I did like this but it was so dry, wondering if I added too much dry clove, and meat was very dark. Any suggestions, I have left over meat so I’m going to try and do another one.
Hi Linda! The meat shouldn’t be dark. Let me know how the next one turns out, otherwise you can always cut on the cooking time, sometimes convection ovens are more potent than conventional ones.
The recipe doesn’t say that the meat mixture should be cooled to room temperature before it is added to the bottomed pie crust. I assume it should be because wouldn’t hot moist filling ruin the crust?
Hi Irene, thanks for letting me know. I’ve added it! But also, if don’t want to wait for it to cool down you can also give a quick 5 minutes bake to the bottom pie dough to set it and this way you can add the meat mixture right away. That was my grandma’s trick.
Superb party recipe for a family celebration or a group of friends . Excellent to make ahead and freeze. This recipe is always a winner , served with a fresh mixed green salad and nice warm bread or garlic bread . Thanks so much for this excellent and easy to make ahead crowd pleaser. We enjoyed the left overs the next day! ( I was so lucky to have a haunch of venison and a roast of black bear plus some pork , which I ground using my trusty Kitchen Aid attachment. The spices and herbs are absolutely essential! A Different tourtiere every time but absolutely delicious.
Sorry, did you say black bear? Interesting, didn’t know it was edible. But glad you could use it, traditionally this meat pie was made with all kinds of wild meats.
Made it years ago and lost receipt then daughter found on Google. So I know it is yummy.
It’s a memorable comfort dish indeed, glad you liked it!
I’m not a fan of maple syrup (sorry but not a sweet fan). Is there another substitute?
You can skip it, it’s not in the traditional recipe neither, so no problem. I like to make my tourtiere version with an extra Canadian touch!
I made the filling and some pizza dough, I rolled out the pizza dough into about 5 inch rounds and put some of the filling in and closed the dough around put on a baking pan seam side down brush the tops of the buns with egg wash bake 450 for 15 min or golden brown and vois la Tortiere hand pies. C’est manifique!
This recipe was incredible however never use the store bought crusts; it’ll diminish all your hard work. You can whip up a flaky crust dough so quick and let it chill in the fridge while preparing everything else.
This was my first attempt at making tourtière and I nailed it! So good. Thank you for the recipe 🩷🧡💜
I make tourtiere every year starting around Thanksgiving. I’m more generous with the spices. 2 tbsp poultry seasoning, 2 tbsp cinnamon and 2 tsp ground gloves.
This year I’ll try adding some nutmeg.
Yes, you can spice it up to your liking! I know for my kids it can get overwhelming if it’s too aromatic so I keep it on the low level. Let me know how the nutmeg one goes!
I also use summer savory it has a great flavor in the meat pie Lorraine Davis
Yes, it’s a common spice in French Canadian meals, which is always welcomed!
I would like to make this in advance for Christmas but I’m confused by the freezing instructions. Should I assemble the pie and freeze it? Should I defrost it before baking?
Add aluminum foil on it, and reheat for about 35-40 minutes directly from frozen (no need to thaw). If the pie was already baked before freezing, reheating time is shorter by ~10 minutes.