Tourtiere: Canadian Meat Pie Recipe
Originating in Quebec, Tourtiere is a traditional French Canadian Christmas recipe. Learn how to make this Canadian meat pie recipe with flaky crust and hearty, spiced filling, just in time for the holidays. Makes 1 pie or 8 servings.
Why I love this tourtière recipe
Some of you may already know this, but my husband is Canadian. Since we’ve been together, I have learned a whole new set of traditions, especially when it comes to food and holidays, but Marc’s favorite holiday tradition is tourtière (mine is vin chaud and shrimp with cocktail sauce).
I can’t remember when I first had it, but I think it was when we were living in France and one of his teammates from Quebec hosted holiday dinner, but I could mistaken. Either way, I knew it was for me a my first bite.
What is the spice in tourtiere?
It was hearty, and it was spiced with some of my favorite flavors. It reminded me so much of my favorite Irish sausages and Cincinnati chili, and that’s because the key spices are cloves, all-spice and cinnamon.
There are other spices in there, too, but if you’re looking to pinpoint what gives this Canadian meat pie it’s unique flavor, that’s undoubtedly it.
Here’s what you’ll need to make your tourtiere
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How do you make Tourtiere?
Prepare your pie crust. As always, I’m using store bought crust for this Canadian meat pie. Most store bought brands are already dairy free, and you know how I feel about taking shortcuts when I can.
We already have enough extra work in our lives. However, if you have a homemade pie crust recipe that you love, definitely use it. You’ll need two pie crusts.
Mash some potatoes. This recipe calls for 1 cup of mashed potatoes. You can either use leftover mashed potato, or you can boil some peel potatoes and mash them.
No need to add anything to them. Get them smooth, and they will work just fine.
Make the filling. In a large skillet, heat some olive oil to medium high. Add your onion, and sauté until it’s translucent and slightly soft. Then add your beef and pork, and let it brown.
Break up the meat into small pieces as it cooks. When it’s no longer pink, add the mashed potato and spices.
In a small bowl, whisk together the beef broth and flour together (you can also shake it in a jar or container).
Pour that into the pan and mix everything until the potato has dissolved into filling and your broth has thickened. Adjust seasoning with salt & pepper, to taste.
Fill the pie. Line your pie plate with the bottom crust. Transfer your filling to the pie plate and top it with your second crust.
Carefully fold the edges and press together to seal them, and create a vent in the top crust – piece with a fork, cut out a shape, whatever you prefer. Brush the top with a quick egg wash before baking.
Bake your tourtiére. Place your meat pie in a 375˚F oven and bake for 45 – 50 minutes. The crust should be nice and golden brown when you remove it.
Let the pie rest and allow it to cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.
How and when to serve Canadian meat pie:
We normally have our tourtiere on Christmas eve, which is when most people in Quebec have their big Christmas meal. Since my family normally has a bit of an Italian seafood spread (shrimp, mussels, fish cakes), I usually bring this as my contribution because it’s something a little different.
Tourtière would also be a great option on New Year’s Eve, if you’re not ready to change up your Christmas traditions.
Since this meat pie is such a hearty dish, it’s nice to balance it out with something a little lighter.
It’s traditionally served with pickled red beets, chili sauce, or even ketchup, but I’ve never done it that way. When we aren’t having this as part of a Christmas even spread (or if this was our main dish for Christmas), I like to serve my tourtière with my favorite brussels sprout salad.
More Christmas recipes:
- White Christmas margarita
- Bacon wrapped water chestnuts
- Baked scallops
- French mulled wine
- No chill sugar cookies
More ground meat recipes:
- Baked hamburgers
- Ground chicken tacos
- Turkey sloppy joes
- Chicken stuffed peppers
- Hamburger stroganoff
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small onion (diced)
- 2 garlic cloves (minced)
- 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1 cup mashed potatoes *see note
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground mustard
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 teaspoons coarse salt
- 1/2 cup beef broth
- 1/2 tablespoons flour
- 1 egg for egg wash
- 2 pie crusts (store bought or homemade)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375˚F.
- Heat a large skillet to medium high. Add the oil and onions, and sauté until translucent.
- Add garlic and continue cooking until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Add ground beef and pork and cook until no longer pink, breaking up the meat into small pieces.
- Add mashed potatoes and spices.
- In a small jar or container, shake beef broth and flour until smooth and pour into the skillet.
- Cook until the broth has thickened.
- Place the bottom crust in a 9-inch pie plate. Fill the crust with meat filling and top with remaining pie crust.
- Seal the two crusts together, rolling to one over the other if needed, and press gently with a fork or fingers. Brush the top crust with egg wash.
- Bake for 45 – 50 minutes or until the pie crust is golden brown in color.
Since I am mentioned in the post let me be the first to comment and review. I absolutely love this recipe and the moment it’s being baked it brings me back to my childhood and the wonderful smells of Christmas time!
What kind of crust would you buy? I’d love to try receipe.
Tastes just like my grandmother used to make. So good.
Just made this fantastic recipe! I used ground moose meat instead of the beef. All else was exactly as the recipe stated. I will be replicating this for my Christmas menus this year!!
This is the recipe my grandparents and mother used and now I use. The seasoning is everything. Taste, add, taste, add. Love it!
Is it 1 1/2 tsp each oregano allspice and mustard or 1/2 a tsp each
It looks life one and a half teaspoons.
The meat pie has been a Christmas tradition in my Mass. family for at least a century. My grandmother inherited a recipe that called for savory; I think the oregano here is a poor substitute, from the days when savory was hard to find outside of the Maritime Provinces and New England. Her potatoes were coarsely mashed, leaving bits of potato in the pie, which adds nicely to the texture.
Savory can be bought online these days, if your local supermarket doesn’t stock it. (Google “Mt. Scio Farm”) It’s also a wonderful addition to turkey stuffing, tomato sauces, and marinades.
i grow my own savory both varieties winter and summer. I agree it is a much nicer spice then oregano 🙂
I agree about the oregano/savoury. My mom made this for 70 years & never used oregano. Ever. Mashed potato wasn’t an ingredient either.
My French Canadian grandmother would make this filling for pies but with saltine crackers instead of potatoes. She would also use this same filling as stuffing for a baked pumpkin. The squash and filling is wonderful!
Lori,
Same in our family, saltines we’re crumbled up and used as the thickener.
Can this be made ahead and frozen to be reheated later?
I make several tourtiere every year leading up to the holidays and freeze them uncooked. I serve at gatherings and always manage to have one that I serve at brunch let in January. Just remove from the freezer and fully thaw before cooking.
Yellow mustard or dry mustard?
Dry mustard powder.
Just made this recipe, hugh disappointment. I grew up enjoying my mothers meat pie, a great Canadian recipe that has been handed down for 5 generations. Note, this recipe uses 2 to 3 times the amount of spice as compared to other recipes. At a minimum cut the spices in 1/2. Going back to mom’s, throwing this one away.
I’m sorry that you didn’t care for it. That’s the thing with recipes like these, each family has their own version and they are very loyal to them. We’ve been making this for a really long time with lots of Canadian approval, but to each their own. Thanks for the feedback!
My family’s recipe comes from my great grandfather and it has no spice except salt and pepper. Lots of onions is the ‘key’ for us! We don’t add potatoes, it’s white bread and eggs! I remember it being the most requested baked good by every family member every Christmas! My Grandma wasn’t allowed to visit someone without bringing a meat pie!😂. I’m baking one right now and having beautiful memories of my grandma and mom making these every year❤️
Sounds like it’s made for people with the palates of children. This recipe is much closer to the true tradition. Your grandmother had awful taste and you inherited it.
Wow, Steve, that’s a rather nasty comment. Melissa said in 2020 that every family has their own version. Differences are gifts to be cherished not deficits to be corrected.
You are way out of line Steve. You have no right to attack Kyra or her grandmother. YTA here Steve.
Nothing nice to say? Then shut your trap. Please.
That was not very nice. It is important for people to comment honestly as it tells readers different ways that may or may not help. But saying something mean about someone’s grandma, wow. 🙁
This recipe differs from my Grandmother’s Tourtiere Recipe, which required very lean Pork Butt ground twice approximately 2 lbs. (meat is from the animals shoulder and is extremely flavorful);
Finely diced 1 lrg. onion; a couple russet potatoes to mash in with the onions and meat which she would cook in small amounts at a time. She always prepared this recipe in her cast iron skillet. As she combined the mixture she added salt and pepper to taste. (one of my great aunts would add a pinch of allspice or clove to the mixture). The secret to the mixture is to keep it moist . She did that by adding teaspoons of water or liquid such as chicken broth. Think this year I’d like to use dry white wine (maybe a few sips while cooking over a hot stove!
Is it 1 1/2 tsp each of the oregano, allspice, and mustard?
Yes!
I’ve been looking for a good recipe for this to try! Yours sounds delicious. I like the range of spices used! Can’t wait to try it!
Do I need to use potato in this recipe? If not is there something else I should add or change?
Can you use minced garlic from jar ?
Absolutely!
Do you think I would be able to assemble this the day before and then bake it the next evening? Thanks!
I’m planning on making this with Impossible meat since I love meat pie for Christmas but recently gave up meat. Hopefully it works out. Cross your fingers
What do I do with the gravy?
I have not made this recipe as I do have one handed down from my father and his father…recipe is probably 75 plus years old and I must say it is excellent. I always look at other recipes to glean a little insight into the method used as my father just jotted his recipe down without much direction. One of the drawbacks of older recipes handed down. I haven’t veered much from his original ingredients but have changed the method which is very close to yours. However my point of this is to share the spices he used. Poultry seasoning, about 1 1/2 tsp., 1 tsp. celery salt, 1 tsp. ground sage, salt and pepper. I add about 1 1/4 cups water as well. Also I use one and half pounds ground beef and a half pound ground pork….makes two pies. My father was French Canadian.
I use half cup of potato water instead of flour it works well
Can’t wait to make this for my family this holiday! I plan to freeze once prepared, so I can make a few ahead of time. I’m a bit of a novice in the kitchen, would you recommend I let the filling cool before putting into the pie crusts because I’m planning to freezing them? maybe I’m over thinking it 😉
I have a lot of grease still in the pan after cooking. Do I pour it off or include it in the pie? TY
This is the first time I’ve ever been disappointed in a tourtiere. Excessive spicing, too homogenous in texture, not enough savoury quality of the meat.
My wife and made this recipe at Christmas. I am tempted to try it again but substituting the top crust with only mashed russet potatoes. What’s your view on this?
By the way its an excellent recipe. Thank you. 😊
I honestly don’t know how that would turn out! I’m sorry. I’ve never made a potato crust before, but if you try it, I would love to know how it turns out!
This was a winner for me!
This was my first time making meat pie on my own and it was delicious, served with apricot jam on the side (all I had). The pie had great structure and reheated very well too. Would definitely make again!
Thanks. This recipe is as close to my mom’s as I can find. We always ate it on Christmas Eve. She made a mushroom gravy to serve with it & sometimes we had cabbage rolls as well. It’s my favourite Christmas Eve tradition
Thanks. This recipe is as close to my mom’s as I can find. We always ate it on Christmas Eve. She made a mushroom gravy to serve with it & sometimes we had cabbage rolls as well. It’s my favourite Christmas Eve tradition
Amazing to see. I remember coming home from Midnight Mass Christmas eve with my Dad and three brothers. First memory, I being 4 1/2 and the smells in the wood house my Dad built for us that year was filled with joy 70 years ago. Wow this was the first year I did not make our tourtiers just tired. Good memories here. My Mom usually added a pound of venison no oregano or potatoes, but, exactly the same. The smell in the house was the same wonder as her Dark fruit and nut Christmas cake …the house was waffled with the smells of Christmas. I think most of us Metis, Native, French and Irish mix of people had these pies and cakes cooking in BC and Alberta. Of course the mince tarts also had that wonderful smell and taste of Christmas breaking of winter so cold. Thanks for the memories.
So happy I found your recipe! I’ve been making this pie at Christmas several times now, and everyone who isn’t a vegetarian loves it. Initially, I thought the spices may be too much, but it was perfect. I cut back a bit on the salt though, as I do with most recipes.
This is a great recipe for tourtiere, I go to it Every time.
I have been making this recipe for well over 50 years. It’s not the very same as this recipe but very close.It’s great.I only make it for Christmas eve, and we all look forward to it.
Thank you for posting.
Hello,
I’m looking for a tourtière recipe that reminds me of my Mémère and fell upon yours. Looking forward to asking it and sharing it with my Family this Christmas!
Is the pie crust raw or cooked when the meat mixture is added before gokng into the oven?
Happy holidays to you and yours! 🎄
Pie crust is raw, and brush egg wash on top of raw top crust.
Deliciously awesome 👌 👏 I thought my Ma was back. This is a keeper!
Thanks for the taste that took me home.
Happy New Year!