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Italian Minced Beef Plait – so quick & easy to prepare!

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In association with Wahl

Italian Minced Beef Plait is a quick and easy recipe that is like a cross between a meatloaf and a Beef Wellington – delicious and sure to please the family with its hidden veg.

Italian Minced Beef Plait - Fab Food 4 All

I have a really simple and easy recipe for you today, Italian Minced Beef Plait. I was very happy to be approached by Wahl who asked me to develop a hearty meal using the Wahl James Martin Grind and Chop which is available in Argos.

I can’t tell you what a handy little machine this is.

For my Italian Minced Beef Plait, I used the chopper bowl attachment for mincing the onions, garlic, celery, and carrot and for chopping the cheese, making breadcrumbs, and beating the egg.

It was like having an extra pair of helping hands and really sped up the preparation process. It also comes with a grinder bowl with which you can grind things like spices and coffee.

Italian Minced Beef Plait - Fab Food 4 All

Operating the Wahl James Martin Grind and Chop is so simple, you just twist in the chopper or grinder bowl (handily labelled) then pop over the clear cup-like lid and press down.

It’s so easy and there’s no strain on your thumb like you can get when operating similar machines. The cup lid simply presses down onto an inconspicuous switch on the rim of the machine, you just need to make sure the cup is straight.

I am very impressed with this little gadget and will be keeping it on my worktop as it is small enough to not get in the way.

Italian Minced Beef Plait - Fab Food 4 All

I love that I can grate cheese, beat an egg, mince onion, and make bread crumbs in seconds which are things I do all the time.

There is a handy recipe booklet from James Martin that has recipes for things like spice mixes, curry paste, and pesto so I look forward to trying these and developing some more recipes of my own.

I think you’ll love my Italian Minced Beef Plait because there is no pan frying of vegetables in the prep of this dish, they’re all pulverised in the Wahl James Martin Grind and Chop so go straight into the mince along with all the other ingredients.

Your family or friends will think you’ve slaved for hours making this impressive-looking plait but it is so quick and easy to prepare.

My family all loved it and I served it with a salad and new potatoes but it would be equally good with an assortment of vegetables.

Everyone had seconds but I kept a slice back for my lunch the next day which was also delicious (along with the leftover new potatoes and salad)!

Italian Minced Beef Plait - Fab Food 4 All

I hope you make this Italian Minced Beef Plait as it’s something a bit different to make with minced beef. If you’d like more photos of the plaiting technique take a look at my Sweet Chilli Sausage Plait.

More Minced Beef Recipes

For more inspiration using minced beef (aka ground beef) check out these recipes:

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Italian Minced Beef Plait - Fab Food 4 All

NB: Post commissioned by Wahl and all opinions are my own.

Leave a comment and rating below when you’ve made this recipe; I love getting your feedback! You can also share your pictures by tagging @FabFood4All over on Instagram.

Italian Minced Beef Plait - Fab Food 4 All
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Italian Minced Beef Plait – so quick & easy to prepare.

Italian Minced Beef Plait is a quick and easy recipe which is like a cross between a meat loaf and a Beef Wellington – delicious and sure to please the family with its hidden veg.
Course Main
Cuisine Italian
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Servings 4 – 5
Author Camilla Hawkins

Ingredients

  • 500 g good quality minced beef or steak
  • I onion quartered
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 medium carrot chopped into chunks
  • 1 celery stick chopped into chunks
  • 2 slices stale bread 100g torn up
  • 1 – 2 tsp Italian mixed herbs
  • 4 tbsp tomato puree
  • 50 g mature Cheddar cheese cubed
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp pepper
  • 320 g sheet ready rolled puff pastry
  • additional egg for egg wash

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 180ºC and place a sheet of non-stick baking paper onto a large baking tray.
  • Put the minced beef in a large bowl.
  • Mince the garlic and onion together in the Wahl James Martin Grind and Chop using the chopper bowl, then add to the mince.
  • Next mince the carrot and celery in the same Grind and Chop bowl and add to the mince.
  • Place the torn bread into the Grind and Chop to make breadcrumbs, then add to the mince.
  • Put the cubes of Cheddar in the Grind and Chop and chop until like fine gravel, then add to the mince.
  • Beat the egg using the Grind and Chop and add to the mince.
  • Finally add the herbs, tomato puree, salt, and pepper and mix thoroughly with your hand.
  • Unroll the pastry and transfer it to the lined baking sheet.
  • Place the mince on top of the pastry and form into a long brick shape leaving a 4 cm gap at each end.
  • Next, take a knife and cut 1.5 cm strips down each side at a 45º angle.
  • Fold one end flap of the pastry over the end of the mince (trimming as necessary) and then draw up alternate strips of pastry to form a plait (wet the ends of the strips if necessary so they stick).
  • Once you get close to the end fold up the end flap of the pastry (trimming as necessary) and then finish the plait with the end tucked in.
  • Finish off by beating an egg in the Grind & Chop and brush the egg wash over the plait.
  • Place on the middle shelf of the oven and bake for 1 hour until pastry is golden and mince cooked.
  • Serve with vegetables or salad of your choice.

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Comments

  1. Dee

    Absolutely tasty, my family loved it and I will definitely be making it again. Great recipe especially for something different to make with minced beef

    Reply

  3. Julie

    Two things Im thinking.
    I don’t do well with pastry.
    1. Maybe I could make it as a meatloaf in a mould.
    2. I wonder if it could all go in a slow cooker a d e keft to cook.

    Reply

    • Camilla

      Hi Julie, that sounds like a good idea to make a meatloaf. I just saw a meatloaf made in the slow cooker on Pinterest the other day so have a Google to establish some more info about how to do it and cooking times. Let me know how you get on as I did think it sounded like a great idea. The one I saw had a sauce over it, not sure if it was applied before or after cooking.

      Reply

    • Camilla

      Hi Caroline, I don’t think it would work with shortcrust pastry because it tears really easily whereas shortcrust pasty is more elastic. On a Google search of short crust pastry plaits, nothing came up so I think that says it all.

      Reply

  5. Derek Stewart

    Im going to try this now however,im worried mince wont cook properly and if I leave it in longer the pastry will burn. Should I brown the mince first?

    Reply

    • Camilla

      Hi Derek, no, the recipe works perfectly. If you browned the mince it wouldn’t hold together plus it would be dried out from being cooked twice.

      Reply

  7. Sena Rajaram

    Just made it for my fam jam and pickiest eaters liked it! Hooraaaah! Thanks for a great recipe!

    Reply

  8. Caroline

    This recipe is a crowd pleaser in our house. We normally make 2 smaller plaits from this quantity, put in the oven on recommended temp and then take one out after 20 mins, cool and freeze. When we next want it, we defrost in the fridge overnight and cook for 25 mins. We’ve had with a huge salad as it’s hot outside tonight but also with sweet potato mash, broccoli and gravy in the past. Quick and easy and fussy eaters love it.

    Reply

    • Camilla

      Hi Cindy, I haven’t tried this but I would advise freezing after plaiting the pastry and before adding the egg wash. Then thaw overnight in a fridge for the following night and bake.

      Reply

  10. Renier

    Nah. Ingredients still taste raw…even after an hour 15 min. Would suggest to first frie everything in a pan before cladding with the pastry. Great idea though.

    Reply

    • Camilla

      Hi Renier, I’m sorry to hear that, no-one else has ever reported a problem. The recipe does say to bake until the meat is cooked as ovens can vary so much, a digital food thermometer is a great idea and I couldn’t live without mine.

      Reply

  11. Maya Russell

    I like the fact that you don’t have to pre-fry the onions or anything else. Even the pastry looks easy.

    Reply

  17. rebecca_102

    This looks lovely and even better it’s made so simple. Will definitely be trying this for dinner very soon!

    Reply

  22. Susie Wilkinson

    That looks like a great recipe for a weekday meal, I’ll be giving it a go in the next few weeks!

    Reply

  23. Sheila Reeves

    Love the sound of this different style of serving mince, great change from making with pasta, and love that there could be left0overs for lunch too!

    Reply

  28. Margaret

    What a delightful way to treat my family to traditional home cooked food i ll certainly give this a go

    Reply

  35. cakespy

    LOVE This! it looks so fancy, I couldn’t believe how accessible the recipe is! Awesome work, and thank you for sharing with us!

    Reply

  36. Katie Bryson

    What a fantastic family-friendly Recipe Camilla, my boys would LOVE this. I think I’ll try making it with veggie mince. I love the sound of that gadget btw… what a timesaver!

    Reply

  40. Helen at Casa Costello

    Oh its been yonks since I had a minced beef plait – Its a real hearty family favourite and yours looks great. That looks a really handy gadget too – I like that it doesn’t take up too much worktop space.

    Reply

  46. Willow | Will Cook For Friends

    This sounds so delicious! You’re right, it really does look impressive, but the recipe seems totally manageable.

    And what a handy little gadget!! I see people showing off giant contraptions all the time, but I love how small this is. I don’t have a lot of extra kitchen space, but it looks like this could replace my current spice grinder and fit in the same spot. Plus it would double for grinding and chopping things that are too small to get hit by the blades of a full-sized food processor. (Not to mention it would be way less hassle to get out and clean than a regular food processor… ugh, what a pain.) I’ll definitely have to check one of these out, thank you!

    Reply

    • Camilla

      Great Willow, glad you like my plait and the Grind and Chop which is just like having and extra pair of helping hands on the worktop without cluttering it!

      Reply

  47. Choclette

    That grinder sounds really handy. Finely chopping and mincing can be a bit of a chore. Love the look of your plait too. I need to be more adventurous with pastry.

    Reply

  49. A S,Edinburgh

    That looks delicious! Good to hear that the gadget has a high usefulness-to -space-consumption ratio; I’m sure it could be handy for a lot of people.

    Reply

  51. William Gould

    Wow! That does look good! I think it may take me longer than 15 minutes to prepare though…. lol 🙂

    Reply

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