By Sixteen years sober. March 14, 2025. Bill brought the cake. Kevin brought the bread — this year shaped like a chef's hat, because Kevin has evolved from number-shaped loaves to edible art. The room clapped. I stood up and said: "I don't have a speech this year. I have a fact. Sixteen years ago, I chose to be present. Every day since then, I've made the same choice. That's not a story. That's just math. One day at a time, five thousand eight hundred and forty-four times." I sat down. Bill said, "That was a speech." I said, "It was a fact with delivery."
The meeting had a new dynamic this year: a young Vietnamese-American woman named Thanh (no relation to Mai's sister) who works in a restaurant kitchen and is thirty days sober. I saw Kevin talk to her after the meeting — gently, without pressure, the way I'd talked to Kevin two years ago. The chain extends. The chain always extends. Bill to Bobby to Kevin to Thanh. Four links, three decades, one terrible cup of coffee.
Tyler sent a video of Marcus rolling over for the first time. He's three months old and already moving with the determination of a Tran male — which is to say, stubbornly and slightly off-course. Tyler's commentary on the video was: "He did it." Jessica's commentary was: "He did it twenty minutes ago. You just missed it the first time." Marriage in two sentences.
Made a celebration dinner: smoked pork belly, sliced thick, with a glaze of caramelized fish sauce and black pepper. The pork belly was smoked for four hours over pecan, then glazed and broiled until the top was bubbling and dark. Served over broken rice with pickled vegetables. The smoke, the sweet-savory glaze, the crunch of the pickles — it's a dish that makes you close your eyes and think about nothing except the next bite. Which is what I did. Sixteen years of closing my eyes and thinking about the next right thing.
Sixteen years calls for something with weight to it — something you have to be present for, something that takes time and patience and refuses to be rushed. This Aussie meat pie is exactly that: a dish built in layers, where the filling has to simmer low and slow before it ever sees pastry, and where the payoff is a golden crust giving way to something deep and savory underneath. I’ve made it for celebrations before, and I’ll make it for every one that follows, because it tastes like the kind of meal you sit down and mean it.
Meat Pie Recipe: An Aussie Favorite!
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 55 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1 lb (450g) ground beef
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 cup beef stock
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 sheets shortcrust pastry, thawed
- 1 sheet puff pastry, thawed
- 1 egg, beaten (for egg wash)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- Cook the filling. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook for 3–4 minutes until softened. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Add ground beef and brown thoroughly, breaking it up as it cooks, about 6–8 minutes. Drain excess fat.
- Build the sauce. Sprinkle flour over the meat and stir to coat. Add tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, salt, and pepper. Pour in beef stock and stir everything together. Reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered for 15–20 minutes until the filling is thick and glossy, not watery. Remove from heat and let cool completely.
- Prepare the dish. Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Lightly grease a 9-inch pie dish. Press the shortcrust pastry sheets into the base and up the sides, trimming any overhang. Prick the base several times with a fork.
- Fill and top. Spoon the cooled meat filling into the pastry shell and spread evenly. Lay the puff pastry sheet over the top. Trim edges and crimp firmly to seal. Brush the entire top with beaten egg wash. Cut two small slits in the center to allow steam to escape.
- Bake. Bake for 25–30 minutes until the puff pastry is deep golden brown and puffed. Let rest for 5 minutes before slicing and serving. Serve with tomato sauce (ketchup) on the side, as tradition demands.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 540 | Protein: 27g | Fat: 34g | Carbs: 36g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 720mg