A crust above the rest: Queensland bakery claims top honours with Australia’s best pie

In a thrilling culinary showdown, a bakery in the heart of Queensland has emerged as the champion of this year’s Official Great Aussie Pie Competition.

Paradise Bakehouse, located in Bundaberg, competed against 600 other bakeries to seize the title after capturing the hearts and taste buds of judges with its chunky pie on Thursday, September 14.

Each bakery submitted three pies for the Plain Pie category, which included chunky, mince, or a combination of both fillings.

Judges carefully considered various aspects such as the pie’s shape, colour, size, meat quality, flavour, and the overall quality of the pastry.

When the final crumbs settled on this year’s contest, the team from Paradise Bakehouse took to Facebook to celebrate their victory.

“We’re absolutely ecstatic to share some incredible news with you all—our bakery has been awarded the title of ‘Best Steak Pie in Australia’ for 2023 in the Official Great Aussie Pie Competition! This is not just a win for us, but a win for our incredible community who has supported us every step of the way,” they said.

“We faced stiff competition, going up against 1600 entries from across the country. To come out on top is a testament to the hard work, dedication, and love that goes into every pie we make.

“A heartfelt thank you to our fantastic team for their tireless effort and unmatched skill. We’d also like to extend our deepest gratitude to our loyal customers—you’re the reason we strive to bake the perfect pie every single day.

“Stay tuned for celebratory events and special offers coming soon, as we couldn’t have achieved this milestone without you. Let’s keep the pie-love going!”

The “well deserved” win triggered a wave of congratulations from all over the country, many praising the bakery for their “amazing” pies.

“Congratulations what an achievement..well deserved,” one person wrote.

“Well deserved, not only are your Pies amazing your staff are also amazing, polite and efficient congratulations to you all,” another happy customer said.

“Congratulations the pies are the best. You deserve it.”

“Well done you wonderful people! I love our bakery. You guys rock!!” commented another.

Competition organiser Dani Lindsay said “his year has been the biggest Aussie Pie Comp so far” while congratulating this year’s entrants.

“Well done to all who have entered, we are blown away by the quality this year’s entries and look forward to many more pie comps to come,” Lindsay told 7News.

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If Paradise Bakehouse’s delicious creations have inspired you to create your own culinary delights then check out Starts at 60’s recipe for the classic Australian meat pie that features 1 cup of beer in the sauce for a bit of Aussie flair and added flavour.

Ingredients:

• 4 (about 650g) beef scotch fillet steaks, cut into 2cm pieces
• 2 tablespoons plain flour
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 brown onion, coarsely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
• 1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes
• 250ml (1 cup) beer
• 1 sheet (29 x 29cm) frozen ready-rolled shortcrust quiche pastry, just thawed
• 1 egg, lightly whisked
• 2 sheets (25 x 25cm) frozen ready-rolled puff pastry, just thawed

Method:

1. Place the beef in a large bowl and sprinkle with flour. Season with salt and pepper. Gently toss to evenly coat.

2. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic and thyme and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until onion is soft. Season with salt and pepper. Add the beef and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until browned.

3. Stir in the tomato and beer. Bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and cook, covered, for 55 minutes or until beef is tender. Set aside for 30 minutes to cool.

4. Preheat oven to 220°C. Place a baking tray on the middle shelf. Cut the shortcrust pastry sheet into quarters. Line 4 round 3cm-deep, 12cm (base measurement) pie tins with shortcrust pastry, allowing the sides to overhang. Brush the edges with egg. Divide the beef mixture evenly among the pastry cases.

5. Cut each puff pastry sheet in half diagonally. Top the pies with puff pastry and trim excess. Press the edges to seal.

6. Brush the pies with egg. Cut a small cross in the centre of each pie. Place the pies on the baking tray and bake in oven for 25 minutes or until golden and puffed. Serve with tomato sauce.