Pork pie
A traditional pork pie as I was taught to make it. For a more authentic pie, instead of using minced pork, use finely chopped pork chops and a few rashers of finely chopped bacon (use a food processor).
Ingredients
Serves: 4
- Pie pastry
- 375g plain flour
- 1 large egg yolk
- 125ml water
- 110g margarine or butter
- 1/2 tsp salt
- beaten egg for glaze
- Pie filling
- 450g minced pork
- 4 tablespoons cracker crumbs
- 60ml water
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sage
- 1/2 tsp thyme
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp parsley
- 1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
- pinch crushed cloves
Method
Prep:20min ›
Cook:1hr ›
Ready in:1hr20min
- To make pastry, slowly heat water and margarine/butter in a saucepan. Once the fat is melted, boil for 2 minutes. Put flour in a bowl and make a well in the centre. Add the seasoning and egg yolk into the well, cover with some flour and quickly pour in the contents of the saucepan, stirring continuously. Once cooled, knead into a ball then leave covered for 30 minutes in a warm place.
- Separate about two thirds of the dough into five balls, each around the size of a billiard ball. The other third of the dough will be used later for the lids. Make each pie casing by moulding a ball around the outside of the bottom of a pint glass. Stretch the dough up the glass for around 1.5 inches so that the pastry is reasonably thin. The pastry is easier to remove if the glass is coated in flour first.
- To make the pie filling, simply mix all ingredients together.
- Fill the pastry casings with the pork mixture. Roll out the remainder of the pastry using the pint glass if you don't have a rolling pin. Cut out lids using the top of the pint glass as a pastry cutter. Place lids on pies, sealing around the edges with some water. Using the point of a knife, make a hole in the centre of each lid to allow steam to escape.
- Cook at 180 C / Gas 4 in the centre of the oven for around 1 hour, glazing with a beaten egg yolk occasionally. While waiting for them to cook, wash up the pint glass and fill with cold beer and pass the time having a drink.
- After cooking, leave to cool before eating. For a special touch, pour a small amount of warmed, reduced stock into the hole and cool in a refridgerator to allow the jelly to set (To make the stock, try boiling some pork stock bones for a few hours until most of the water evaporates off. After cooling a jelly should form on the surface which can be scooped off and warmed to reliquify before pouring into the pies).
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Reviews & ratings
Average global rating:
(8)
Reviews in English (11)
As Melton Mowbray, the world capital of pork pies, is about 25 miles away (and I used to work for a major "food" manufacturer there), I have tasted those and really rate them. They're made in small shops, each with its own secret recipe! The biggest difference is that they don't use minced pork. The pork used is shoulder and it's chopped rather than minced. This REALLY improves the texture. It's not in one-inch cubes, the bits are quite a lot smaller, but they are perhaps 3-5mm (sometimes a little larger) in each direction. Additionally, some makers still stick to the old way of baking them - they are free-baked, rather than in a tin. They slump down in the oven. Whilst this can look very "quaint" and attractive, I find the larger ones harder to cut. I tend to follow the idea of chopping the pork, but I use a tin. ADDENDUM TO THE ABOVE. Many (most) pork pie recipes tell you to make the pastry first. That's fine if you can chop up your meat etc in about 10 minutes or less. Most of us can't. I now make the filling first and then put it in the fridge whilst I make the hwc pastry. I then shape the pastry (I use tins) and then fill the pies. When hot water crust cools down (as it is likely to do if you make it before the filling) it goes brittle and does not want to be moulded or even sealed. - 20 Dec 2011
- 04 Dec 2012
I want to try this so badly!! I cannot buy Pork Pies here in the USA. One thing I would like to know is can I use cooked pork in this recipe? I have a shoulder roast and would cook up the bones to make the 'jelly',,,, - 08 Oct 2012