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Pies Hot Savoury Pies When it comes to comfort food there is nothing,
but nothing, that beats a good pie. There is a huge variety of pie fillings
and at least three main pastry types; short crust, suet and rough puff.
Homemade pies (even if you don’t make your own pastry) are so much better
than commercial ones that it really is worth the effort. Steak and kidney The undisputed king of the English savoury pie,
this is a pure treat. I’[d say fry the meat and onions in beef dripping
rather than vegetable oil and don’t be put off by the kidneys. They are
essential to the flavour of this pie. Serve with seasonal potatoes and a
selection of veg – and don’t forget to reserve some of the stock to make
additional gravy! This is a dish that goes particularly well with freshly
made English mustard.
Steak and kidney pudding Actually, if there is one thing that beats a
pie for comfort food, it is a pudding! Again, the filling could be just about
anything, but steak and kidney is by far the most common. The pudding is made
from a suet pastry which is then used to line a pudding bowl and steamed in
boiling water. The pastry is soft and delicious.
Other steak pies Other variations on this theme includes, steak
pie, steak and mushroom pie, steak and ale pie, meat and potato pie and an
old fashioned steak and oyster pie. The picture on the left shows a pie with
a baked suet pastry topping.
Beef Wellington Probably an adaption of the French dish ‘boeuf-en-crout’, this has become one
of the signature dishes of English cuisine. And it ‘feels’ English rather than
French. Made with a fillet steak with a pate topping and baked in a pastry.
Truly fantastic!
Corned beef I remember having this at school and everybody
was convinced it was horsemeat! Good though.
Chicken and ham This is probably the second most common style
of pie. Again, there are many variations on the theme, but it revolves around
lighter meat and a creamy sauce rather than gravy. The filling can be a
combination of chicken, turkey, ham, mushroom, onion and leak. The sauce may
be a plain white mushroom sauce or a white wine sauce. Fidget pie is with
just bacon and a little cider.
A regional variation of this dish in the West
Country is known as ‘Likky Pie’ – leeky pie.
Lamb and mint Always a winning combination!
Mutton Pies Also known as Scotch pies, these are filled
with mutton and highly seasoned with pepper. They are usually eaten cold but
are served hot as well.
Game Game pies are an important feature of autumn
cuisine, especially in rural areas. They may be made of game birds such as
pheasant or deer or a combination of different meats. The stronger flavour of
the game is usually complemented by a red wine or even a port
gravy and particularly with venison the use of juniper berries.
Rabbit Rabbit pie is an old standby, often put on the
plate in days gone by through a little poaching. In northern England it tends
to be made in a gravy with bacon. In East Anglia it
is made with a more creamy, apple based sauce.
Cornish pasty Always good, but the real ones from Cornwall
are by far the best. Made with ground beef, onion, potato and swede and
seasoned with pepper. In the old days, Cornish miners would take a pasty down
the pit with them, tucked under their shirt to keep it warm. The pasty would
be savoury at one end and sweet at the other.
London pie and mash East enders developed a distinct form of pie
and mash. These contain many of the traditional fillings, but also eels and
shellfish and are served with mash on the side of the plate and a parsley
sauce made with eel stock known as ‘liquor’. Sometimes, eel is served as an
accompaniment to the pie.
And the more northern version!
Egg and bacon A very old fashioned pie – an English version
of Quiche Lorraine.
Cold Savoury Pies Whilst you can eat hot pies cold, these are
intended to be only eaten cold. They are much drier and tend to be eaten for
lunch, as cold meat salads or picnics. Cold meat pies go well with freshly
made English mustard or Piccalilli. Pork Pie Easily the most popular of cold meat pies,
these are made from a mix of cured and/or uncured pork (pork shoulder, belly
pork, ham or bacon) seasoned with herbs and white pepper and then set in a
hand raised pastry. A gelatine liquid is poured into the cooked pie to fill
the gap caused by the cooked meat contracting from the pastry. A variation is
Gala Pie which includes chicken and boiled eggs as well as the pork and
usually comes in an oblong shape.
Chicken and ham There are a great variety of cold pies that
combine, chicken, turkey, pork and ham, usually in layers.
Game Pies Made with game birds or venison, often mixed
with pork or chicken, these are quite different from the hot pie version.
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