Melton Mowbray Pork Pie
The proper Leicestershire pork pie: hand-raised in hot-water crust, filled with roughly chopped seasoned pork shoulder, baked until the crust bows and blushes, then filled through a hole in the lid with a good jellied pork stock. Cold, sliced thick, with English mustard and a pickled onion.
Ingredients
500 g plain flour
1 tsp fine salt
175 g lard
175 ml water
1 large egg, beaten, for glazing
800 g pork shoulder, cut into 5 mm dice
200 g unsmoked streaky bacon, finely chopped
2 tsp flaky sea salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp ground white pepper
0.5 tsp ground mace
1 tsp chopped fresh sage
4 leaves gelatine (or pig's-trotter stock)
300 ml well-flavoured pork or chicken stock
Method
- 1
Mix the pork, bacon, salts, peppers, mace and sage in a bowl and chill while you make the crust.
- 2
Sift the flour and salt into a bowl. Bring the lard and water to a rolling boil, then pour into the flour and mix quickly with a wooden spoon. Turn out and knead briefly into a smooth, warm dough.
- 3
Working while the dough is still warm, take three-quarters and mould it around the outside of a wide jam jar or wooden pie-raiser to form a case about 12 cm tall. Slide off carefully. Repeat for a total of 4 small pies, or make one large. Chill briefly.
- 4
Pack the filling firmly into the case, doming the top. Roll the remaining pastry into lids, press onto the filling, crimp, glaze with beaten egg and cut a small hole in the middle. Bake at 200°C for 30 minutes, then reduce to 160°C and bake for a further 75 minutes.
- 5
Soften the gelatine in cold water, then dissolve in the warm stock. Cool until on the point of setting, then, while the pies are still warm, pour the jellied stock into the pie through the hole until it will hold no more. Chill overnight before slicing.
Cook's notes
A traditional Melton Mowbray is bow-sided rather than baked in a tin — the crust is raised free-form around a jar and holds its own shape in the oven. Do not skip the jelly, it is what makes it a Melton.