Inspired by The Daily Post Weekly Writing Challenge – Pie “Food evokes all the senses: the scent of pastry baking, the sound of a fork clinking on a plate. This week, make our mouths water with stories about pie”.
Is the Pork Pie the best snack food available on our planet?
Possibly has to be the answer from someone only recently converted to the modern trend for healthy living. Growing up and later working in Yorkshire it was hard not to be drawn in by the unhealthy pseudo religious cult status of these tasty little snacks.
Ideal for a main meal with mashed potatoes and mushy peas, perfect fresh from the shop counter or ideal saved for your snack box later. They are wonderful and well worthy of the position they have in society. A thing of reverence, that has a huge following in these parts.
I have been known to be partial to the occasional pie in my life and herein lies the problem with today’s writing challenge, it is an evil ploy by the people at WordPress to derail me from my new found healthy lifestyle. Good food and alcohol have been a pleasant part of my life down the years but these days I take a healthier and much more sedate approach.
“Everything is fine in moderation” I hear you cry and I am sure it is. I have found though that abstention has worked best for me in my efforts to loose a few pounds. I won’t bore you with the list of things that I have given up but you have probably guessed it, quite high up there are Pork Pies.
This then is my dilemma. Its fine being around found and drink in shops and supermarkets, the defences are up. Writing about something for an afternoon or morning though is different. Just sitting here talking about the taste and texture. The crisp pastry, meaty filling, wonderful flavours and warm juicy qualities of your favourite food, well it’s just cruel.
The plan then is to seek out one of the wonderful artisan butchers and bakers we have in’t north and purchase some samples of this fine food. Simply of course to take photographs should anyone never have seen an example of a quality pork pie.
Pork pies are serious business and as if to emphasize this, today sees the 26th Great Yorkshire Pork Pie, Sausage and Products Competition taking place at the Cedar Court Hotel, Bradford . This year, it will feature a new open small pork pie class for the first time in the contest’s history. Then of course there is the annual Pork Pie Makers Charity Competition held at the Old Bridge Inn at Ripponden. The competition is hosted by the Pork Pie Appreciation Society and held in March each year.
A little research on t’internet confirmed what I already suspected that Yorkshire is a great place to buy ‘growlers’ with many butchers and bakers professing to sell prizewinning examples. In the end I settled on a well-known butchers called Wilsons in Crossgates, Leeds. Their pies are justifiably legendary (they have won the competition at Ripponden three times in the last ten years).
Here then are the promised photographs, the first pork pie I have handled in two years!!!
Did I have any? Of course I did, I am sure though the calorific intake was negated by the salad and jacket potato I had rather than mushy peas and mash! It was wonderful, everything good anyone has ever said about these little pies is true. Of course those annoying, healthy and often slim people are right, everything is fine in moderation. I am already looking forward to my next excursion in search of prize-winning pork pie in two years time.
Recipe for Pork Pie from my old and well-worn Mrs Beeton’s Everyday Cookery –
Ingredients – 2lb of lean pork, 1lb of household flour, 6oz of lard, 1 small onion, quarter of a pint of water, cayenne pepper and salt.
Method – Cut the meat into dice, and season it well with salt and pepper. Place the bones in a stew pan, add the onion, salt and pepper, cover with cold water and simmer for at least 2hrs to extract the gelatine, in order that the gravy, when cold, may be a firm jelly.
Put the flour into a large basin, and add to it a good pinch of salt. Boil the lard and water together for about five minutes, then add it to the flour, stirring it thoroughly until cool enough to be kneaded. Knead until smooth, cover with a cloth, and let the basin stand near the fire for about half an hour.
Throughout the whole process the paste must be kept warm, otherwise moulding may be extremely difficult but overheating must also be avoided. At the end of this time, re knead the paste, put aside about a quarter for the lid, and raise the remainder into a round, or oval form, as may be preferred. If an inexperienced worker finds any difficulty in raising the pie by hand alone, a small jar may be placed in the centre of the paste, and the paste moulded over it.
When the lower part of the pie has been raised to the necessary shape and thinness, subsequent work may be made much easier by putting in some of the meat, and pressing it firmly down to support the lower part of the pie.
Before adding the lid, moisten the meat with two or three tablespoonful’s of the prepared, seasoned gravy. The remainder is reheated and added after the pie is baked and still hot.
Three or four folds of greased paper should be pinned round the pie to preserve its shape and prevent it becoming too brown. The pie should be baked for at least two hours in a moderate oven, and its appearance is greatly improved by brushing it over with yolk of egg when about three-quarters baked.
Time – To bake about two hours. Sufficient for one medium-sized pie.
