Best English Meat Pie Recipes

ENGLISH MEAT PIE

Steps:

• Prepare the dough by combining the butter with flour in a food processor or stand mixer until the mixture is mealy (you can also use your hands). Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Add enough water to form a dough that can be rolled. Put in refrigerator while you make the filling.
• Saute the onion and garlic in butter until soft, but not browned. Cool. Mix all filling ingredients with your hands as you would a meatloaf.
• Divide the dough into two pieces. Roll one to about 1/8 inch for the bottom. Form filling into an oval loaf on dough and pull up dough to partially cover sides. Roll the other piece of dough to 1/8 thick. Use and egg wash to secure crusts and encase meat loaf in its entirety. Cut a hole in the top to allow steam to escape. Coat entire pastry with egg wash. Left over dough can be cut into decorations and attached to outside of pastry. (I used small Christmas Cookie Cutters to make reindeer, etc.).
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees and cook pie about 20 minutes. Turn oven down to 350 degrees and cook 1 hour more or until center registers 150 degrees on a meat thermometer and pastry is browned. Allow to cool.
• To make the aspic combine chicken stock with unflavored gelatin and microwave until boiling. Pour through hole in top. Refrigerate 3 hours to serve cold.

ENGLISH PASTRY FOR MEAT PIE

Steps:

• Put the flour in a mixing bowl.
• Combine the water, milk, lard and salt in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Let simmer until the lard melts.
• Add the liquid to the flour, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon to blend thoroughly. This dough should be shaped or rolled while it is still hot or quite warm.

ENGLISH MEAT PIE

Steps:

• Dough Dice butter. Combine flour & butter. With fingers, press butter into flour until the mix looks mealy. Crack egg into small dish, add 4 tbsp ice water. Beat. Add to flour bowl. Mix just until a paste forms. Slowly add remaining ice water if mix doesn't come together. Split into 1/3 & 2/3 portions. Shape into a disk & wrap with plastic. refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 1 day before using. Filling In med saute pan over med-high heat melt butter. Add onion & garlic, stir often until soft but not at all brown - 4 minutes. Set aside to cool then refrigerate to chill. Put pork, ham, S&P, thyme, & the onion-garlic mixture in a bowl. Use hands or spatula to mix well. Slowly add stock a few tbsp at a time until incorporated. Cover & refrigerate until cold, 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 425-F On a flowered work surface, roll the larger piece of dough into a 12-inch circle, 1/8-inch thick. Brush off excess flour, place on baking sheet. Shape meat into a 5-inch x 2 1/2-inch thick disk & place in the center of the dough. Carefully lift the edges of the dough & wrap around the meat so that the top is partially covered. Roll out the remaining dough until it's 1/8-inch thick & cut a 6-inch circle from the center. Cut a 3/4-inch hole in the center of this dough circle. Set aside. Egg wash In a small bowl whisk the 3 ingredients until uniformly blended. Using a pastry brush, paint the edges of the dough that encases the meat. Then paint one side of the 6-inch dough circle. Lift the circle, place egg wash side down on the meat. Crimp seam to seal with bottom crust. Brush top. Bake 20-25 minutes, until crust begins to brown. Reduce oven to 350-F, bake 50 minutes until internal temp of pie is 150-F. Remove pie & rest for 15 minutes. Serve warm, at room temp, or chilled. To serve chilled, make aspic: Combine chicken stock with gelatin. Microwave to dissolve gelatin. Pour slowly through steam vent in top of pie. Let cool, refrigerate until firm, 3 hours.