Snack on a very specific kind of pork pie

by Eric Stanway

“You must taste,” said my sister, addressing the guests with her best grace, “You must taste, to finish with, such a delightful and delicious present of Uncle Pumblechook’s!”

Must they! Let them not hope to taste it!

“You must know,” said my sister, rising, “it’s a pie; a savoury pork pie.”

– Charles Dickens, “Great Expectations”

As any regular reader of Dickens knows, the pork pie in question has already been consumed by the escaped convict Magwitch; provided by him by young Pip, obliged to supply him with food on pain of having his heart and liver torn out.

The pork pies of Britain are a completely different animal from the French-Canadian variety we find around here. For one thing, the meat is chopped, not minced; it has a lard crust; and it is invariably served cold, with relish and pickled onions. Pork pies are plentiful all over Britain, but the universal yardstick of the genuine item resides in the tiny Leicestershire town of Melton Mowbray.

Melton Mowbray is an ancient town, its market being mentioned in the Doomsday Book survey of 1086. It sits in the middle of the gently rolling hills of the Vale of Belvoir, a land superbly suited to the raising of cattle. As a result of this, the area developed the unique blue-veined cheese known as Stilton.

In 1727, an enterprising farmer’s wife by the name of Frances Pawlett began producing Stilton cheese, which was then sold by her brother-in-law at his pub, The Bell Inn, in the town of Stilton. The cheese was so highly regarded that Daniel Defoe, author of “Robinson Crusoe,” made note of it in his writings. So, you’re asking, what has this to do with pork pie? Steady on, I’m getting to that. One of the byproducts of cheese production is whey, which makes excellent food for pigs. A thriving pork industry soon made itself apparent, and with it, the Melton Mowbray pork pie soon made its debut. Originally, the crust of the pie was simply a casing, meant to be discarded after the meat inside was consumed. Then, an odd thing happened.

With the Enclosures Act of 1761, many of the smaller farms were amalgamated into larger, more efficiently managed tracts of land. The dairy business exploded, and the open spaces became prime space for the then-popular sport of foxhunting. By the end of the century, three famous hunts – the Quorn, Cottesmore and Belvoir – were a regular feature of the sleepy little town. Hunting is hungry work, and these sportsmen soon noticed their grooms and servants scarfing down pork pies in the odd quiet moment. One thing led to another, and there was soon a booming business for the product. The bakers began making the crust thinner and richer, and the whole deal a lot more compact, so as to stay intact while being jammed into a knapsack. Soon, Melton Mowbray pork pies were all the rage in the taverns of London, where returning hunters would praise these rustic comestibles. The Melton Mowbray pork pie was distinctive from its competitors in two ways. First, since there was a steady supply of pork on hand, they were always made from fresh, not cured, meat. This meant that the color of the filling was gray, not pink. Second, the pies were baked free-standing, so the sides would have a tendency to bow out.

Now, these might seem like trivial points, but they were no laughing matter to the residents of the town, who saw counterfeit pies being passed off as the genuine article in other villages. This pervasive problem led to the formation of the Melton Mowbray Pie Association in 1998, which sought to gain Protected Geographical Indication for their recipe. It took a lot of hard work, and 10 long years, but they finally managed to achieve this. Now, a genuine Melton Mowbray pork pie can be produced only within the confines of this town. That shouldn’t stop you from baking up a batch, however. Since they’re meant to be eaten cold anyway, they make a handy little snack for whatever revelers might show up on New Year’s Eve.

MELTON MOWBRAY PORK PIE

Serves 8.

Pork bones

2 onions

2 sage leaves, 1 finely chopped

1 bay leaf Marjoram Thyme Salt and pepper

2 pounds pork, from leg or shoulder 2 anchovies, chopped

FOR THE CRUST:

1 pound all-purpose flour Salt ½ pound lard ¾ cup milk and water, mixed 1 egg, well-beaten Put the bones on to boil in 1 quart water, along with the onions, whole sage leaf, bay leaf, marjoram, thyme, salt and pepper. Boil for 2 hours, to reduce stock to 2½ cups liquid. Cool, and skim off fat. Taste, and check seasoning. It should gel a little as it cools.

While stock is boiling, prepare the filling. Cut the pork into ¼-inch pieces, excluding gristle and skin. Place in a bowl, and toss with minced anchovies, salt, pepper and sage.

Prepare the crust by sifting together the flour and salt. Rub 4 tablespoons of the lard into the flour, putting the remainder in a pan with the milk and water solution and boiling over a low heat. Make a well in the center of the flour, and pour the fat solution in the middle. Stir vigorously, and then set out on a lightly floured board. Knead the dough with your knuckles, and then divide into two pieces, one twice the size of the other. Take the larger piece, and roll it out until about ¼ inch thick. Taking a large Springform pan, line the interior with the dough, making sure there are no holes. Take the stock off the heat, and allow to cool.

Pack the crust with the meat, leaving about 1 inch at the top. Take the smaller piece of dough, and form it into a lid. Fold the dough down on the inside, and secure the top with beaten egg. Cut a small hole in the top of the crust and paint liberally with beaten egg. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Bake the pie for 20 minutes to set the pastry, then reduce to 325 degrees. Cover the top of the pie with aluminum foil, and bake for a further 1½ hours. Ten minutes before the end of the cooking time, brush the pie with the remaining egg. Remove the pie from the oven, and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Reheat the jellied stock a little, and then pour into the hole on top of the pie. Allow the pie to cool completely before serving, with cheese, pickled onions and sweet chutney.

Eric Stanway can be reached at Eric.Stanway@yahoo.com or www.Eric Stanway.com.