Melton Mowbray Pork Pie

Preparation time
30 mins
Cooking time
90 mins
Difficulty
Moderate
Serves
4 people
Meal course
Main Course
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1 lb
Pork Shoulder - Boneless
1 tsp
Sage - Dried
1/2 tsp
Nutmeg - Ground
1 tsp
Anchovy Paste
1 tsp
Salt
1/2 tsp
Pepper - Ground Black
8 Slices
Bacon
1 Cup
Broth - Chicken
1 1/2 tsp
Gelatin (Unflavored)
Melton Mowbray Pork Pie

For this recipe you will first need Hot Water Pastry.

Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire is famous as the pie center of England. The distinctive mark of the Melton Mowbray Pork Pie is the slight hint of anchovy.

  1. Finely chop the bacon slices and place in a mixing bowl
  2. Chop the pork into 1/4-inch or smaller pieces and add to the bacon
  3. Add all other ingredients except the chicken broth and gelatin to the meat and mix thoroughly
  4. Prepare Pastry per the recipe linked to above and set aside 1/4 of the pastry to make the pie lid
  5. Place the rest of the dough in a greased pie tin then pull the dough up and around the sides of the tin with your fingers. Be careful not to leave any cracks and that the pastry is evenly distributed around the sides. Leave any excess pastry hanging over the edges.
  6. Fill the pastry with your seasoned meat mixture
  7. Roll out the crust you set aside earlier to make a lid for your pie
  8. Dampen the edges of the crust so it will seal, then place the pastry lid in place, cut off any excess pastry and crimp the edges with a fork to seal.
  9. Cut a small hole in the middle of the pie lid to act as a vent during cooking
  10. Make a small funnel out of foil and place it into the hole, about 1-inch deep to prevent the hole from sealing up during cooking.
  11. It is traditional to decorate the pie with a few leaf shapes made from rolled out pieces of the leftover pastry. When you have done this, brush the pie with beaten egg.
  12. Place the loaf pan on a baking sheet and place in the preheated oven
  13. After 30 minutes turn down the oven to 300°F and cook for an additional hour
  14. Keep an eye on the pie lid, if it browns too quickly cover with a piece of aluminum foil.
  15. Remove the pie from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes then remove from the loaf pan and place on a cooling rack
  16. Heat the chicken broth an add the gelatin
  17. When the gelatin has completely dissolved and the mixture has cooled a little, pour the mixture through the funnel very slowly so it has time to seep into the pastry without overflowing onto the pastry lid
  18. Remove the funnel and allow the pie to cool before placing in the refrigerator then chilling for several hours.