Raised pie

Serves 4 Starters and mains

Pork Pie

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For the hot water crust pastry

  • 250g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
  • 50g strong white bread flour
  • 40g cold unsalted butter, cut into small dice
  • 50g cold lard, cut into small pieces
  • 1 egg yolk, beaten, to glaze

For the filling

  • 150g good-quality sausage meat
  • 150g minced pork
  • 100g pork loin, cut into 1cm dice
  • 2 shallots, finely chopped
  • 1⁄2tsp ground mace
  • 2tbsp flat-leaf parsley, chopped

For the jelly

  • 1⁄2 chicken stock cube
  • 3.2g leaf gelatine (2 sheets)

Method

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/ Gas 6 and line a baking tray with baking paper.

To make the hot water crust pastry, combine the flours in a large bowl and rub in the butter using your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

Put the lard, 100ml water and 1⁄4 teaspoon salt into a saucepan and place over a medium heat until the mixture just begins to boil, then immediately pour onto the flour and mix with a wooden spoon. Once cool enough to handle, tip the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead to form a ball.

Cut off a quarter of the dough for the lid and set aside (ideally in the still-warm pan used to heat the lard mix, as this will help to keep it pliable). Working quickly, flatten the larger ball of dough with the palm of your hand.

Take the wooden pie dolly, dust with flour and sit it in the middle of the dough. Use your hands to raise the pastry up the sides of the dolly. Once you are almost halfway, turn the dolly upside down and work the pastry down the dolly until the pastry covers about three- quarters of it. Trim the edges and leave the pastry to set slightly.

To make the filling, mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl with 1⁄4 teaspoon salt and a pinch of white pepper until well combined and shape into a cylinder, a bit smaller than the pie case. Roll out the remaining pastry to a 12cm circle for the pie lid.

Use a small knife to ease the pastry case from the dolly then fill the cavity with the meat filling. Brush the edge of the pastry with beaten egg yolk and place the lid over the filling. Press the edges together to seal and trim off the excess pastry. Pinch the edges together to crimp.

Carefully lift the pie onto the prepared baking tray and cut a small hole in the pastry lid to let the steam out. Brush the top and sides of the pie with beaten egg, taking care to get the brush into the crimped edge. Bake for 50 minutes until the pastry is golden brown. Leave to cool slightly.

In the meantime, to make the jelly, dissolve the stock cube in a bowl with 150ml just-boiled water. Soak the gelatine leaves in a dish of cold water for a few minutes to soften. Lift out the gelatine, squeeze out any excess water, then add this to the stock, stirring in order to dissolve.

Insert a funnel into the hole in the top of the pie and then gradually pour in the gelatine mixture to fill the cavity between the meat and the pastry – add it a little at a time and allow the liquid seep down before pouring in more. Once the pie is cool enough, place it in the fridge to set the jelly for a few hours, or overnight. Serve with pickled onions and mustard.

Recipes and photographs taken from A Baker's Life by Paul Hollywood, photography by Martin Poole. (Bloomsbury, £26).
Pork Pie
Recipes and photographs taken from A Baker's Life by Paul Hollywood, photography by Martin Poole. (Bloomsbury, £26).

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