Easy Pork Pies

My husband, who’s English, introduced me to these pies a long time ago. It’s one of food items we look for when we’re in England.  I love them and the pork pies from Australia are also scrumptious!  Having had my share of these little beauties over the years, I said I would some day make them.  So, this day has come and I am very pleased to report that making the pies were as Jamie would put it, ‘easy peasy’!  My daughter didn’t believe I made them, ouch!  Anyway, I took her backhanded compliment in stride.

Makes 4 small or 2 big pies
recipe from Jamie magazine
printable recipe

• Olive oil
• 1 red onion, finely chopped
• A few sprigs of thyme, leaves picked
• 400g best-quality English-style pork sausages
• A pinch of ground allspice
• Freshly ground nutmeg
• 1 egg, beaten

Pastry

• 150g lard or butter
• 500g plain flour

Preheat oven to 180c (350f).  In a pan, heat some olive oil and sweat the onions.  After 3 minutes, add the thyme, cook 2-3 minutes, or till soft and sweet, then take off the heat.  


Put the lard into a saucepan with 250ml water and a teaspoon of salt, and bring it to a boil.  Meanwhile, sift the flour into a bowl, then make a well in the middle.  Pour in lard mixture and mix until it forms a dough.  Leave it until it’s cool enough to handle but still warm.  Divide dough into 2 or 4 equal balls.  Take a quarter of each ball and wrap in clingfilm.  Roll out the bigger bits of pastry until you have circles to line your ramekins, with a little over.  Gently tuck pastry circles into each ramekin, making sure you push it into the bottom of the ramekin so there are no air pockets.  Trim the pastry so it just hangs over the top edge.


Pop the sausages out of their skins and mix the meat with the cooled onions, allspice and a good grating of nutmeg, then season with salt and pepper.  Divide between ramekins, pressing right down to make sure that they’re well filled.  Roll out the reserved pastry to be just larger than the ramekin tops.  Brush the pastry around the top of a ramekin with beaten egg and then place a pastry circle on top.  Press down around the edges to seal, then trim off any excess, use your finger and thumb to crimp it into little waves.  Cut a 1cm-diameter circle in the middle of each top.  Cook for 30 minutes.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool a little, then loosen around the edges with a knife.  Covering your hands with tea towels, carefully ease the pies from the ramekins, put the pies back on the tray and brush with beaten egg.  Place in oven and cook for another 20 minutes until golden brown.  Cool completely before serving.


The Culinary Chase’s Note:  Cover the tops of the pies with foil if you don’t want them to get too brown when you put them back in the oven.  Even better the next day if you’re lucky enough to have any leftover.  Delicious!!