Pork pie
- Published: 30 Mar 16
- Updated: 8 Jun 25
Learn how to make a proper pork pie with top-quality filling, hot water crust pastry and a rich savoury jelly.
Pork pies are a little slice of England, dating back to medieval times when cottagers would slaughter their pigs in autumn to give them food through the winter. The jelly (made from the pig bones) and the hard pastry would help to preserve the meat. The pastry was often discarded rather than eaten.
Pork pies can be hand-raised – the pastry case is shaped round a wooden ‘dolly’, rather than in a mould – which results in a slightly bulging shape, in the style of the Melton Mowbray pork pie. They can also be made using a special pie mould. In the past, these were often fancy, with elaborate mouldings and flutings, especially if the pie was intended as a centrepiece at a grand table. These days it’s more common to use a plain springform tin.
You might also love our gloriously retro bacon and egg pie.
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Serves 16-18 -
Takes 1 hour to make, 2¼ hours to cook, plus chilling and setting
Nutrition
- Calories
- 335kcals
- Fat
- 19g (7.1g saturated)
- Protein
- 20.2g
- Carbohydrates
- 22.4g (1.1g sugars)
- Fibre
- 1.2g
- Salt
- 1.8g
delicious. tips
If you prefer small, individual pies use a muffin tin with deep holes, or use dariole moulds. Cook the pies for 40 minutes until the pastry is golden and the filling is piping hot.
For a quick jelly alternative: make up 600ml hot – not too strong – stock, using one good-quality ham stock cube such as Knorr. (For a fruitier flavour, use apple juice instead of water.) Stir in 6 gelatine leaves (soaked and squeezed) until dissolved. Leave to cool, then stir in a handful of finely chopped fresh herbs, such as parsley and sage.