From hot water crust pastry to the great jelly debate, the humble pork pie is far more intricate than it first appears, says MasterChef champion Brin Pirathapan. But making your own from scratch is surprisingly straightforward

What is a raised pork pie?

Raised pies are a staple of British cuisine. Whether you’re eating them as a big slab with pickles and mustard or in their miniaturised versions as part of your supermarket meal deal, they make an impression all year round. The most popular of them all has to be that picnic classic – the pork pie, with its dense meaty middle enveloped in crumbly pastry with, to some peoples’ disappointment, a savoury jelly layer between them.

For something that’s so ubiquitous on supermarket shelves, I think we underestimate the intricacy that goes into perfecting it. The hot water crust pastry, meat filling and jelly all have to be executed well to create an end product with structure and flavour. We don’t want soggy pastry or poorly seasoned pork and we most definitely don’t want a pie with more jelly than pork!

How to make a hot water pie crust?

Hot water crust pastry can seem daunting if you’ve never made it. The usual rules of shortcrust pastry go out the window and you have to buy lard for probably the first time in your life. It was for me and, I must say, I was intrigued. The truth is, I actually find hot water crust pastry much easier to make than most other pastries. It shouldn’t be overworked and doesn’t require as much resting, which, in essence, makes life easier.

What are common hot water crust pastry mistakes?

Tristan Hogg, founder and managing director of Pieminister, who makes some of the country’s best premium pies, says the biggest mistake people make with hot water crust pastry is letting it cool too much before working with it. ‘It needs to be shaped while it’s warm and pliable,’ he explains. ‘Cool it down and it stiffens, cracks, and your jelly escapes later, so you need to work quickly.’

It’s given its name because the lard is melted in hot water, and I find this is a process to take advantage of. Fat takes on flavour really easily, so throwing in a few sprigs of thyme while it melts is a nifty little trick to boost the flavour of the pie from the outside.

How to make the best pork pie?

The filling is the most important part. Traditionally, all of the flavour comes from the pork itself, which means buying quality pork is essential. Using the correct cut, with the right fat content, is the difference between a dry, crumbly filling and one that’s moist while holding its texture. Tristan says pork shoulder is the cut of choice ‘every time’ but, he adds, ‘at home, a mix of pork mince and smoked lardons gets you surprisingly close’. The lardons bring flavour, fat and saltiness with a lovely contrasting texture to the mince. One of Tristan’s most important tips is about seasoning: ‘Cold meat in cold pastry mutes everything, so be braver than you think you need to be.’ It can seem like 
a hefty amount of salt, but it’s certainly needed. As for the other spices, have a bit 
of fun. I’ve added fennel seeds, which go perfectly with pork and release pops of warm aniseed in every bite.

Why is there no jelly in pork pies anymore?

The final step that completes your pie is the step that splits the room: jelly versus no jelly. The pork filling will shrink during cooking and the gaps left are open to drying out and forming air pockets. Before refrigerators, filling this space with jelly (made from simmered pork trotters) was a form of preservation. These days, thankfully, the gelatine from those pork trotters can be found in neat little sheets on supermarket shelves. As we no longer need the jelly to preserve the pork, I like to think of it as an added bit of moisture and another way to add more flavour. Tristan recommends mixing in some chilli jam but I’ve opted for mango chutney to complement the fennel seeds. I’d go as far as to say my pork pie is starting to combine two British picnic classics into one – a pork pie and a coronation chicken. 

Now that the sun is well and truly out, maybe it’s about time we all had a proper British picnic, pork pie and all.