Proper Pork Pies

jamie oliver's proper pork pies

Makes 4 pies

20g unsalted butter

2 small red onions, finely chopped

8 anchovy fillets, drained, chopped

1kg pork leg meat

100g pancetta or streaky bacon

1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

1 tsp ground fennel seeds

A few fresh thyme sprigs,

leaves picked

A few fresh parsley sprigs, leaves picked

1 large free-range beaten

Apple or wine jelly*, English mustard

and green salad, to serve

Pastry

680g plain flour

100g lard*

75g unsalted butter

Preheat the oven to 200°C.

Grease straight-sided oven proof ramekins or

dishes about 10cm wide and deep.

Melt the butter in a small pan over

medium heat.

Add onion and half the

anchovies and gently cook for 5 minutes

or until soft.

Take off the heat and cool.

Chop pork into the size of sugar cubes

[about 1.5cm]. Cut pancetta or bacon unto

matchsticks, put in a bowl with pork and

mix in the nutmeg, fennel, 1 tsp freshly

ground white pepper and plenty of salt.

Whiz onion mixture with a third of the pork

mixture in a food processor until smooth.

Fold it back into the rest of the meat with

thyme, parsley and remaining anchovy.

To make pastry, put flour in a heatproof

mixing bowl. Place lard, butter and a good

pinch of salt in a small saucepan and pour

over 350ml boiling water.

Bring mixture to the boil, then pour onto the flour.

Mix with a fork until it starts to turn into a

dough. Knead the dough with your hands

and stop as soon as you get a smooth ball.

Cut a quarter of the dough off, put it

back in the warm bowl and cover with

plastic On a floured work surface,

roll the remaining dough out into four

26cm circles about 3mm thick.

Line the ramekins with the pastry, pushing

it into place with your fingers. Don't

worry about it tearing, as hot-water

pastry is stretchy and tough. Trim the

edges, leaving pastry just overhanging

the lip of each ramekin.

Fill the ramekins with the pork mixture

pressing it gently to make sure there are

no little pockets of air almost to the top

of each dish. Fold the flaps of pastry

inwards.

Roll out the last quarter of pastry

into 4 circles and trim them to wider

than the ramekins. Brush the underneath

of the lids with the beaten egg and stick

them onto the pies, crimping the pastry

edges together with your fingers.

Carefully cut a hole in the centre of each

lid so that steam can escape, and insert a

rolled up cylinder of foil to stop it closing.

Bake for 20 minutes, then reduce oven

to 180°C and bake for 40 minutes.

Brush pie tops with egg and bake for a further

20 minutes to give a shiny finish.

Remove the pies from oven and cool

for half an hour before removing carefully

from the dishes and leaving to cool

completely.

 Serve the pies with wine jelly,

English mustard and green salad.

*Jellies are from gourmet food shops.

Lard is from supermarkets.