Pork Pies
Description
Makes 4 pies
Perfect for a picnic. Serve with crunchy radishes, celery or Iceberg lettuce hearts. Accompany with a favourite chutney and hardboiled eggs.
Ingredients
500ml chicken stock liquid
Short Pastry
Pork Pie Filling
Egg wash (1 egg yolk mixed with 1 tablespoon water)
Preheat oven to 190°C.
Place chicken stock liquid into a pot set over a high heat. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer until stock reduced by half.
Lightly grease 4 x 175ml deep custard, soufflé or pie dishes with baking spray. Roll pastry on a lightly floured bench to 2mm thickness.
Cut pastry to fit inside of pie dishes. Gently push pastry into prepared pie dishes. Also cut out rounds to form pie tops. Cut a 5mm hole in the centre of each pie top.
Fill pie dishes with pork mixture to about ¾ full.
Using a small pastry brush, brush underside of pastry tops with water and place on top of pies. Press edges together with a fork. Rest pies for 20 minutes in refrigerator. Brush tops with the egg wash.
Place pies in oven and bake for 17-20 minutes or until pastry is golden brown. Cool.
Reheat reduced chicken stock. Pour warm stock into a squeeze bottle with a small hole nozzle. Pour stock into the pie through the hole in each pie top. Place pies into refrigerator until stock has jelled.
Refrigerate for up to two days. Remove from refrigerator for 30 minutes before serving.
Short Pastry
Ingredients
200g flour
½ teaspoon flaky sea salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
100g unsalted butter, finely diced or grated
1 egg yolk
3 tablespoons cold water
Place flour, salt and pepper in food processor bowl fitted with a metal blade.
Sprinkle butter over flour. Process flour and butter until it looks like fine breadcrumbs.
In a small bowl, whisk egg yolk with cold water. With food processor running, pour egg yolk and water through feed tube. Continue to process until the pastry forms a ball and sits above the blade of the machine.
If the pastry does not form a ball easily, remove mixture from food processor and finish the balling process with your hands.
Shape pastry into a disc shape, wrap in gladwrap and rest for 30 minutes in the fridge before rolling out.
Pork Pie Filling
Makes 4 pies
Ingredients
2 teaspoons olive oil
320g pork fillet, silverskin removed
1 small onion, finely diced
3 tablespoons finely chopped sage leaves
1 tablespoon finely chopped thyme leaves
½ teaspoon flaky sea salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cut pork into 1cm cubes.
In a heavy based frypan set over a medium heat place oil and heat. Add pork and sear on all sides. Add onion to pan and cook until onion is soft and pork is cooked.
Toss herbs through pork and add salt and pepper. Cool.