Easy Mini Pork Pies Recipe
Easy mini pork pies with hot water crust pastry, made in a muffin tray with supermarket pork mince.
This was the first recipe I put on the blog, and it's the reason the blog exists. I really wanted a proper British pork pie, but I can't get them where I live in Tenerife, in the Spanish Canary Islands. Pork pies just aren't a thing here, so I had to work out how to make my own.
This is my recipe for mini party pork pies. They're surprisingly easy to make and use ordinary pork mince, with no special ingredients or extra cuts of meat. I've left the jelly out to keep them quick and simple. My lot aren't too keen on the jelly in any case.
All you need are a few basic, easy-to-find ingredients and around an hour of preparation. There's nothing difficult about making these mini pork pies, so they're ideal for first-time pie makers like me. The recipe uses hot water crust pastry, the classic pastry for pork pies.
I find rolling out pastry evenly quite difficult, so I've invested in some rolling pin spacers. They slide onto the rolling pin, one at each end, and give me 3mm thick pastry every time.
What You’ll Need
- Mixing bowl and sieve
- Small sauce pan
- Digital scales
- Rolling pin (spacers are optional, but they help)
- 12cm and 6cm round cutters, or a saucer and a glass to cut round
- 8-cup muffin tray
- Pastry brush
- Wire rack
Top Tip: When you brush on the egg wash, keep it off the tray. If it runs down between the pastry and the tin, it bakes on like glue and the pies are hard to get out.
Ingredients
Mini pork pie pastry ingredients (hot water crust pastry)
- 200g plain flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 90ml water
- 50g lard
- 45g unsalted butter
Mini pork pie filling ingredients
- 500g pork mince
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ground white pepper
- ½ tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- 1 egg for egg wash
Method
Method for making the mini pork pie pastry
- 01
Sieve the flour and salt into a bowl and mix them together.
- 02
Add the water to a small saucepan on low heat, add the lard and butter, and bring to a simmer.
- 03
When the lard and butter have melted, pour the liquid onto the flour in the bowl and mix.
- 04
Flour your work surface and turn out the contents of the bowl.
- 05
Knead the dough gently until it is all mixed together.
- 06
Place the dough in a plastic bag or cling film and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and remove just before making your pies. You can also make the dough the day before. If you have done this, remove it from the fridge 1 hour before use.
Making the mini pork pies
- 07
Add all the pie-filling ingredients into a bowl and mix with your hands for a few minutes.
- 08
Divide the meat into 8 equal parts. Best to use digital scales for evenness.
- 09
Make your egg wash by whisking a small egg.
- 10
Grease your muffin baking tray with butter.
- 11
Roll the pastry out to 3mm thickness and cut out 8x 12cm circles for the pie bases and 8x 6cm circles for the pie lids.
- 12
Place the pie bases into the muffin tray cups and gently press the pastry into the bases of the cups.
- 13
Place the divided meat portions into each pie base and gently press the meat down into the pastry cups to remove any trapped air.
- 14
Now preheat your oven to 170℃.
- 15
Brush the egg wash around the edge of the pie bases. Avoid getting the egg wash between the pastry and the baking tray, or the pie will stick during baking.
- 16
Place the pie lids on top of the meat and gently press down. Then, crimp the pie base and lid together using your fingers and thumb to form a sealed pie.
- 17
Cut 2 vent slits in the pie lid with a sharp knife.
- 18
Coat each pie with egg wash, and again, take care not to get the egg wash between the pie and the baking tray to avoid the pie sticking during baking.
- 19
Place the muffin tray in the middle of the preheated oven and bake for 40-45 minutes. The pastry should be golden and juices bubbling through the vents,
- 20
When baking time is up, place the muffin tray on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then carefully remove the pies.
Your mini pork pies are now ready to eat, hot or cold. I like mine with brown sauce, English mustard, or pickles such as Branston or Piccalilli.
Making it abroad
The good news is that nothing in this recipe is hard to find in Spain or the Canary Islands. Everything I use comes from the supermarket. Where you live may be different, of course, so if you've found something useful (or a good substitute) in your part of the world, please share it in the comments.
Serving
Eat them hot or cold, with your favourite sauce or pickle and a simple salad. They're great for picnics.
FAQs
Can I freeze mini pork pies? Yes, they freeze well once baked. Let them cool completely, put them in freezer bags and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge.
How long do they keep? Up to 3 days in the fridge in a covered container, or up to 3 months in the freezer.
Can I eat them cold? Yes. They're great hot from the oven or cold from the fridge.
Can I make the pastry in advance? Yes. Make it the day before and keep it in the fridge, or freeze it for later.
Can I add jelly? You can, but I've left it out to keep this recipe quick and simple. Traditional pork pies have jellied stock poured in through the hole in the lid after baking, which fills the gap as the meat shrinks.
A little pork pie history
Pork pies have been eaten in Britain for centuries. Hot water crust pastry is firm enough to hold its shape and protect the filling, which made the pies easy to carry and good for eating cold.
The best known are Melton Mowbray pork pies from Leicestershire. They're made with uncured chopped pork, baked without a tin so the sides bow out, and filled with jelly. Since 2008 the name has been protected, so only pies made in and around the town can be sold as Melton Mowbray pork pies.
Mine are much simpler to make, with no jelly, no tin-free raising and supermarket mince. They still taste like the pork pies I grew up with.
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