When it comes to cold weather feasting there’s nothing we love more than a hearty, savoury pie filled with tasty, succulent meat. Our expert Bracher Arcade butchers and poulterers work closely with their producers to source the finest quality meat and poultry daily, so, naturally, we thought they were the perfect people to ask what cuts are best for our next winter meat pie dinner.
Ian’s Quality Meats
For Simon at Ian’s Quality Meats, it’s all about the shoulder cuts of meat.
“Good pieces to choose for your meat pie tend to be those from the shoulder and front of the back (close to the shoulder). You want to aim for a meat cut with plenty of connective tissue and some fat. Avoid going for very lean, red pieces of meat, such as tenderloin, as the meat will toughen up instead of soften over time.
“Our chuck steak is a very flavourful cut of meat that requires long slow cooking to break down and become tender. If a beef pie is your go-to comfort meal, cut the steak into bite-size chunks before cooking. Alternatively, you can shred the beef chunks into strips to create a different texture of filling.”
Gary’s Meats
Gary at Gary’s Meats can’t go past his favourite combination of pork and bacon when it comes to making the perfect meat pie for family and friends.
“What I love most about pork pies is that you don’t need to stick to one cut of meat, you can add a few to give the pie texture and added taste. Pork shoulder, mince and even pork belly can be combined to create a hearty filling. To elevate your pork pie even more, dice up some of our streaky or smoked bacon, add to your pie mixture and voila – you’ve got yourself a parcel of hammy goodness that’ll keep everyone coming back for seconds!”
Arthur’s Poultry
On cool winter nights, Arthur from Arthur’s Poultry turns to a succulent chicken pot pie to satisfy hungry mouths.
“I recommend using chopped chicken breasts or boneless thighs when cooking chicken pot pie. To avoid a dry chicken filling, poach your chicken instead of roasting/baking. The poaching liquid will become infused with extra flavour from the chicken and can then be used to make the creamy filling.”
John Cester’s
If you’re hosting a dinner party, Harrison from John Cester’s suggests wowing your guests with a home-made duck pie.
“Our duck legs make for a tasty meat pie filling. I suggest braising the duck legs in duck, chicken or beef stock before you salt and arrange the legs in a heavy lidded pot. Pour in the stock and cook at a high temperature until the meat falls off the bone, which could take up to 3 hours, depending on the age of your birds. When the meat is done, simply pull it off the bone and reserve. Most duck pie recipes are quite lengthy, however you can save time by doing this step up to several days in advance.”
Want more pie-spiration? Keep your eyes peeled for part two of our ‘Winter Pie’ series, where our Traders share their favourite seafood pie tips, coming soon…
