No. 2378

Loin of Pork Tart or Pie—English Style

Tarte de Longe de Porc a l'Anglaise

Have a loin of fresh pork, bone, remove the fat and cut from it slices three-eights of an inch thick; beat to flatten slightly, seasoning with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Butter the inside of a pie dish (Fig. 183) and lay over some thin slices of raw salted and smoked ham, seasoning with prepared red pepper (No. 168), chopped shallot and onions; on this place a bed of raw' sliced potatoes, and the pieces of meat above, dropping sage leaves here and there; pour a little good cold gravy (No. 404) into the bottom of the dish; moisten the edge with a brush dipped in water, lay on it a band of paste an eighth of an inch thick and half an inch wide; wet the top of this slightly and cover the pie with a layer of foundation paste (No. 135) or puff paste parings, having it an eighth of an inch in thickness; adhere this on the band, cut away all the surplus paste from the outside and make deep marks all around with the back of a knife: egg the surface twice and cut a hole in the center. Cook this pie in a moderate oven for an hour and a quarter more or less, according to its size; this time being allowed for one containing a pound and a quarter of meat and potatoes.

← No. 2377 Pigeon Tart a la Britannia Miscellaneous Entrées No. 2379 Rabbit Tart or Pie with Fine Herbs →

For the Modern Kitchen

Ranhofer's English pork pie is straightforward once you decode the cross-references, which point to other numbered entries in The Epicurean rather than to anything you need to buy.

Moderate ovenRoughly 325-350°F; Ranhofer gives no figure. An hour and a quarter is what he allows for a dish holding about a pound and a quarter of meat and potatoes, and he says to vary it with the size of the pie. The raw sliced potatoes will most likely need longer than the thin pork slices.
DonenessFresh pork slices this thin cook through well before the pastry browns. Test through the central vent hole with a skewer — the potatoes should offer no resistance.
Prepared red pepper (No. 168)A cayenne-based seasoning prepared in Ranhofer's own kitchen; look up No. 168 for his exact formula. Cayenne used sparingly does the same job.
Good cold gravy (No. 404)A rich brown gravy, used cold, as the recipe specifies; see No. 404 for Ranhofer's version. Chilled homemade stock or demi-glace works; use only a few tablespoons, since the pork and potatoes release plenty of liquid.
Foundation paste (No. 135)A plain flour-butter-water lining paste, firmer and less rich than puff. Any sturdy shortcrust serves. "Puff paste parings" simply means the trimmings left from a previous batch, which puff unevenly and were considered good enough for a pie lid.
The band of pasteThe half-inch strip laid on the wetted rim is what the lid actually adheres to — pastry sticks to pastry far better than to a buttered dish. Skip it and the lid slides off as the filling steams.
Raw salted and smoked hamA dry-cured, smoked ham such as country ham or speck, sliced thin. Ordinary wet-cured deli ham will not give the same seasoning to the gravy.
Egg the surface twiceTwo thin coats of beaten egg, the second after the first has dried, for an even gloss. The central hole must stay open so steam escapes rather than lifting the lid.
YieldThe pound and a quarter of meat and potatoes Ranhofer refers to would serve about four as a main course, though he gives no yield. If the gravy sets, the pie should eat well cold the next day.

A Little History

Charles Ranhofer, chef at Delmonico's in New York, published The Epicurean in 1894 as an encyclopedic record of the restaurant's repertoire, and its French titles with English glosses reflect exactly that. The run of entries here — pigeon tart, pork tart, rabbit tart — are versions of the British dish pie, baked in a pie dish under a pastry lid rather than raised, layering sliced meat, root vegetables and a little gravy. The pairing of pork with sage is long established in English cookery, and the layer of smoked ham at the bottom of the dish would season the gravy from below as its fat renders. The à l'Anglaise label marks the dish as an English one within a French-titled repertoire.