British Mince Pies
Britain's Christmas pies: small sweet shortcrust tarts filled with a week-old mincemeat of beef suet, raisins, currants, peel, grated apple, citrus, spice, brandy, rum, port and sherry, with sugared star or round lids.
Edited by JP Lambiase
Change the estimate
Swaps change the price only: cook any meat to its own safe temperature. Where these numbers come from
Mincemeat once meant meat. English Heritage's Sam Bilton traces the pie to medieval cooks: the 14th-century Forme of Cury has a "tart of flesh" of minced pork, figs, raisins, honey and cheese, Gervase Markham's 1615 "The English Huswife" gives a mutton version, and the pastry case was called a "coffin" (December 18, 2015:). Wikipedia adds that Hannah Glasse made the meat optional in 1748, that ox tongue was the most common meat in 18th- and 19th-century recipes, and that Samuel Pepys ate mince pies on Christmas Day 1666. The meat faded out in the 19th century. Eliza Acton's 1845 mincemeat still had ox tongue, Mrs Beeton's "Household Management" of 1861 gave one recipe with meat and one without, and later editions kept only the meatless one; by the 20th century the only meat left was the suet (English Heritage). That is what this pie keeps. The recipe comes from the Royal Collection Trust, the charity that runs Buckingham Palace's visitor exhibitions, and its book "Royal Teas: Seasonal Recipes from Buckingham Palace". The story everyone tells, that Oliver Cromwell banned mince pies, is a myth according to English Heritage: Parliament abolished Christmas as a holy day in 1647, but no law singled out the pie (The Ferret, December 25, 2021:).
🇬🇧 The original
Britain's Christmas pies: small sweet shortcrust tarts filled with a week-old mincemeat of beef suet, raisins, currants, peel, grated apple, citrus, spice, brandy, rum, port and sherry, with sugared star or round lids.
🇺🇸 The American version
America made the holiday pie a one-crust custard of syrup, eggs and butter: pecan, chess, buttermilk and sugar cream, poured into an open shell and baked until just set. See the Classic Southern Pecan Pie recipe.
📖 Myth check: Did Oliver Cromwell Ban Mince Pies? →
Why it works the kitchen science
Suet in the mincemeat
The beef fat melts as the pies bake and coats the dried fruit, giving the filling a rich, glossy texture; it is the last trace of the meat these pies once held.
A week in the jar
The fruit soaks up the citrus and spirits and the spices mellow, so the filling tastes rounded instead of raw and boozy.
🧰 You'll need 6 items
Everything the steps call for. Tick off what you have before you start.
Appliances
Pans and pots
Tools
Step by step
- Step 1
At least a week ahead, make the mincemeat: stir the suet, dried fruit, peel and spices in a large bowl, then mix in the zests, juices, spirits, wines and grated apple. Pack it into a 1-quart (1-liter) jar and soak at least 1 week in the refrigerator or a cool pantry.
- Step 2
For the pastry, rub the butter into the flour and powdered sugar with your fingertips until no lumps of butter remain. Mix the egg yolk with the chilled water, stir it in until the dough comes together in a ball, wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
- Step 3
Heat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Roll the pastry 2 to 3 mm thick (about 1/8 inch), lay it on a tray and chill it again for a few minutes. Cut 3-inch fluted bases and 2 1/2-inch lids or stars.
- Step 4
Press the bases into a 12-hole shallow tart tin and prick each with a fork. Spoon in about 1 heaped tablespoon of mincemeat, brush the pastry edges with egg wash and chill 30 minutes.
- Step 5
Lay on the lids, brush them with egg wash, poke a small steam hole in each and sprinkle with granulated sugar.
- Step 6
Bake on the middle rack about 15 minutes, until the pastry is golden and the mincemeat just starts to bubble. Cool a few minutes before lifting them out, then bake the second tray the same way.
✓ What it should look like - Step 7
Dust with powdered sugar and serve warm.
British Mince Pies
Serves 24 · about 24 small pies (with mincemeat left over) · 1 hr 15 min total
Sweet pastry
- 300 g (2 1/4 cups) all-purpose flour
- 90 g (2/3 cup) powdered sugar
- 210 g (scant 1 cup) cold unsalted butter, cubed
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) chilled water
- 1 medium egg yolk
Mincemeat (makes about 1 quart; soak 1 week)
- Zest and juice of 1 lemon
- Zest and juice of 1 orange
- 2 tbsp brandy
- 1 tbsp each port, rum and sherry
- 120 g (1 cup) shredded beef suet
- 160 g (3/4 cup) golden raisins (sultanas)
- 100 g (1/2 cup) raisins
- 100 g (1/2 cup) mixed candied peel
- 100 g (1/2 cup) dried currants
- 1/2 tsp each ground nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves
- 160 g (6 oz) russet or other tart apples, peeled and grated
To finish
- 1 egg, beaten, for egg wash
- Granulated sugar, for sprinkling
- Powdered sugar, for dusting
Equipment: Oven, Tart pan, Chef's knife and cutting board, Measuring cups and spoons, Mixing bowls, Pastry brush
Method
- At least a week ahead, make the mincemeat: stir the suet, dried fruit, peel and spices in a large bowl, then mix in the zests, juices, spirits, wines and grated apple. Pack it into a 1-quart (1-liter) jar and soak at least 1 week in the refrigerator or a cool pantry.
- For the pastry, rub the butter into the flour and powdered sugar with your fingertips until no lumps of butter remain. Mix the egg yolk with the chilled water, stir it in until the dough comes together in a ball, wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
- Heat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Roll the pastry 2 to 3 mm thick (about 1/8 inch), lay it on a tray and chill it again for a few minutes. Cut 3-inch fluted bases and 2 1/2-inch lids or stars.
- Press the bases into a 12-hole shallow tart tin and prick each with a fork. Spoon in about 1 heaped tablespoon of mincemeat, brush the pastry edges with egg wash and chill 30 minutes.
- Lay on the lids, brush them with egg wash, poke a small steam hole in each and sprinkle with granulated sugar.
- Bake on the middle rack about 15 minutes, until the pastry is golden and the mincemeat just starts to bubble. Cool a few minutes before lifting them out, then bake the second tray the same way.
- Dust with powdered sugar and serve warm.
Adapted from Royal Collection Trust, "Royal recipe: Festive mince pies", from "Royal Teas: Seasonal Recipes from Buckingham Palace". The live page blocked our requests; we read it through the Internet Archive's copy. Pastry and mincemeat amounts, the week of soaking, the 190°C (375°F) oven and the 15-minute bake are the Trust's; it uses a 12-hole shallow mince pie tin and gives no pie count. The count of 24 (two trays), the 1 heaped tablespoon (about 25 g) of mincemeat per pie and the 3-inch and 2 1/2-inch cutter sizes are ours; the Trust says only "a teaspoon" and cutters sized to fit your tin. The US cup amounts are the Trust's own conversions. History from English Heritage, Wikipedia and The Ferret, linked in the Story. Royal Collection Trust. Ingredient list follows the source; the method is in our own words.
All sources (4)
Tips
- Vegetarian suet works the same way; English Heritage notes it is a modern stand-in.
- Leftover mincemeat keeps in the jar in the refrigerator; use it for a second batch.
- Star-shaped or holly-shaped lids are the Trust's festive suggestion.
The rules people argue about
What the sources agree on, what they don't, and what is just a good story.
- Oliver Cromwell banned mince pies. Disputed: English Heritage (Bilton, 2015) calls it a myth, and The Ferret (2021) rates "mince pies are illegal on Christmas Day" false: Parliament abolished Christmas as a holy day in 1647, before Cromwell came to power in 1653, and no law named the pie. A Smithsonian Magazine article (search summary only) says the Puritan Parliament banned feasts of mince pies along with Christmas.
- Mince pies came back from the Crusades. Disputed: Wikipedia says some writers date them to the 11th century and credit Crusaders with bringing back the spices; it calls the origin "a matter of debate" and its earliest recipe is from 1390.
- Mince pies were shaped like Jesus's manger. Disputed: English Heritage says rectangular pies resembled a manger and sometimes carried a pastry baby Jesus; Wikipedia says the Elizabethan crib story has little support and the earliest reference is 17th century.
- Mincemeat used to contain meat. Documented: English Heritage and Wikipedia (Forme of Cury, 1390; Markham, 1615; Acton, 1845; Beeton, 1861).
- Eat one mince pie on each of the twelve days of Christmas for luck. Folklore (Wikipedia lists it among the pie's superstitions).
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