Problems when making Pie

[freshnessben]

What ho. I've made this awesome recipe a few times. However, there tends to be a lot of liquid that escapes from the meat during cooking which makes the base of the pie somewhat soggy. Is this down to the quality of the meat? Or am I skipping some vital step? Please help me as I need to make it again tonight! Thanks.

 

[Aunt Bea]

You can try many things to improve the situation.

Brush the inside bottom of the crust with egg white before filling.

Scatter a handful of bread crumbs on the bottom before adding the filling .

Add a thickener to the filling mixture, instant tapioca is a good choice,

Leave out the bottom crust, bake it in a larger flat casserole and just use a top crust.

 

[lyndalou]

Aunt Bea,

My thought is that the pork tenderloin is Wrapped in the crust. It is not made like a pie. Is this right? It would probably help to brush the inside with the egg wash. I use beaten egg yolk for my meat pies. Also, maybe place it on a rack over a cookie sheet (rimmed) when baking.

 

[jennyema]

IMO you are skipping a vital step, though it's not in your recipe.

Sear your meat before wrapping in the pastry dough.

That's a key step in making BeefWellington, which is similar to what you are doing.

Also I am not sure that short crust is the right type for what you are making.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

All good ideas. I would add one more step to help control the juices. After brushing the pastry with egg wash, and searing the meat, I would roll it in either cornstarch, or tapioca starch before wrapping the pastry crust around it. Then brush the outside with egg wash and bake as directed.

And, did you know that you can season pastry dough to enhance the filling. For meat pies made with beef, I'll add powdered rosemary, and use ice-cold beef broth instead of water when making it. For pork fillings, I add powdered thyme to the pastry dough. For cherry filling, I add sugar and cinamon to the dourgh.

It makes a wonderful difference in the pie.

Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

 

[Andy M.]

I agree about searing the pork. When you wrap the dough around the pork, leave the bottom seam open and bake it on a rack. Juices can run out and into the pan below.

 

[lyndalou]

Chief LW

Excellent idea re seasoning the crust. I will do that the next time I make meat pie.

 

[GLC]

First, check the packaging for added water. For instance, packaged pork loin of this sort

has pork broth added.

And did you use prosciutto? Or did you substitute something from which would render a lot more fat than the dry prosciutto?

If the pork is wet, I do not think searing is the answer, although it may get some water out, which will really spoil any sear. I've never actually had to solve this problem, but I think I'd be inclined to heavily salt the pork with koshering salt overnight uncovered in the refrigerator. That will dry it quite a bit. And, of course, skip the salt step in the recipe.