British Pies and Pasties Guide: Traditional Pies to Know

If there’s one part of British food I’ve found particularly easy to appreciate, it’s the pies.

Some arrive at the table piping hot with gravy and mashed potatoes. Others are sturdy enough to eat cold from a bakery or pack for lunch. Then there are pasties, sausage rolls and a whole group of dishes called pies that don’t necessarily involve pastry at all.

British Pies to Know

British pies come in quite a few forms. Some are completely enclosed in pastry, some are made for sharing, and others have a pastry lid over a slow-cooked filling. Pork pies take things in another direction entirely, with a sturdy crust and a filling that’s traditionally eaten cold.

And pastry isn’t always involved. Shepherd’s Pie and Fish Pie are both topped with mashed potatoes. So when you see “pie” on a British menu, don’t expect something wrapped in pastry.

Pie or Pasty	Usually Filled With	Associated With
Steak and Ale Pie	Beef and ale gravy	England / British pub food
Cornish Pasty	Beef, potato, swede and onion	Cornwall, England
Melton Mowbray Pork Pie	Seasoned uncured pork	Leicestershire, England
Steak and Kidney Pie	Beef, kidney and gravy	England
Chicken and Mushroom Pie	Chicken, mushrooms and creamy sauce	Britain
Scotch Pie	Traditionally mutton or other minced meat	Scotland
Forfar Bridie	Beef and onion	Forfar, Scotland
Pie and Mash	Minced beef pie, mash and parsley liquor	London, England
Shepherd’s Pie	Lamb beneath mashed potatoes	Britain and Ireland
Fish Pie	Fish in creamy sauce beneath mashed potatoes	Britain

Steak and Ale Pie

Steak and ale pie is one of those dishes I expect to see on a good English pub menu. Tender pieces of beef are cooked in a rich ale gravy, topped with pastry and usually served with mashed potatoes or chips, vegetables and plenty of gravy.

The ale makes a difference, too. Bitters, brown ales, porters and stouts each bring something different to the filling, and I always like seeing a pub use beer from a local brewery.

My Steak and Ale Pie was one of the earliest recipes I published on Foodie & Wine, so this is one British dish that was already part of my kitchen long before I started spending this much time in England.

Make It: Steak and Ale Pie

Cornish Pasty

The Cornish pasty is one of those foods that really belongs to a place. The traditional version is filled with beef, potato, swede and onion, then folded over and crimped along the edge.

You’ll find pasties all over Britain, but if I’m in Cornwall, I’m getting one there. The Cornish Pasty name is also protected in the UK, with specific requirements for how and where it’s made, so the connection to Cornwall goes well beyond the name.

Melton Mowbray Pork Pie

A pork pie is a completely different experience from the hot, gravy-heavy pies you’ll find on a pub dinner menu.

The Melton Mowbray version comes from the area around Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire. It’s made with uncured pork inside a sturdy pastry case, with jelly between the meat and pastry. The result is traditionally eaten cold rather than arriving at the table under a ladle of gravy.

Like the Cornish pasty, Melton Mowbray Pork Pie has protected geographical status in the UK. If I’m buying one, that’s one of the cases where I’d look for the full regional name rather than treating every supermarket pork pie as interchangeable.

Serve pork pie with English mustard, chutney or pickled cucumbers, or add it to a Ploughman’s lunch.

Steak and Kidney Pie

Steak and kidney pie is one of the older-school British pies you’re still likely to see on traditional pub menus. Beef and kidney are cooked in a rich gravy and paired with pastry, creating a pie with a much stronger flavor than steak and ale.

Kidney isn’t something I personally care for, so this isn’t one I’m planning to develop into a Foodie & Wine recipe. But if you’re exploring traditional British pub food, steak and kidney pie is still one of the names worth knowing.

Chicken and Mushroom Pie

Chicken and mushroom pie is a pub classic you’ll see all over Britain. Chicken and mushrooms are cooked in a creamy sauce or gravy, then topped or enclosed with pastry and baked until golden.

It doesn’t have the same regional ties as a Cornish pasty or Melton Mowbray pork pie, but it’s a familiar choice in pubs, bakeries and home kitchens.

Pie and Mash

Head to London and pie takes on another identity entirely.

Traditional pie and mash is particularly associated with London’s East End and its working-class food history. Today’s version usually centers on a minced beef pie with mashed potatoes and liquor, the parsley sauce that’s one of the meal’s defining features.

Despite the name, liquor isn’t an alcoholic drink poured over the pie. It’s the green parsley sauce served alongside it.

Scottish Pies and Pasties

Scotland has its own pie traditions, which is another reason I wouldn’t describe every meat pie as simply “English.”

Scotch Pie

A traditional Scotch pie is a small, sturdy double-crust meat pie traditionally associated with mutton, although fillings vary. The pastry is firm enough to hold its shape, making it very different from a large pub-style steak pie.

Forfar Bridie

The Forfar bridie comes from Forfar in Angus and is closer in shape to a turnover or pasty. Beef and onion are enclosed in pastry and folded into a portable savory pastry.

What About Shepherd’s Pie and Cottage Pie?

This is where British pie terminology gets confusing, especially if you’re coming to it from the U.S.

Neither Shepherd’s Pie nor Cottage Pie traditionally has a pastry crust. Both use mashed potatoes over a savory meat filling.

Dish	Traditional Meat	Topping
Shepherd’s Pie	Lamb	Mashed potatoes
Cottage Pie	Beef	Mashed potatoes

My traditional Shepherd’s Pie uses lamb and vegetables in gravy beneath creamy mashed potatoes. If you use beef, you’re moving into Cottage Pie territory.

Fish Pie Doesn’t Have Pastry Either

Fish pie skips the pastry altogether. Instead, fish is cooked in a creamy sauce and topped with mashed potatoes before going into the oven.

White fish, smoked haddock, salmon and prawns are common, along with peas, leeks, parsley and sometimes hard-cooked eggs.

British Sausage Rolls

Sausage rolls aren’t technically pies, but there’s no way I’m leaving them out of a guide to British savory pastry. They’re also, without question, my absolute favorite.

The basic idea is simple: seasoned sausage meat wrapped in pastry and baked until crisp and golden. You’ll find them everywhere, from quick grab-and-go versions to butcher shops and bakeries making their own with good local pork.

For me, the sausage makes all the difference. Give me a freshly baked sausage roll from a good local butcher or bakery over a mass-produced one any day.

Where to Try British Pies

A pub is an obvious place to start, particularly for hot pies such as steak and ale or steak and kidney. But pubs are only part of it.

Independent bakeries, butcher shops, farm shops and market stalls are often better places to look for pork pies, sausage rolls and regional pastries. In Cornwall, I’d look for a bakery or pasty shop. Around Melton Mowbray, I’d look for a producer making the regional pork pie rather than treating it as just another pub dish.

I’m also more interested in a short pub menu that tells me which butcher made the meat, which brewery supplied the ale or where the ingredients came from than a menu offering ten nearly identical pies.

Some British pies are also easier to appreciate where they’re made than to recreate exactly at home, especially if you’re cooking in the U.S. A traditional Melton Mowbray Pork Pie, for example, uses jelly between the pork and pastry, which isn’t something most American home cooks regularly work with. I’m happy to make the British pies that translate well to my own kitchen and save others for trips to the places they’re known for.

Continue Reading: British Pub Food Guide

What to Serve With British Pies

The sides depend on the pie. A hot steak and ale pie calls for a completely different plate than a cold pork pie.

Pie	What I’d Serve With It
Steak and Ale Pie	Garlic Mashed potatoes or chips, peas and gravy
Steak and Kidney Pie	Mashed potatoes, vegetables and gravy
Pork Pie	English mustard, chutney, pickles, cheese or salad
Cornish Pasty	Nothing necessary; it’s meant to work as a complete handheld meal
Shepherd’s Pie	Peas, baby carrots, cabbage or another simple vegetable
Fish Pie	Peas, greens or steamed vegetables

What to Drink With British Pies

Living in Bath, with Somerset cider country right on my doorstep, I’ve been reaching for cider more often with British pub food. But pies are also where traditional British beer styles make a lot of sense.

Pie	Try It With
Steak and Ale Pie	Bitter, brown ale, porter or stout
Pork Pie	English bitter or dry cider
Cornish Pasty	English ale or cider
Chicken and Mushroom Pie	Pale ale or Chardonnay
Shepherd’s Pie	Syrah, Rioja or English ale

Wine certainly works with plenty of these dishes, but I wouldn’t force it. If the pie was made with a local ale and the pub has that beer on a hand pump, that’s probably what I’m ordering first.

Make British Pies at Home

I don’t think you need a dozen British pie recipes before this part of the site becomes useful. I’d rather add them as I make and test versions I’m happy with.

For now, start with my Steak and Ale Pie if you want pastry, beef and pub-style gravy, or make my Shepherd’s Pie if mashed potatoes sound better than pastry.

Cornish Pasties, Sausage Rolls, Cottage Pie and several of the other classics on this page are recipes I want to add as I continue building out the collection.

Keep Exploring British Pies

The easiest way to get to know British pies is to try them as you come across them. I’ll order the steak and ale pie at a pub, grab a sausage roll from a local bakery and make a point of trying the regional specialties when I’m in the right place. The last sausage rolls I picked up came from my local Sainsbury’s.

I’m also bringing plenty of them back into my own kitchen. As I make and test more of these recipes, I’ll add them here, along with the sides, sauces and drinks I’d serve with them.

In the meantime, if you spot a pie you’ve never heard of on a pub or bakery menu, give it a try. That’s how I’ve found some of my favorites.