“No taste for pork pie, my lord? The best pork pie we ever tasted, our fat friend would have us believe.” She gestured toward Lord Manderly with her wine cup. “Have you ever seen a fat man so happy? He is almost dancing. Serving with his own hands.” -A Dance with Dragons

Thoughts:

We may be fresh into a new season of the show, and several books past A Storm of Swords, but I haven’t forgotten the Red Wedding, and neither has Lord Manderly. The North remembers…

I’ve wanted to take a crack at this recipe ever since reading about it in A Dance with Dragons. In the book, the pie is described as being big as a wagon wheel, “stuffed to bursting with carrots, onions, turnips, parsnips, mushrooms, and chunks of seasoned pork swimming in a savory brown gravy.” YUM. (mostly…) Naturally, I made one key ingredient substitution here. If you don’t know what that was, then you need to go back and read between the lines. Enough said on that. Any spoilers will be deleted!

I found the pork at the store, then added a bit of pork belly on a whim. That proved to really add to the flavors and textures of the finished pie. The gravy, beef and beer based, is dark and savory, given further oomph by a pinch of smoked salt. The vegetables provide a lot of heftiness, between the dense carrots and turnips, and the occasional sweet pop of a pearl onion.

Manderly Pie Recipe

Cook’s Notes: I made my pie in a spring-form pan, which gave it that nice tall shape.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb. pork belly, diced large (thick cut bacon could also work, or simply omit)
• 2 lb. pork, or other white meat, cut into 1″ cubes
• hearty pinch of salt, pepper, and savory herbs
• 3 Tbs. butter
• 1/2 cup chopped carrots
• 1/2 cup pearl onions, paper peeled off
• 1 medium turnip, peeled and chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped parsnips
• 1 cup mushrooms
• 1 1/2 cups beef broth
• 1 1/2 cups dark beer
• 3 Tbs. butter
• 3 Tbs. flour

Ingredients for Crust:

• 3 1/2 cups flour
• 1 stick butter
• hefty pinch of salt
• 1 egg
• water or milk enough to bring it all together
• 1 extra egg, for glaze

In a large skillet or frying pan, toss the diced pork belly over medium heat until it’s cooked through. Set aside in a large bowl, reserving any fat in the pan. Add the cubed pork and gently sear until each piece is browned. Remove the meat to the same bowl as the pork belly and set aside.

In the pan, melt 3 Tbs. butter and add the veggies. Add a splash of broth, salt, and cover and let simmer until soft, around 10-15 minutes. Pour into the bowl with the meat.

In the skillet, melt the remaining 3 Tbs. butter and add the flour, stirring until it’s a nice golden color. While stirring, gradually pour in some of the liquid from the vegetable mix, adding beer and more broth until you have a nice, thick slurry. Pour the rest of the vegetables and meat back into the pan and let cook until the whole mixture is thickened. Removed from heat and allow to cool.

Mix up the dough: Combine the flour and salt, then rub or cut the butter into this mix. Stir in the egg, then enough liquid to bring the dough together.

Divide the dough into two pieces, one larger than the other. Roll out the larger piece of dough to about 1/8″ thickness. Carefully drape this over your pie pan or springform mold. Fill with the cooled meat filling. Roll out the remaining dough and drape over top for the lid. Trim the excess dough (this makes for great medieval honey biscuits!) and crimp the edges down. Decorate with extra dough, if you like. Brush with egg glaze.

Bake at 400 for about 45 minutes, or until the crust is just shy of golden. At this point, you can remove the side of the springform pan and brush the pie with remaining egg wash. Return to oven for another 10 minutes or so, then remove. Allow to cool for about 10-15 minutes before cutting. Enjoy!