La tourtière. Or “tortured pie” en anglais. But I kid. It is a very basic minced meat pie. It is a staple of French-Canadian homes not only in Québec but also New Brunswick, and anywhere there is a French enclave. It’s popularity now stretches as far as New England and the Midwest. It is usually made with pork, veal or beef, onions and cubed potatoes. Wild game is sometimes used. It is baked in a slow-cooked deep-dish pan. A bastardised version can be found in any grocery store year-round.
Its particular history dates back to the early 1600s in Sageunay Lac-St-Jean. A meat pie is definitely not unique as there have been various versions dating as far back as Mesopotamian times. Legend has it that it may have come from the French idiomatic term “cipaille” (“sea pie”), a cauldron of meat carried by sailors as an alternative to fish. Anyway, it has been claimed by many in Québec as their own.
The pie is usually reserved for specific holidays: Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve (to ring in the New Year) and Thanksgiving. Any chef worth their crust will make it any way they choose and having tasted it many times myself by my French/Italian mother-in-law and even my Scottish mother, it is truly de-lish.
Here is a very common and simple recipe if anyone wants to have a go:
- Preheat the oven to 210°C
- Put everything except for the last three ingredients into a saucepan, bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer and cook, covered, for about 20 minutes
- In the meantime, you might want to grease, and cover the bottom of your pie dish (use a glass one for preference – go here to find out why) with one of the sheets of pastry (into which you have rolled a pinch or so of turmeric). Follow this link for how to bake blind.
- Take off the heat, stir in three or four spoonfuls of breadcrumbs and leave to stand for ten minutes. If the fat has been absorbed by the breadcrumbs leave it as is, if not add a few more breadcrumbs.
- Fill your pastry case with the mince mixture.
- Cover with the pastry – or cut the pastry into strips and make a kind of lattice effect. Sprinkle over a few extra breadcrumbs if you have them to hand.
- Bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes – until the pastry is golden brown.
Ta-da!
Thanks Fraser. It’s interesting the number of culturally specific variations on the humble meat pie, almost all linked to the need for something filling and portable.