Saturday 18 September 2010

Not just any Fray Bentos...

As you can imagine, I get lots of recommendations for eating at fine places throughout the country (mainly in East Lancs at the moment). Just recently people have been sending me pies to sample at home in front of the TV, so it seems logical to document my PIE TV Experiences on the Norths best pie blog. And if we believe that there is only one place to get good pies (North of England) then we are talking about the best pie blog in the whole pie eating world, as we know it.

So anyway, the first Pie TV experience is from the great British institution that is Marks & Spencer.
Its sold as 'Prime British Beef in a rich 'Batemans Ale' sauce topped with a Thyme & Rosemary Puff Pastry'.
I got the missus to stagger the delivery just so I could capture the process.
The overhanging discs of pastry draped over deep dishes ready to bake didn't look that appetising.
They rose quite well and reminded me of late nights and Fray Bentos suppers.
As instructed, we flipped off the pastry tops and poured out the filling: lots of red sauce, a few chunks of meat and some bacon lardons.
Once on the plate, things started to look like a decent pair of pies.
The sauce was very tasty with the bacon adding a positive kick to the tomato sauce.
The pastry kept some of its chewy elasticity (just like the old days) and wasn't dry at all.
It really has got lots and lots of flavour this posh Fray Bentos and it went well with a simple tin of peas for a quick TV pie supper.
There was plenty of room for more steak in the dish but the flavour and quality of the meat contribute to an overall experience of 5, which is very good for a ready meal pie in a tin. Well done M&S, just need to add some mushrooms (large enough to be picked out by non mushroom lovers of course) and this will be a great pie.

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