Fray Bentos pies

[Arfer]

Apparently beloved by her late Majesty, when travelling.

Any tips to produce a well cooked pie lid? They seem to cook one layer of puff pastry on several hot soggy layers.

Never Haute Cuisine, but always satisfying.

[Urbandreamer]

Pastry is always a difficult.

In the case that you mention the trick will be starting with a cool (room temperature) pie and a hot oven. This means that you MUST per-heat the oven and ensure that the pie and pastry didn't come from the fridge*. I also recommend an oven thermometer, my oven runs colder than what is selected.

Basically were the pastry sitting on a wooden block (moderate insulator) it would cook fairly well.
If instead you cooked it in a steamer it would be horrid.

What you want to try and achieve is to cook the pastry, before the pie contents starts steaming it. What you are experiencing is steamed bottom layers of pastry.

*If actually making the pie, ensure that the contents are cooled first, Make the pie, then let it rest at room temperature as the pastry will have been in the fridge, before baking.

[Arfer]

These are tinned pies, you have to remove lid with a can opener. The pastry and filling have been in contact with each other since manufacture.

[NotSure]

Surely Fray Bentos pies are OT on the Food board.....

[staffordian]

Anyone else think these are inferior these days?

Not had one for a while because the more recent ones we bought seemed to be all slop and pastry with very little meat.

[DrFfybes]

Anyone else think these are inferior these days?

They're not as big as they used to be.

Which is a blessing.

[DeepSporran]

Any tips to produce a well cooked pie lid? They seem to cook one layer of puff pastry on several hot soggy layers.

Before sticking in the hot oven, I run a sharp knife round the outer edge of the pastry lid so that it’s not adhering to the tin. Seems to help the steam escape a bit. Doesn’t always work though.

These pies in a tin are a retro treat for me and I usually have one in the back of the cupboard for emergencies. I kid myself that you can’t find any meat in it because it has all dissolved into the very rich gravy.

[Urbandreamer]

These are tinned pies, you have to remove lid with a can opener. The pastry and filling have been in contact with each other since manufacture.

I had assumed that everyone knew that, don't try cooking them with the tin lid on if you don't know it.
As for the pastry being in contact since manufacture, of course, that should be obvious.
Does that fact make a difference? Well apparently not as described by the OP.
Here is a review, by someone who didn't like the filling.

The steak and ale pie was salty with a crunchy pastry that offered the only real positive to speak of.
...
Similarly in the cheese and onion pie the crunchy pastry topping that seemed to promise so much lay upon a bed of lies.

https://www.mylondon.news/news/news-opi ... p-20333978

It's how you cook the pie that makes a difference to the pastry.

Those of us who have read books of a certain era may have come across the term "iron rations". These pies fit the bill. They date from times when fridges were ice boxes and you needed to source ice to keep your food cold.

Oh and why "Fray Bentos"?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fray_Bentos_(food_brand)

the name is derived from the port of Fray Bentos in Uruguay where the products were originally processed and packaged until the 1960s.

Ps, I won't be buying them we are trying to control our salt intake.

[BullDog]

The taste of my youth. Spam fritters too. Brains faggots. Vesta curry. From back in the era when all food you ate was good food just as long as it wasn't poisonous or rancid.

[CliffEdge]

Spam fritters, disgusting, not fit for a slug, nobody with class would go anywhere near them. Best not mentioned. Nobody in a higher tax bracket should even know about them.

[88V8]

Spam fritters, disgusting, not fit for a slug, nobody with class would go anywhere near them. Best not mentioned. Nobody in a higher tax bracket should even know about them.

We sent several cases of Spam to Ukraine. Doesn't seem to have done them any harm...

Any tips to produce a well cooked pie lid? They seem to cook one layer of puff pastry on several hot soggy layers.

Perhaps take the lid off and grille it after cooking?

V8

[CliffEdge]

Spam fritters, disgusting, not fit for a slug, nobody with class would go anywhere near them. Best not mentioned. Nobody in a higher tax bracket should even know about them.

We sent several cases of Spam to Ukraine. Doesn't seem to have done them any harm...

Any tips to produce a well cooked pie lid? They seem to cook one layer of puff pastry on several hot soggy layers.

Perhaps take the lid off and grille it after cooking?

V8

Shhhh

[bluedonkey]

The taste of my youth. Spam fritters too. Brains faggots. Vesta curry. From back in the era when all food you ate was good food just as long as it wasn't poisonous or rancid.

Oh yes please! Brains faggots especially, served with peas and a crusty cob.

[hiriskpaul]

Fray Bentos pies takes me back. My mother, not being the best of cooks, served them up fairly regularly with tinned new potatoes. Always had frozen peas though, stored in the fridge ice making compartment, never low class tinned rubbish.

I wanted to buy one for the boat a few years ago as an emergency meal, but my wife flatly refused to have it on board. I will buy and cook one sometime when she is out, following the helpful instructions here.

Goblin meat puddings was another favourite. Many years ago I boiled one up, but my wife refused it. The label said it contained beef and other meats, which my wife interpreted as goblin meat. Delicious.

[DrFfybes]

We sent several cases of Spam to Ukraine. Doesn't seem to have done them any harm...
V8

Only because they've been firing it at the Russians

[bluedonkey]

Fray Bentos pies takes me back. My mother, not being the best of cooks, served them up fairly regularly with tinned new potatoes. Always had frozen peas though, stored in the fridge ice making compartment, never low class tinned rubbish.

I wanted to buy one for the boat a few years ago as an emergency meal, but my wife flatly refused to have it on board. I will buy and cook one sometime when she is out, following the helpful instructions here.

Goblin meat puddings was another favourite. Many years ago I boiled one up, but my wife refused it. The label said it contained beef and other meats, which my wife interpreted as goblin meat. Delicious.

That's funny, I used to eat the FB pies with tinned new potatoes as well.

[Rhyd6]

Spam fritters - a stalwart of school dinners along with pork (allegedly) sausages commonly known as bundles of mystery. I used to thank my lucky stars that Mum made me sandwiches.

R6