Lancashire butter pie

Name: Lancashire butter pie
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 1 tsp fine salt; 350 g plain flour; 75 g unsalted butter, cubed and chilled; 75 g lard, cubed and chilled

You have to hand it to the Northerners, they know how to make the most of a potato. Preston in Lancashire has always had a large Catholic community and Catholics don’t eat meat on Fridays, so in Preston, they eat butter pie–also known as Catholic pie or Friday pie. Now it is frequently enjoyed as a match-day half-time favourite at Preston North End football club. It is, quite simply, a flaky pastry pie filled with potatoes, onion and butter, generously seasoned and traditionally served with braised red cabbage.

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Serves6
CourseMain meal
Prepare30 mins
Cook45 mins
Total time1 hr 15 mins
Plusresting

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Ingredients

Pastry

1 tsp fine salt
350g plain flour
75g unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
75g lard, cubed and chilled

Filling

3 large potatoes, peeled and cut into 1cm slices
120g unsalted butter
2 large onions, cut into slices
1 egg, beaten, to glaze

Method

First, make the pastry. Add the salt to the our, then rub in the butter and lard with your fingertips, until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add 75ml very cold water, and cut it into the mixture with a knife. Once the dough starts to come together, use your hands to brie y knead the pastry, and make sure there are no dry bits. Wrap in clingfilm and rest in the fridge for 1 hour.
While the pastry is resting, boil the potato slices for 10 minutes, drain and set to one side. Heat 50g butter in a pan and fry the onion slices for about 10 minutes, until soft, but not coloured.
Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Take 2/3 of the pastry and roll it out into a rectangle the thickness of a pound coin; use this to line a pie dish approximately 20cm x 30cm. Layer the potatoes in the base of the pie, followed by the onions, then dot the 70g remaining butter on top. Season. Roll out the final 1/3 of pastry into a rectangle the same size as the pie dish and place on top, using a ork to attach the pastry lid to the rest of the dish.
Brush the pie lid with egg and use a knife to cut a few vent holes into it. Bake for 30 minutes, until the lid is firm and golden brown.