Sausage Pie with Apple and Bacon

Sausage pie with bacon, egg and apple is a deliciously different way to enjoy a savoury meat pie. The flavours are delightful, there’s no need to precook the filling and it can be served in a multitude of ways.

This old-fashioned sausage pie originates from Worcestershire. It used to be called bits and bobs pie because it was made from leftover pork once a pig had been butchered.

Since this is a Worcestershire sausage pie recipe, it comes as no surprise that it includes apples. In truth, I was a little sceptical about this inclusion, but trust me, the pie is definitely savoury and the apple flavour does not dominate. Also included in this sausage pie recipe are bacon, hard-boiled eggs and parsley. Together they create quite a flavour bomb.

This savoury sausagemeat pie is part of my collection of recipes from the East and West Midlands. Pie lovers should not miss Nottinghamshire pie, which is in this collection too. It’s a steak and stilton pie with a snuggly creamy potato topping and it’s out of this world.

Why you’ll love this sausagemeat pie

• Unique – the recipe for this sausagemeat pie is quite different from typical pies.
• It feeds a crowd – at least 8 people for a main course, but up to 12 smaller slices for lighter meals or as part of a buffet.
• Store-bought pastry works well if you don’t want to make your own.
• The filling goes in raw – you don’t need to pre-cook the meat and let it cool before putting into the pastry.
• It’s easy to vary the ingredients – pick your favourite sausagemeat, opt for thyme instead of parsley, leave out the hard-boiled eggs or add a little cooked onion.
• Make ahead – once made this sausage and egg pie can be cooled and stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Ingredients notes

Sausagemeat: this should be pork sausagemeat and my advice to you is to pick quality sausagemeat (try a local butcher). A basic pork sausage flavour is traditional, but you could also get away with Lincolnshire sausagemeat or pork & apple. Be wary of straying too far into exotic flavours as the meat needs to pair with three other crucial ingredients (eggs, apples and parsley).

If you cannot get hold of sausagemeat then it is fine to use sausages themselves. You will need to remove the meat from the outer casings though. But here’s a big word of warning – lots of supermarket sausages contain heaps of water (that’s why they shrivel to half their original size once they have been cooked). Ensure that your sausages are of higher quality – a good indication is to look at meat content and find some with at least 85% pork listed in the ingredients.

Pastry: the recipe lists ingredients for shortcrust pastry and it makes around 600g. For this, you’ll need real butter and plain flour. Alternatively, it’s fine to use bought shortcrust pastry, so buy a pack as close to the 600g mark as possible.

Apple: go for a cooking apple. If you’re lucky then you might be able to pick up one from Worcestershire such as a Betty Geeson, Catshead or Worcester Pearmain. I could only get hold of a Bramley and it worked well.

Bacon: you’ll need unsmoked streaky bacon.

Parsley: traditionally, a Worcestershire sausage pie contains fresh parsley. Do not use dried. If you don’t like parsley then fresh sage, chives or thyme can be used instead.

Eggs: this old-fashioned sausage pie contains 4 eggs (2 of them are hard-boiled). Pick large eggs.

How to make this old-fashioned sausage pie

Full instructions and measurements are given in the printable recipe card at the end of this post.

There are several stages to making this sausage and egg pie:

1. Make the shortcrust pastry.
2. Prepare the sausage pie filling.
3. Assemble the pie and bake it.

However, it will be ready to bake in around an hour (even sooner if you’re using store-bought pastry). Here are the details.

Make the shortcrust pastry

1. Put the flour and salt into a bowl, mix briefly then add the cubed butter.
2. Rub the butter into the flour using your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
3. Stir through enough cold water to form a dough that just holds together without being sticky.
4. Knead briefly on a lightly floured worktop, split the dough into two equal pieces, shape them into discs and cover in food wrap before chilling for 30 minutes.

Make the sausage pie filling

5. Put the sausagemeat into a large mixing bowl.
6. Roughly chop the bacon and parsley and add to the bowl along with the black pepper.
7. Beat 2 of the eggs in a jug or bowl. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the mixture for glazing the pie and add the rest to the bowl.
8. Peel and core the apple, then coarsely grate it and add to the bowl.
9. Use your hands to mix the ingredients together until well combined.

Assemble the pie & bake

10. Roll out one disc of pastry to approximately 2mm thickness. Use it to line your pie tin.
11. Put half of the sausagemeat filling into the tin, pressing it in neatly.
12. Peel the hard-boiled eggs and quarter each one. Lay the slices on the sausagemeat.
13. Top with the remaining filling, again, pressing it in slightly.
14. Dampen the edge of the pastry case with a little of the reserved egg.
15. Roll out the second disc of pastry, and use it to cover the pie, pressing to seal the edges.
16. Trim the excess pastry, crimp the edge if desired and cut a cross into the centre of the pie. If you want to decorate the pie with words or shapes, re-roll the offcuts of pastry to do so.
17. Brush the top of the pie with the reserved egg and bake for 30 minutes at 190C then for a further 30 minutes at 170C, blotting away any juices from the 40-minute mark (see experts tips).

Expert tips

• The easiest way to mix the filling for this sausage and egg pie is to use your hands. It’s a little squelchy, but my advice is to roll with this. Squish the ingredients together until they are well combined.
• Use a deep-sided 8-inch (20cm) pie dish as there is plenty of filling.
• Metal pie dishes conduct heat better than glass once.
• Decorate the top of your pie as desired (reroll the offcuts of pastry).
• Put a baking sheet in the oven to heat up as the oven does, then put the pie onto the baking sheet to cook. The heat from the baking sheet will help ensure the base of the pie cooks (and if the pie leaks, then the juices will fall onto the baking sheet, not all over the oven).
• As the pie bakes it’s inevitable that some liquid will come out of the hole cut into the centre of the pie. Use kitchen towel to blot this when the pie has baked for around 40 minutes and again at the 50-minute mark.

Serving suggestions

This sausagemeat pie is best served warm rather than hot so let it cool for at least an hour before slicing into it. You’ll find it’s far easier to serve neat portions if you do let it cool sufficiently.

There are a number of ways to enjoy this pie:

• As a main meal served with a few potatoes and some green vegetables.
• Or try serving it as a main with salad and chips to accompany it.
• A slice of this sausage and egg pie makes a great addition to a ploughman’s lunch.
• And it’s always a great option to include on buffet spreads at parties.
• Serve it in the place of pork pie.

Frequently asked questions

More meat pies

If this old-fashioned sausage pie has put you in the mood for more savoury pies, then take a look at these recipes too:

Have you made this sausagemeat pie? Please do let me know how you got along by leaving a comment and/ or a rating. It really does help other readers know that they can trust this recipe (and I always love to hear from my readers).