A taste of Christmas: the great mince pie road test

Mince pies are a British festive staple. Janice Leung Hayes oversees our panel as they put seven of the most popular varities to the test

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The judges (clockwise from front left): May Chow, Jack Carson, Alejandra Wilkinson, Rachel Read and Joshua Ng. Photos: Paul Yeung

Published: 9:30pm, 18 Dec 2013Updated: 6:35pm, 1 Jan 2014

MINCEMEAT – THE SWEET, spiced mixture of dried and candied fruits used to make the small mince pies eaten during the Christmas season – used to actually contain meat. Right up until the late 18th century, mince pies were large, made with meat and were served as a main course.

In The New and Easy Method of Cookery, published in 1759, cookery teacher and author Elizabeth Cleland calls for “a large ox tongue” in her “minc’d Pie”. Since the first renditions of the pies, believed to have appeared in the 16th century, they have always included spices such as cinnamon, mace and nutmeg, as well as dried fruits such as dates and citrus peel.

These days, while the meat is gone, animal products remain in the form of suet, which is still often used in the making of mincemeat. Mainly a British tradition, mince pies are often mass produced and available at supermarkets, although to traditionalists, only home-made will do. They’re popular during the winter holidays because despite their small size, they’re quite substantial, especially if they contain suet.

THE GREAT MINCE PIE ROAD TEST

The pies, both handmade and commercial, were tasted by a panel of five judges – Joshua Ng of food writing duo Twins Kitchen and one of the founders of Common Ground cafe; chefs May Chow from Little Bao and Jack Carson from Restoration; and representing the Brits were dimsumdiaries.com food blogger Alejandra Wilkinson and Rachel Read sassyhongkong.com editor. Seven brands were sampled.

It was the first time Carson, an American, had tasted a mince pie and it may be the last. He compared them to Fig Newtons. “It’s what old people with no teeth eat.” Read admits that she has never been a real fan of mince pies, but when she does eat them, she looks for “that moreish, cosy, spiced quality”.