Arnold butcher makes Britain’s best pork pie
‘GOOD QUALITY MEAT AND BAKED TO PERFECTION’
MELTON Mowbray might be considered the home of the pork pie, but there’s some stiff competition from a generations-old Nottinghamshire butcher whose traditional pastry snack has been named one of the best in Britain.
AE Chambers brought the trophy back to Arnold after their triumph at the British Pie Awards.
Phil Chambers, owner of the family-run shop in Front Street, said: “We are absolutely delighted. The plain pork pie is our best seller. It’s nice to think your best selling product has won the best pork pie.
“The meat that goes in it is carefully chosen. It’s British pork, locally sourced where we can. We get the correct mix of lean and fatty meat for the right texture. In our opinion – and there are different opinions in different parts of the country – I prefer a nice crisp pastry so the fresher the pork pie to me, the better.
“The jelly has got to be correct so there’s no cavities and you’ve got a nice seal. They judge the consistency of the bake, the appearance, the conformity inside of jelly all around, but the taste is the most important thing.”
One of the judges personally emailed Mr Chambers, telling him: “The pie was superb from pastry through jelly and the meat was delicious.” Thousands of pork pies are made by Chambers’ factory in Top Valley and as well as their own shop the company also supplies micropubs, other butchers and sandwich shops.
Three sizes, priced £2.06 to £5.10, are sold at the shop, which was opened by Phil’s mother and grandfather in 1945 while his father was in the Army during World War II. His grandfather had been a butcher since 1889.
Mr Chambers, whose son James is also involved in the business, said: “We like to enter every year as it keeps our standard up and it’s good marketing for the company as a whole as it’s not always that easy for independent traders.” As for the best accompaniment to the humble pork pie, it’s a pint for drinkers in micropubs. “I like chutney with mine but we are all different,” he added. Shop manager Matt Weatherbed said: “It’s good quality meat, wellseasoned and baked to perfection,” while customer Jerry Dalton, of Woodthorpe, said it was far superior to any supermarket pork pie.
“It might cost a little bit more but it’s worth it. It’s simply delicious. It isn’t too salty, the pastry is the right consistency and the amount of jelly is just right.”
Chambers’ win comes just as Birds Bakery announced it is holding a tasting focus group later this month after customers claimed the flavour of its pork pies had changed.
The company said: “We did some digging into our records. We’ve sourced the original 1980s recipe and it’s identical to the recipe we use now. And so we would like your help. We’re very curious to see what you think about the flavours and recipes we use today.”
Another winner at the British Pie Awards was Bowring Butchers, of Mansfield Woodhouse. The fifth generation farmers and butchers breed quality cattle to produce highquality meat and tasty farm-to-fork pies. They left the competition with an armful of trophies – gold for a chicken, leek and ham hock pie, silver for a chicken tikka pie made for Mansfield Town Football Club, and runner-up for a meat and potato pie. They were also named the best small producer.
The Cod’s Scallops, which has chippies in Wollaton, Carrington, Wilford and Long Eaton, is fast building a strong reputation for its pies as well as award-winning fish and chips. They swept the board in the Fish and Chip Shop category.
A cheesy potato and onion pie won the top prize, second was its chicken, leek and ham pie and the smoked haddock, leek, mustard and mature cheddar pie came third.
Matthew O’callaghan, chairman of the Mowbray Pork Pie Association and host of the British Pie Awards, said: “This year’s awards have seen a wonderful celebration of the nation’s love of pies; the atmosphere has been amazing and the level of creativity is off the scale.”
“We got to try the phenomenal pie entries, and AE Chambers, Bowring Butchers and The Cod’s Scallops triumphed over incredibly tough competition in the respective categories.
“These awards celebrate the skill and ingenuity of British pie makers across the UK, and I’d like to congratulate them as a worthy winner.”
The contest comprises 24 different classes or types of pie including traditional favourites as well as vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free pies.
This year’s awards have also seen the introduction of a new category for fusion pie, which combines the traditional British pastry case with fillings based on flavours from around the world.