Pie Mash and Liquor

Churchmouse

Kentish_Maid wrote: »

My grandad would never give away the secret of liquor - not just parsley sauce apparently.

My grandmother worked in one, she used to say it was because they used the stewed eel stock, but the potato water recipe gives a close approximation:D I'm sure they all had their own secret ingredient;)

Chrisca50

I am sitting here trying to remember the taste of the liquor and I bet you're not far wrong, Churchmouse, about the stewed eel stock going into it. I used to go into Manzes in Deptford High Street for pie and mash before meeting up with my second cousin to go down to the old Den to watch Millwall play football on a Saturday. We liked the football but liked the footballer's legs better

Stephen_Leak

I found these links ...

http://www.pie-n-mash.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pie_and_mash
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A10357102

And this "secret" liquor recipe ...

Though the liquor varies in viscosity and taste from shop to shop, and most restaurants keep their recipe a secret on pain of death, the following is the most used public variety - though as any London family matriarch will tell you, you can't beat the real McCoy.

Ingredients

• 25g butter (1oz)
• 25g plain flour (1oz)
• 300ml water (10fl oz)
• 4 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tsp malt vinegar (optional)
• Salt and freshly ground pepper (optional)

Method

• Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the flour and cook for one minute.
• Gradually add the water. Bring to the boil, stirring continuously.
• Add the parsley. Also add seasoning and vinegar (if using).

Stephen_Leak

Well I did it. While I was shopping tonight, I got some minced beef and onion pies (I found some that called themselves minced beef pies, but they had diced carrot & peas in them) and a packet of parsley sauce. Did myself PM&L for supper (not dinner!). It was delicious. I would never in a thousand years have thought of adding vinegar to parsley sauce, leave alone serving it with a meat pie, but it works. Don't ask me how or why, but it does. 'Andsome.

Churchmouse

Well done! I did tell you in post 2 that you should use a slurp of malt vinegar;) :rotfl: (Well you'd want to be traditional!)

stefejb

Chrisca50 wrote: »

I used to go into Manzes in Deptford High Street for pie and mash before meeting up with my second cousin to go down to the old Den to watch Millwall play football on a Saturday. We liked the football but liked the footballer's legs better

Ohmigoodness - there's a blast from the past - me and my mate used to go to the one near borough on a saturday - she would buy 25 pies, four tupperwares of mash and 2 big flasks of liquor. we would take these back to hers and all her family would come in through the day for their share. Haven't been to Manzes for a good 15 years