Ham Hock and Leek Pie with Cheese Sauce
Salty shredded ham hock and soft leeks in a cheese sauce, under a crisp golden shortcrust lid.
Made with Cheese sauce and Shortcrust pastry. Make a batch of the base first, then this takes minutes. Skip to the method
- Time1 hr 10
- LevelMedium
- Costabout £1.91 a head
- Oven200°C (180°C fan)
Cost is worked out from Aldi and Tesco shelf prices in October 2026. Your shop and brands will differ.
Ingredients
Tick what you need to buy. It goes on your shopping list.
Method
- 1
Heat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan) with a baking tray inside. Melt the butter in a pan over a medium heat. Cook the sliced leeks for 8 to 10 minutes until soft, then drain well.
9 min - 2
Warm your ready made cheese sauce (see the base recipe) in a pan and stir in the mustard and parsley. Fold in the leeks and ham hock and season with black pepper. Taste before adding salt, as ham hock is salty.
- 3
Spoon the filling into a 1.5 litre pie dish and let it cool for 10 minutes.
- 4
Dust a surface with flour and roll out your ready made shortcrust pastry (see the base recipe) until 3 mm thick and a little larger than the dish.
- 5
Brush the dish rim with egg, lay the pastry over, press down the edges and trim. Cut a small slit in the middle and brush the top with egg.
- 6
Bake on the hot tray for 30 to 35 minutes until deep golden brown and the filling is bubbling. Rest for 5 minutes.
35 min
Tips
- Let the filling cool before topping with pastry, or the pastry turns soggy and greasy.
- Baking on a hot tray cooks the underside of the pie dish and helps the pastry crisp.
- Cooked ham hock is sold vacuum packed in most supermarkets. Pull it into thick shreds rather than mincing it.
Storing and freezing
Cool within 1 to 2 hours. Keeps in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat at {t180} for 20 to 25 minutes until steaming hot all the way through. Freezes baked for 2 months.
Questions
Can I use gammon instead of ham hock?
Yes. Boil or roast a gammon joint, cool and shred it. Check the salt level before adding more seasoning.
Is this pie salty?
Ham hock is naturally salty, so do not add salt to the sauce until you have tasted it. Soaking the ham in cold water for an hour can help.
Can I use ready made pastry?
Yes, a pack of ready rolled shortcrust works and saves time. Bake the pie for 5 minutes longer.
More made with cheese sauce
Double check before you cook. Recipes can contain mistakes. Any diet labels come from the ingredients as written in this recipe and are a guide, not a guarantee. Always check every ingredient and the packet label for allergens and cross contamination, and ask your doctor or dietitian what is right for you, especially with coeliac disease, diabetes or a serious allergy. This is not medical advice.
