What, Exactly, Is Mincemeat And Why Is It Called That?

History is loaded with preparations of meat that people might find unusual in modern times, but it's less common that these strange methods survive to the present day. Such is the case with mincemeat, a combination of several ingredients that — traditionally — included some kind of meat, and became an enduring part of Christmas celebrations in several English-speaking nations. Mincemeat gets its name from the finely chopped (or "minced") meat that went into early recipes, often venison or beef.

The meat was typically the dominant flavor profile of mincemeat, though flavors were affected heavily by other ingredients like dried and chopped fruits, spices, nuts, sugar, and — as a preservative for the meat — alcohol. Mincemeat could be savory or sweet and was often eaten as a pie around Christmastime. Suet, or processed animal fat, was also traditionally added to mincemeat.



The fat was stripped from the bones of usually a cow or sheep, and then chopped, clarified, and boiled to remove impurities. This process made the fat usable for cooking, where it added a ton of flavor and went especially well with mincemeat as a pastry filling. The origin of mincemeat and what it is today Mincemeat as we know it dates to the English Middle Ages, though not without earlier origins in similar meat-and-spice mixtures from all around the Mediterranean basin, all the way back to the ancient Egyptians.

The history of mince pies says the English version picked up the name "mincemeat" and became associated with Christmas by way of the spices being representative of the gifts brought to baby Jesus. There is no exact turnover date, but sometime in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, meatless mincemeat pies became the norm, and sweet flavors dominated the format. Once vegetable shortening was invented, even suet began to be removed from recipes — as is the case with this Apple Cinnamon mincemeat pie recipe .

Be careful assuming that mincemeat is vegetarian-friendly, however, as some recipes still contain suet. If you're a meat pie lover, don't stress. There are still plenty of meat pie recipes from around the world for you to try.

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