How Long Does It Take to Cook a Fray Bentos Mince Beef and Onion Pie

Delia Smith's cheat recipes (and the slump) put Fray Bentos back on our tables

Tinned mince and canned pies have enjoyed a surge in popularity since the recession began - thanks to a little help from Delia Smith.

Sales of the canned mince, meatballs, curries, chilli, stews and even pies, the sort made famous by Fray Bentos, are up 12 per cent in the last two years.

Baked beans are also seeing a revival, with sales up by almost half in five years.

Helping hand: Delia Smith, who has praised tinned meat, and a Fray Bentos pie

The surge has undoubtedly been helped by Delia's 2008 book and TV series How to Cheat at Cooking, in which she used tinned lamb and minced beef from Marks and Spencer.

Tinned meat has something of a down-market reputation, with questions over its taste and quality.

But Delia insisted it is just as nutritious as fresh meat, despite being cheaper, quick and easy to use.

The low price of tinned meat has undoubtedly helped sales in the economic downturn.

Fray Bentos pies may not have made it onto Delia's list of favourites, however they have an iconic status in the homes of those who are culinary challenged and students.

Many of today's parents will fondly remember tucking into a Fray Bentos pie when growing up and will be passing that on to today's young.

The brand can be traced back to 1899 when a company called 'Anglo' began making corned beef in a place called Fray Bentos in Uruguay.

Today it offers a wide range of favourite British pies from the traditional steak and kidney through to the more upmarket steak and ale and chicken and mushroom.

Tinned meat's golden age: Fray Bentos' pie mix among 1970s canned competitors

A large 475g 'Boozy' Steak & Ale Fray Bentos pie costs just £1.87, while Tesco Finest British Steak & Ale Pie which is slightly larger at 540g comes in at £2.99.

PIE CHART: URUGUAY AND THE RISE OF FRAY BENTOS

Fray Bentos pies are named after a town in Uruguay that started producing canned mince in 1899.

Factories in the town, at the centre of a huge cattle-breeding region bordering Argentina, later made other tinned meat products and the Anglo company began importing pies to Britain.

Fifty years later its fares had become a staple of the British diet.

The firm, which was later bought by Campbell's and is now Brazilian-owned, also produced corned beef, soups, meatballs and even tinned fruit.

However, it's pies are what made its name and the product has long been a favourite of students.

But for many years, although well-remembered by parents, the canned meal has been off the menu for most middle-class households.

However, its recent resurgence has seen it once again take its place on the family tables and last year Fray Bentos sales were worth £30million.

Fray Bentos offers a mouth-watering description of its product, boasting of 'Tender pieces of steak drenched in a delicious real ale gravy, topped by our signature puff pastry.'

The boom in sales has been picked up by retail analysts Mintel, which said: 'Today, hot canned meats account for as much as 56per cent of the canned meat market, with as many as one in five Brits now buying canned meatballs and minced beef.'

It said: 'Canned pies have been the star performer in the sector, benefiting from demand for value for money food.

'Indeed, the positive growth in the pie market as a whole has had a halo effect on the canned pie market, which has benefited from sales growth as consumers look for no fuss comfort food that can be eaten as a whole meal.'

Mintel senior analyst, Vivianne Ihekweazu, said: 'Canned meats have continued to battle their perception as a lower quality substitute to fresh meat ranges.

'In 2008 when Delia Smith launched her book How to Cheat at Cooking, some consumers were enraged at the suggestion that tinned mince could be substituted for fresh mince in the recipes.

'However, it showed consumers the versatility of canned meats and the fact that it could serve as a substitute for fresh meat in recipes - something which appears to have resonated.'

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Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1268200/Delia-Smiths-cheat-recipes-slump-Fray-Bentos-tables.html

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