Be honest. Are Christmas mince pies actually any good? (2024)

Do you love to tuck into a few mince pies over the Christmas holidays?

Or do you shudder when some distant relative starts bragging about their fruit "mincemeat"?

Anecdotally, the mince pie is one of the most divisive foods of the festive season — despite there being nothing exceptionally offensive about its ingredients.

No, it's not made with meat.

Its buttery crust is usually filled with spiced raisins, sultanas and currants — often soaked in a good glug of brandy.

And yes, people often get this confused.

So why the big fuss? Here's the case for and against, from two particularly passionate members of the ABC Everyday team.

'Mince pies are stodgy hockey pucks full of raisin sludge' -Meg Watson

I genuinely do not understand the love people have for this vile food.

Do they know about the other options?

Have they heard of pavlova? Or gingerbread? Or literally any of the other sweet treats that don't contain the word 'mince'?

Eat some cherries! Have an ice block! Believe in yourself. You deserve better than a stodgy hockey puck full of raisin sludge.

To be fair, the hype around these ye oldie nightmares made sense in their original context.

They first popped up in the 13th century, after Europeans returned from the Crusades.

Swiping inspiration from Middle Eastern recipes, the English started making pies containing fruit (like raisins and figs), spices and meat (often mutton).

The pie casing was also made from suet (animal fat usually found around the kidneys).

This would have been new and exciting! Mince pies were a hearty indulgence to get you through the dead of winter; a cute distraction from all the civil wars and Black Death.

Eventually the recipes got sweeter and the meat (mostly) dropped out of the mix. And it was around the 17th century they caught the Christmas spirit.

It's often said that people would bake the pie crust, or "coffin", in an oblong shape to represent the holy manger.

They would then adorn the pies with a pastry baby Jesus, before absolutely demolishing them for 12 days straight.

Even in the context of British food, you have to admit this is all extremely cursed.

I know it's nice to carry on some traditions and there's comfort in nostalgia. But come on.

Christmas in Australia can be upwards of 35 degrees. It's not the time or place to be eating rancid butter balls from the Middle Ages.

'Mince pies are delicacies' -Jack Gow

When I hear that people don't like mince pies, my first thought is that they must be allergic to joy — kind of like hayfever, but for Christmas cheer.

There's simply no other reason for it.

These people often decry mince pies as an anachronism, a culinary leftover from the rubbish bin of history.

To which I say: what is Christmas but a pageant of ritual and tradition?

Then there's this common complaint: "The heat! The insufferable heat!"

If you think it's too hot in Australia in December to eat mince pies, you're not allowed to roast anything for Christmas.

If the oven turns on at any point in your preparations for laying the Yuletide table, you've disproved your own point.

"Mince pies taste bad" has to be one of the most hackneyed arguments bandied around.

I mean, there's no denying that there are a lot of bad mince pies.

But, like any delicacy, mince pies need to be well made. That's the beauty of them!

A good mince pie is a delicately spiced, sumptuously light fruit filling encased in a buttery, crumbly crust.

They're like souffles in that they're incredibly easy to do badly, but when baked properly they are a gustatory delight!

In short: if someone doesn't like mince pies, it's simply because they've never had a good one.