Tourtière is a French-Canadian meat pie made with ground pork and fragrant spices and often served at holiday times. This is important because tourtière is André‘s favorite food (André being the main character of “Waters Like the Sky.”)
Each family has individualized the recipe, varying the spices, including other ingredients, like potatoes and onions, and using different methods (like simmering the meat from 15 minutes to 2 hours).
I found this out when I casually asked about THE recipe. My French-Canadian cousin Joelle sent the cookbook from St. Genevieve’s Parish in Centerville, Minnesota. Her family’s special version was clipped to the pages with traditional foods. I could almost taste it.
For a recent family occasion, I made her recipe. I’ve always wondered what held the crumbles of ground pork together—Joelle used bread crumbs, a delicious choice. And her spicing—cinnamon and cloves—was perfect. I marked the crust “N” (for “no onion”) which my brother and nephew particularly appreciated.
Yum!
