Recently I received a tip from one of my readers who declared that I had to try Helens range of connoisseur pies, so I set about finding out about them. A bit of research on the Google machine led me to find that Helen's is a wholesale food company that produces a wide range of food for the cafe industry, so I gave them a call to find out where I could buy some of their pies.
One thing led to another and I had just about given up the search when I received a call from Jimmy Zeniou from Helen's inviting me over there for a tour of the factory and a taste test (and they said the blog would never amount to anything....in your FACE, school guidance counsellor!).
Naturally I accepted and shortly thereafter fronted up at the factory at Acacia Ridge. I was greeted warmly by Jimmy, who turned out to be Helen's son, and was shown to the boardroom where I met the head of operations, Michael and the production manager, Cameron.
They gave me a rundown on the history of Helen's, which Jimmy's mother started 25 years ago when she knocked up a couple of lasagnes for her friend who owned a cafe. Badda bing, badda bang, and 25 years later they're employing 60+ people and making a huge range of products, including their gourmet pie range. Admittedly, their version took longer than that, but I know that half my readers are too busy and will skip straight to the photos anyway; while the other half have short attention spans and will already be asking themselves who Helen is.
Michael took me on a tour of the factory (hair net 'n all), and I saw pies and sausage rolls being made, the industrial cookers (which looked like 3 massive Thermomixes), blast chillers and all the accoutrement of a large scale food wholesaler.
Now I have to say from the outset that these pies aren't going to be for everyone, and that Helen's aren't operating in the traditional pie market - nor do they want to. Their pies are produced specifically for cafes to serve in a sit-down environment, on a plate with a side salad. For this reason, it was a slightly different experience reviewing these pies as opposed to a regular bakery-style pie.
In fact, Helen's pies don't even look exactly like pies because the top, rather than being a traditional pastry lid, are a scrunched up sheet of filo pastry. It's unique (well, in my experience, anyway) and to be perfectly frank I kind of liked it. The lid was changed (from a traditional lid) in 2014, and apparently it's undergoing some further refinement now.
The downside of the filo is that you don't get that same buttery flaky goodness that you might get from, say Beefys or La Campagne flaky butter pastry top, but you do get a lovely cornflake-like crunch with every mouthful. I know, I know, filo pastry is layered with butter but you're just going to have to trust me on this one. Or not...I really don't care.
I'd certainly take a crunchy filo lid every day of the week over the undercooked, doughy, wet-cardboard lids that seems to be so widespread these days; but personally I'd prefer a properly egg-washed and cooked traditional flaky pastry top on my pie.
I sampled 4 flavours: Beef Burgundy, Wagyu Beef & Caramelised Onion, Butter Chicken, and Sri Lankan Chicken. All four of them were the same size (medium), perfect temperature, and the bases were all cooked out properly in a little paper nest that's a bit like that stuff you use to crisp up things in the microwave. Apparently they're supplied by a family member of someone on staff.
Beef Burgundy
The meat itself was tender and tasty. It had a flavoursome gravy and was well seasoned with no apparent gelatine and plenty of bacon. It was structurally difficult to eat in my hands (because it's not designed to be) but the overall flavour was pretty good, like a nice casserole.
Half way through I think I came across a piece of zucchini which I was a bit underwhelmed about because the presence of red wine and bacon had me thinking they'd gone for a beef bourguignon style...so mushroom or champignons wouldn't have surprised me, but zucchini? No thanks. Of the four pies, it was my least favourite but still rated a 6.5/10.
Wagyu Beef & Caramelised Onion
This pie had nice big chunks of well cooked and juicy Wagyu in a dark rich gravy that was well seasoned and hit the mark. The pastry was well cooked and unlike the other pies I tried, could be eaten in the hands quite successfully. There was a little sweetness from the onion, which didn't dominate. A good solid pie that rates a 7/10.
Butter Chicken
Another pie that really needs to be eaten with a knife and fork, this pie was really very good. The sauce had an excellent flavour with all the traditional elements of garam masala, cumin, ginger and coriander shining in a well-made bright orange sauce.
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It looks as skinny as a gypsy's dog in this picture, but I had slurped most of the filling out before it ended up on my shirt. You can see how much is on the plate in the background |
The chicken was breast meat, but was cooked to perfection without any of the dryness that usually comes with using that cut. There were visible herbs in the sauce, and I would have been happy to receive a bowl of it in an Indian restaurant. Even happier if it was a large bowl. Having the filo top was even a bit reminiscent of eating a curry with pappadums. Unintended? Probably, but on a subliminal level it really worked for me.
I scored it an easy 8/10, and it probably would have been a 9/10 with a traditional flaky pastry lid and some more thickness to the gravy (enabling it to be eaten in the hands, which was impossible. Think: 'Pie Face' impossible and you'll get the idea).
Sri Lankan Chicken
Another delicious, creamy, coconutty chicken curry that was cooked to perfection. Apparently it is made from a traditional family recipe from COO, Michael's family. The recipe calls for a second round of spices to be added at the end of the cooking process to give additional complexity and lift, and it was really good.
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| The top isn't burnt - it's just my shitty photography - see below |
Again, it was a little bit difficult to eat without a plate and cutlery (with bits of filo flying everywhere), and I would have preferred to see a lot more heat, but Helens are making the pie for a market so it's understandable that it is toned down for the punters. This pie scores a 7/10.
I asked Jimmy to supply me with the names of a couple of cafes that stock Helen's range of pies, as they don't supply directly to the public. You can get them here if any of the above sound like they're up your alley:
Forages Café – Taringa
Coffee Mill - Spring Hill
The Coffee Lounge - Toowong
The Coffee Depot - Charlotte St
George’s Café - Mt Tamborine
Other flavours include Chicken Mornay, Steak & Guinness, and - get this - Osso Bucco with Potato and Polenta Gremolata (stop it!).
The passion and care that goes into Helen's pies is the equivalent of any artisanal producer that I've met. The staff (i.e. the people actually making the product on the factory floor*) are happy people. Products are dissected at Monday morning product meetings and assessed for quality and future improvement. It's obvious that they care deeply about their business, and this is evident in the final product.
Full disclosure: I was a guest of Helen's, and my offers of payment both before and after our meeting were politely declined.
http://www.helens.com.au/home/
* they don't actually make it ON the factory floor; it's mostly done on large stainless benches...
