Australian meat pie is made with flaky pastry that is filled with gravy and minced meat. Of course, numerous variations exist, so the filling can also be made with onions, chicken and asparagus, mushrooms, cheese, crocodile meat, vegetables, or seafood.
There are also variations of meat pies such as party pies (tiny pies served to party guests) and the pie floater (a green pea soup with a pie floating on top of it). The concept of the pie traces way back to the Neolithic period, when barley, semolina, and grains were made into a paste, filled with honey and baked over hot coals.
The Greeks then developed the pie filled with meat. It is believed that the meat pie was brought to Australia during the colonization period, as it was hugely popular in Europe at the time and provided good nutritional value for settlers, with basic and largely available ingredients.
Nowadays, the meat pies are typically smothered in tomato sauce that is similar to ketchup, sparking passionate debates about whether the tomato sauce should be squeezed over the pie at once or bit by bit, and whether the sauce should be cold or served at room temperature.
As proof of the meat pie's popularity, the Great Aussie Pie Competition, founded in 1990, is held annually in hopes of discovering the best pies in the country.