There are few things we hold dearer than a pie. A quintessentially British comfort food, they are staples on restaurant and pub menus and a nostalgic favourite in homes across the country, loved in both sweet and savoury guises. From a hearty steak and kidney creation to a slice of gala pie at a picnic or dusted mince pies at Christmas, they’re certainly hard to beat.

Meat and vegetables blanketed in pastry have been part of our feasts for centuries, though it took some time for them to evolve into the indulgent, buttery delights we know and love today (you can delve more into the lengthy history of pastry here). But as we got to grips with the delights of pastry, regions around the country started developing their own traditional recipes, influenced by ingredients available locally and the needs of the community. Common threads run through many, including pastry's durability as a casing for hot fillings, which proved particularly handy for the likes of Cornish miners and Bedfordshire farmers, as we discover.

We’ve travelled around the country to focus in on a handful the UK's most beloved regional pies. For now, we won’t risk igniting the debate around when exactly a pie stops being a pie – but safe to say there are plenty more local delicacies which go beyond what we might typically consider a pie, from the custard and jam Manchester tart to, pushing the boundaries even further, cottage pie.

Piping hot chunks of beef, spud, onion and swede, wrapped in thick pastry and crimped along one edge – the traditional Cornish pasty is both a loved local institution and a pit-stop for millions of holidaymakers in Cornwall every year who are drawn in by the tempting smells wafting out of its bakeries. The pasty's history stretches back to the thirteenth century, when they were a staple diet for workers across Cornwall. Their cheap ingredients – the meat came later – made them accessible for working class families, while the thick pastry meant they held together as a durable lunch for miners and farmers (it’s thought their iconic D shape meant workers could hold the pastry by the crust and throw it away after they’d finished).

Having since travelled across the UK and world (the first Cornish pasty museum is actually in Mexico), in 2011 they were granted PGI status, introducing rules around how and where they must be made to be considered a true Cornish pasty. Still, a whopping 120 million are produced every year, according to the Cornish Pasty Association, earning their spot as one of the country's most popular pies. 

A childhood lunchbox and picnic classic, most of us will have memories of plucking a pork pie from a delicatessen counter for a quick snack. Their distinctive dense hot water crust protects the pork filling, which is also surrounded by a savoury, stock-based jelly called aspic. We know them best today as being from Melton Mowbray, a town in Leicestershire where they are thought to have been first made in the late eighteenth century. Then, they were a lunchtime snack for fox hunters, who popped them in their saddlebags, the ability to eat them single-handedly proving useful. In 2008, the Melton Mowbray pork pie was given geographic protection from the EU, with certain characteristics setting them apart from similar pork pies in the area; Melton's, for example, are baked free-standing, rather than in a mould, meaning the sides bow out slightly. They are also generally served at room temperature (elsewhere, including in Yorkshire, pork pies are often served hot). Fancy a new way of eating pork pies? In the East Midlands, there's still a tradition of having one to kick off Christmas Day festivities.

Definitely the most distinctive inclusion on our list, Cornwall's Stargazy pie features the heads and tails of pilchards poking out from a golden layer of shortcrust pastry, with the bodies of the fish covered by a white sauce underneath. Stargazy is believed to have originated in a small fishing village called Mousehole in response to a famine in the sixteenth century. One particularly stormy winter meant fishing boats were unable to set sail, leaving its villagers at risk of starvation. But, the story goes, one fisherman – Tom Bawcock – braved the storm on 23 December, catching enough fish to feed the whole village. His haul was baked into one giant Stargazy pie, and every year since, the people of the village cook a pie to honour the fisherman. You can also spot Stargazy pie on the menus of traditional Cornish pubs and restaurants. 

A Cockney classic and must-try for tourists, London's pie, mash and liquor has been plated up in the East End – and elsewhere around the capital – since the 1800s, with its roots planted in the city's docklands during the Victorian era. The pie (traditionally filled with eel, later mutton and more commonly minced beef) is plated up next to a dollop of mash, covered in a parsley sauce 'liquor' and served with jellied eels (in the nineteenth century, eels were cheap and plentiful in the Thames). Initially popular among the working class, during the rationing of the Second World War the government allowed pie and mash shops to stay open (alongside fish and chips spots), increasing the dish's popularity with a broader audience. Many of the capital's pie and mash shops have been up and running for decades, including the likes of M Manze, with special recipes and condiments like home-made chilli vinegar setting them apart.

Intended to be a full on-the-go meal, Bedfordshire clangers – which don't look dissimilar to sausage rolls – have a savoury filling (such as liver and onion; bacon and potatoes; or pork and onion) at one end, and a sweet (jam or fruit) at the other, surrounded by a suet crust. They date back to the nineteenth century, beginning life as a hearty lunch for the area's farm workers, and, as with most pastry creations, it's thought their pastry case was originally intended to be a protection for the filling rather than to be eaten. Its name is believed to be a nod to its dense consistency – Wright's nineteenth century English Dialect Dictionary includes the phase 'clung dumplings' from Bedfordshire, describing 'clungy' and 'clangy' as heavy. Today, Bedfordshire clangers can be spotted in bakeries and cafés in the county, as well as in neighbouring Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire. 

Recipes for fidget pies can be found in most Midlands counties, but it's Shropshire's which has arguably become the best known. Most variations have the core fillings (gammon, cooking apple, onion and potato) in common, but from there, it’s open to interpretation – some recipes call for cream and cider and while many encase it fully in pastry, others top it with potato. There are plenty of theories behind its name; some say it comes from its ingredients' ability to shift around while cooking, others believe it was once 'fitched' (five-sided), while one theory claims it smells like polecat (known in Shropshire as a 'fitchett') while in the oven. Today, they can be found on the counters of bakeries and delicatessens like Ludlow Farm Shop, which creates miniature versions like the ones above.

The young pigeons which traditionally made up its filling gave the Devonshire squab pie its name, but today recipes more commonly use mutton or lamb. And though we've focused on the Devonshire variety, similar recipes can be traced back to Gloucestershire or the wider West Country, with most including apples, onions and prunes. The addition of clotted cream on the side sets the Devonshire dish apart and while that's less commonly found today, some recipes reflect its history by using a dash of cream in the filling instead for extra indulgence. A filling, warming dish, it's one that was traditionally tucked into after a hard day working in the fields.

A classic half-time snack at football matches, chicken balti pies blend the spiced, tomato-based curry sauce of balti with a buttery pastry case. It was during the 1980s and 1990s that balti swelled in popularity across the north of England in particular, so it's no wonder that the West Midlands are said to be home to the first balti pie. They were originally a match-day meal at the area's football stadiums, but their popularity has since spread across the country and today, they can be found pre-made in most supermarkets, as well as at dozens of football grounds.

The humble Scotch pie is said to date back a remarkable 500 years, its roots – unsurprisingly – found in Scotland. A small, hot water crust pastry made with lard, Scotch pies (sometimes dubbed shell pies) were traditionally filled with mutton but are today more often stuffed with beef or lamb. They're enormously popular across Scotland, served hot to take away from bakeries and restaurants, their hardy crust making them perfect for on-the-go snacking at al freso events and football matches (where they're sometimes served with Bovril). The pies are taken so seriously there's even an annual World Championship Scotch Pie Awards to track down the best recipe.

It's fair to say the Welsh oggie is the Celtic cousin of the Cornish pasty. It shares a history, having evolved for tin miners, who needed a substantial and easy to eat lunch. Though they look similar, Wales' version is much bigger (they're often called giant oggies) and includes Welsh ingredients like lamb and leeks. They're not always easy to find, but have become more common in recent years, popping up on the counters of Welsh bakeries, delicatessens and cafés.

We might only have dipped into the world of regional pies (a special shout-out should go to the Wigan pie barm, a meat pie in a bread roll), but we think this list provides a flavour of the variety of what's on offer, whether you're heading for a summer picnic, settling in for ninety minutes of football or grabbing a bite on-the-go.