page_title: Mincemeat
section_title: Variants and history
hierarchical_section_title: Mincemeat / Variants and history
caption_attribution_description: English: Homemade mincemeat from a market in Hallowell, Maine, USA. Contains Apples, Beef, Sugar, Raisins, Suet, Molasses, Vinegar and Spices.
context_page_description: Mincemeat is a mixture of chopped dried fruit, distilled spirits and spices, and sometimes beef suet, beef, or venison. Originally, mincemeat always contained meat. Many modern recipes contain beef suet, though vegetable shortening is sometimes used in its place. Variants of mincemeat are found in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, northern Europe, Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States. In other contexts mincemeat refers to minced or ground meat.
context_section_description: English recipes from the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries describe a fermented mixture of meat and fruit used as a pie filling. These early recipes included vinegars and wines, but by the 18th century, distilled spirits, frequently brandy, were being used instead. The use of spices like clove, nutmeg, mace and cinnamon was common in late medieval and renaissance meat dishes. The increase of sweetness from added sugar made mincemeat less a savoury dinner course and helped to direct its use toward desserts.
caption: Homemade mincemeat
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