Chef Forum banner

Pot Pie help

3K views 15 replies 9 participants last post by  chefedb 
#1 ·
Recently my husband and I had an unpleasant disagreement. A while back when he told me he liked chicken pot pie I set out to make it for him. I had never had a chicken pot pie before but I knew the basic idea. I searched out some recipes and made him several pot pies over the last couple of years with it. Last time I made it he told me that what I made for him is NOT pot pie. I was shocked. He said that something about it is wrong and that it's supposed to be encased like a pie top and bottom. My pot pie only has a top crust. I ate it and it was beyond delicious to my taste buds but he said it's not a pot pie. What do I do? Can anyone help me with my recipe to make it more pot pie-ish?

Here's my recipe.

- peas

- carrots

- celery

- corn kernels (sometimes)

- chicken broth

- chunks of left over chicken

- butter and olive oil

- thyme

- salt/pepper

- cream

- 1 tbsp flour

I sautee the carrots and celery and then I add the flour and make a roux, add the stock and all the other ingredients and then I finish it with the cream. It goes into a ceramic baking dish and gets topped with a handmade crust. Where did I go wrong?


And since we're on the topic, are there are any other kinds of pot pies?
 
See less See more
#2 ·
I think he wants a bottom crust. I have made several pot pies, some with only a top crust and some with both top and bottom. I seem to get a better response from my hubby when I use mini pie pans, individual little pies. Ask your hubby if that is what its lacking, I also leave out the corn and add peas. :) happy cooking.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Modern factory made pot-pies are often encased top and bottom crusts. (they are also mostly pretty bad) Below are some images.

I'd make the pies just like you have described. Just make a bottom shell, blind bake it with an egg-wash so it becomes more waterproof once you add the filling. Or just tell him to buy a frozen one and shaddauppabout it!




 
#5 ·
I don't usually make mine with bottom crusts, just a lip of crust at the upper edge for the top to bond to. I don't want that much pastry, it's just too much to my taste, besides being healthier to omit. 

Make them in individual ramekins. You can make his with a full top and bottom crust and yours without. Blind bake his with an egg wash to help it resist the moist filling. 
 
#6 ·
Ok I'll try blindbaking with an egg wash and making both a top and bottom crust.  I love crust myself so I'm game.  

I definitely don't want to put potatoes in it, too heavy for my own taste.  And I do put peas in it, I love love love peas.
 
#8 · (Edited)
Lately I've been making mine with just a biscuit dough top crust. And I make them in single serving size dishes:


I also use the same dishes for cottage pies.


My wife loves the pot pies the way I make them, but I do plan on making some with a full pastry crust this fall.

mjb.
 
#9 ·
I make some with shortcrust pastry bottom and side (blind baked) and top with puff pastry.

They freeze and reheat well (although it takes quite long).

But I like the ones with just the top as well as quite often the amount of pastry is a bit too much for me.

Good luck and that pie you showed us on the picture looks delicious!
 
#10 ·
Thanks @butzy! I guess my husband is hard to please, I've used biscuit topping and puff pastry as top crusts too and he doesn't like those either. He also says it doesn't taste like pot pie, but isn't my ingredient list pretty standard?
 
#11 · (Edited)
Thanks @butzy! I guess my husband is hard to please, I've used biscuit topping and puff pastry as top crusts too and he doesn't like those either. He also says it doesn't taste like pot pie, but isn't my ingredient list pretty standard?
'm with your hsband. I'll eat a pot pie any way, but like it the best with regular pie crst... and two of them, preferably. Rearding your recipe -- completely standard... with the exception of the ommission of potato. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif
 
#12 ·
He's probably used to "poultry seasoning" flavor in his pot pie. This is mostly a combination of sage and thyme and as I recall, you're not a fan of sage. You might look at a few poultry seasoning recipes and see if you want to tweak your seasoning of your pot pie a bit and see if you can make him happy.

A few I think are worth looking at:

http://www.saveur.com/article/recipes/homemade-fresh-poultry-seasoning

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/HOMEMADE-POULTRY-SEASONING-1229330

http://www.chow.com/recipes/10595-poultry-seasoning

Looking into it, I was surprised by the volume of rosemary and marjoram as well as the "sweet" spice hit of nutmeg or cloves. Learned something new.
 
#13 ·
Koukouvagia, I'm with you on the peas...love them!  I normally make my pot pies in individual baking dishes, too.  I pretty much just stick to a top crust and occasionally add a little chopped fresh thyme, parsley, or rosemary to the pastry dough, depending on what type of pot pie I'm making. 
 
#14 ·
@phatch I do like sage, I used to not like it. But only because the only sage I had was dried wild sage that my Mother foraged in Krete. The taste is unbearably strong and I react to it the same way I react to cilantro. Blehh! I have found that the sage I find here in the US is much milder and softer and is actually quite nice. I already put the thyme in there, adding sage may be just the thing to tickle my husband's taste buds!

@Skyler I love the idea of putting herbs in the crust, are they fresh or dried?

@BrianShaw I didn't know potatoes were standard in pot pie, I've seen many recipes without. I love potatoes but overall I do think it will make my pot pie too heavy. There's dough and roux and corn. It's already carb heavy.
 
#16 ·
Commercially some places bake a round cutout of Puff Pastry and just put it on top.

Others use a pastry sort of dough on top with a slight overwrap on sides. 

The frozen ones come with a bottom crust because they are sold by weight and flour and water to make a bottom crust is cheaper then chicken and veges.   I always make mine with potatoes  but never corn.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top