I’m not the kind of food blogger that has these romantic food memories of my childhood. There was no picturesque Nona that would feed me dough under the table while she made cookies. My family’s rich and varied heritage was not celebrated through traditional dishes, unless there’s an Irish dish I wasn’t aware of called “clam stuff” that, as far as I can remember, was essentially noodles with olive oil and canned clams (I ate the heck out of that, by the way). This is not to say that my childhood was filled with bad food, or that I have particularly bad memories. Just that I remember food being a little more on the utilitarian side than that of a culinary celebration.
Pot roast was one of the few exceptions to that rule. It was requested on birthdays and looked forward to by everyone in the house. The smell of the chuck roast would waft through the house and remain present throughout the day, a reminder that this is a special occasion. Oftentimes, the roast would be accompanied by drop biscuits. A type of biscuit with a looser dough, that would be formed onto a baking sheet with spoons. Something about the way the bottom of the biscuits would spread ever so slightly on the sheet would allow the perfect amount of biscuit-to-metal contact, and create this golden, slightly crunchy crust. It was the perfect pairing with the roast.
This is what I had in mind when I created this pairing. Biscuit dough and pie dough are very similar in a lot of ways. The result is quite indulgent, but so, so delicious and comforting.
If you are concerned about the overall healthiness of this dish, which is perfectly valid, get some friends together to share! Alternatively, this freezes pretty well. I’m the only one in my household who eats beef, so after the initial taste test, I let the pie cool completely, which makes it much easier to cut cleanly. I cut it into individual slices, put each into a tupperware, and now I have readymade pie dinner as an option on nights where I don’t feel like cooking.
Of course the creation of this dish comes in two stages. The cooking of the roast, and the making of the pie dough. I like to have my pie dough made and ready in the fridge the day before, so check out this video, which is step-by-step guide on how to make, store, roll out, and assemble a pie crust:
While this is my longest video yet, it’s really more about the fact that I wanted to share a lot of information about this process to make it easier on you. After some practice, making the dough is relatively quick. I do like to batch these and make 4 or so crusts at one time, since they freeze well, but that’s totally up to you!
Next is the filling. Here’s the step by step video:
And here is the written recipe:
Pot Roast Pie
Equipment
- 1 Pie pan
- 1 Rolling Pin
- Large, heavy bottomed pot
Ingredients
Pie crust
- 3 C AP Flour
- 2 tsp Granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 16 Tbsp butter (2 sticks) cold.
- 1/4 C ice water Start with this and add more as needed.
Pot Roast filling
- 2 Tbsp Vegetable oil Or another neutral oil with a high smoke point
- 3 lbs Beef chuck
- 2 Medium onions Roughly chopped
- 6 Cloves garlic Peeled and lightly crushed
- 2 Tbsp Butter
- 1/4 C Flour
- 4 C Beef broth Cold.
- 2 tsp dried thyme
- 1 Sprig Fresh rosemary (optional)
- 2 Bay leaves (optional)
- 4 Medium carrots Chopped
- 4 Stalks Celery Chopped
- 3 Small potatoes Chopped
- 1 Egg beaten, combined with 2 tsp water.
Instructions
Pie crust
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt. Whisk.
- Cut 1 stick butter. Add to dry ingredients. Using your fingers, work butter into flour until it becomes a sandy texture.
- Cut second stick of butter and add. Using your fingers, work butter into flour/ butter mixture until pieces are the size of kidney beans.
- Add water and bring dough together. Dough should be just able to come together, and not sticky. If dough is too dry, add water 1 tsp at a time until you are able to form a single mass.
- Divide into two equal pieces, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, up to 2 days.
Pot Roast Filling
- Heat oil in large, heavy bottomed pot, such as a dutch oven, until smoking.
- While oil is heating, pat chuck dry with paper towels. Generously season the beef with salt and pepper.
- Sear on all sides. Remove from pot.
- Reduce heat to medium, add onions and garlic. Cook until onions are translucent and taking on a light golden color.
- Add butter and let melt. Then add flour. Stir and cook until the roux begins to smell nutty. 3-4 minutes.
- Add the first cup of beef broth little by little, stirring constantly. Once incorporated, add the remaining broth.
- Add chuck and accumulated juices back to pot. Bring to a simmer.
- Add dried thyme, bay leaves, and rosemary. Let simmer for at least 3 hours.
- One hour before you want to remove the roast, add the carrots, celery, and potatoes. Cook until tender.
- Remove the chuck roast and let rest until cool. Shred into small pieces, and add back to vegetables and broth.
- Let cool to room temp (~ 1 hour) then chill in fridge at least 2 hours, up to overnight.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Roll out pie crust and place in pie plate.
- Add pot roast filling.
- Roll out top crust and place on top of pie plate. Crimp, egg wash, and cut vents.
- Place pie in freezer for 15-20 minutes.
- Place in 350 degeree oven for ~ 40 minutes, until crust is a dark golden color and filling is bubbling.