Do Y'all Like Pot Pies?

Discussion in 'Food & Drinks' started by Ken Anderson, Sep 11, 2017.

  1. Ken Anderson

    Ken Anderson Senior Staff
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    We all but quit buying frozen pot pies years ago, although I had always liked them. As compared to TV dinners, they had been a favorite.

    Over the years, as manufacturers sought to lower production costs, they have become more watery, although the prices went up rather than down. Then, the clincher was when they quit including the bottom crust.

    The store and generic brands were the first to do that, as might be expected. Then, Banquet started making them without a bottom crust and, finally, even the more expensive brands, like Marie Callender's, omitted the bottom crust. As did Swanson's, and any of the others that I have tried. Even Amy's, an organic brand, cheated their customers out of a bottom crust; plus I found the Amy's brand to be not so good.

    We hadn't bought a frozen pot pie in probably as long as two years when I noticed a brand at BJ's, which (for those of you don't have them in your area, can be compared to Sam's Club or Costco. I think that BJ's is restricted to the East Coast.

    Anyhow, they had a brand of pot pie called Blake's, which I hadn't come across before, so we bought a case of them, since it's one of those stores where you have to buy bulk.

    I was pleasantly surprised to find that they were not only pretty good (although still more watery than pot pies used to be), but that they had a bottom crust.

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  2. Ken Anderson

    Ken Anderson Senior Staff
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    Oddly, the company's store locator states that Hannaford's Supermarket in Millinocket carries them but they don't. Probably, the larger Hannafords do, but the one in Millinocket is one of the smaller ones.
     
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  3. Chrissy Cross

    Chrissy Cross Supreme Member
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    I'd prefer the one without a bottom crust...less carbs and calories.
     
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  4. Hedi Mitchell

    Hedi Mitchell Supreme Member
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    We like Maria Collendars chicken pot pies. But husbands tastes even better.
     
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  5. Sheldon Scott

    Sheldon Scott Supreme Member
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    I've always liked pot pies but it's been at least 20 years since I tried one. Anyone got a recipe foe a homemade one?
     
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  6. Yvonne Smith

    Yvonne Smith Senior Staff
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    I like pot pies and so does Bobby; and we sometimes buy the frozen ones, but not very often. It seems like it is not worth heating the whole oven just to heat up a tiny pot pie.
    What we sometimes do is just make our own and I use a biscuit dough for the crust. Then I add vegetables, like the frozen cubed ones, can of cream of mushroom soup, and some meat, and bake that. At least then it is a larger pot pie, and we can save leftovers.
     
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  7. Kitty Carmel

    Kitty Carmel Veteran Member
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    It's all about the crust. I don't eat meat so the Amy's brand are the only ones I can get and the crust is whole wheat and sorry to say I prefer white. But they are pretty good and I'll buy them once or twice in the winter months. Chicken pot pies were one of my favorite things.

    They have these in my area too. I think I've seen them at Target and Safeway grocery stores.
     
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  8. Chrissy Cross

    Chrissy Cross Supreme Member
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    I used to like them when I was a teen...either Swanson or Banquet made them. Think they cost about 25 cents back then.
     
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  9. Lon Tanner

    Lon Tanner Supreme Member
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    Pot Pies or just plain PIES as they are called in Australia and New Zealand are quite good and different than American pies. Don't ask me what the difference is because I don't know.
     
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  10. Jeff Tracy

    Jeff Tracy Veteran Member
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    This recipe for old-fashioned chicken pot pie, an adaptation of one in James Beard's American Cookery, originally appeared in the September/October 1995 issue of SAVEUR.

    SERVES 6-8
    Ingredients
    1 bunch parsley
    1 (3–4-lb.) chicken
    1 pint pearl onions, blanched and peeled
    2 carrots, peeled and cut in 1⁄2" slices
    1⁄2 lb. potatoes, peeled and cut in 1" dice
    1⁄4 lb. sugar snap peas, trimmed
    1 clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped
    1⁄4 lb. white mushrooms, quartered
    4 tbsp. butter
    2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
    1 cup heavy cream
    Salt and freshly ground pepper
    1⁄2 tsp. Tabasco
    Pastry of choice
    1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tbsp. water.
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    .
    Instructions
    Chop enough parsley to fill 1⁄4 cup; set aside. Place remaining parsley, chicken, and half the onions in a large pot with water to cover; bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat; simmer 30 minutes. Remove chicken; cool. Pull off meat in like-size pieces; place in a large bowl. Return bones to pot; simmer 1 hour. Strain stock; return to pot over medium heat. Cook carrots, potatoes, sugar snaps, and remaining onions in stock, in batches, just until tender, adding as cooked to chicken.
    Preheat oven to 450°. Cook garlic and mushrooms in 1 tbsp. of the butter in a small skillet over medium heat for 3 minutes. Add to chicken mixture. In the same skillet, melt remaining 3 tbsp. butter and sprinkle in flour. Stir constantly over medium heat, 2–3 minutes. Stir in 1 cup stock until thickened. Remove from heat and add cream. Add chopped parsley, and season to taste with salt, pepper, and Tabasco. Gently stir sauce into chicken mixture.
    Prepare pastry. Line a 9" pan with pastry, fill with chicken mixture, and cover with top pastry. Crimp edges, cut a vent in top, and brush with egg wash. Bake 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°, and continue baking until crust is browned, about 35 minutes.
    .
     
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  11. Chrissy Cross

    Chrissy Cross Supreme Member
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    I have made my own chicken pot pies a few times.....in the good old days when I still cooked.

    I see potatoes in that recipe...to me that's overkill with a crust.
     
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  12. Kitty Carmel

    Kitty Carmel Veteran Member
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    @Chrissy Cross NOOOooooo. You must watch your carbs. :) I'm such a carb addict. Potatoes are a must in a pot pie. I want to make one some day from scratch.
     
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  13. Ken Anderson

    Ken Anderson Senior Staff
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    My mom, and I guess most of the Swedes in the UP of Michigan, made something called a meat pie, which was pretty much like a pot pie, only they weren't generally round, and they tasted a whole lot better. I have tried to duplicate that but with no successes.
     
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  14. Lon Tanner

    Lon Tanner Supreme Member
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    Today I had the best Chicken Pot Pie Ever. The crust was paper thin instead of the heavy thick crusts that I have had with pies in the past. The chef told me he rolls out the dough paper thin. The filling of small chunks of white meat with diced carrots, potato, celery, peas and delicious gravy made for some good eating.
     
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  15. Hedi Mitchell

    Hedi Mitchell Supreme Member
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    Yes..and homemade with thin crust is the best!
     
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