My most popular recipe for Vietnamese Beef Stew cooked in a slow cooker and turned into pot pies. The perfect winter warmer.
I have a bone to pick with the universe. Specifically the time it takes earth to rotate on its axis. Hey earth, pick a more leisurely pace will ya? I would be happy with a 72 hour rotation. It might just give me enough time to catch up with all the millions of projects I am in the middle of, not to mention work, freelance work and just plain living as well. 24 hours is never enough time and stuff falls by the wayside. Like cleaning the house for example. Or dealing with the laundry – never mind folding it and putting it away (I must admit even 72 hour days would not be enough for that!).
I am going to be at Food Blogger Connect for three days as of tomorrow (YAY!!!) and as a result all my work and the blog is going to have to take a back seat while I drink lots of tequilastudiously take notes and catch up with many blogger friends. I didn’t want to just leave the poor blog without a new post though so I have decided to post this recipe forVietnamese Beef Pot Pies. I wasn’t planning to blog this as I really had no time to take good photos (damn the lack of light – who do I blame for that? It’s both the sun AND the earth isn’t it). But on the other hand these were so delicious that they deserve their spot on here.
Essentially these are a simplified version of my most popular recipe – One Pot Vietnamese Pot Stew. Never in a million years did I imagine that this recipe would become so hugely popular, but it has taken a life of its own on Pinterest and has garnered the most enthusiastic comments from readers around the world. This time I made the stew in the slow cooker overnight and made the pot pies the following day using store bought puff pastry. These pot pies are just the perfect comfort food – crisp pastry encasing the aromatic and warming stew, delicious beyond belief.
Lucy Parissi | Supergolden Bakes
My most popular recipe for Vietnamese Beef Stew cooked in a slow cooker and turned into pot pies.
Put the flour into a shallow plate and season with salt and pepper. Toss the beef in the flour to coat it. Set aside.
Add the shallots, garlic, carrots, squash, tomatoes and chilli in the container of your slow cooker.
Mix the stock with the tomato paste, soy sauce, sugar and all the spices. Pour over the vegetables.
Add the beef and stir briefly. Cook on high for 3 hours on until the squash is cooked through.
Stir in the cornflour and continue to cook for another 30 minutes or until the juices have thickened slightly. Cool the stew before using in the pot pies, otherwise the puff pastry will melt.
Preheat the oven to 200C | 400F.
Take 4 small ramekins – about 10cm (4in) wide and 5cm (2in) deep – and fill with the stew almost to the top.
Cut 4 rounds of puff pastry that are slightly larger than the size of your ramekins.
Brush the rims of the dishes with a little beaten egg, and cover with the puff pastry. Press the edges lightly to seal. Cut a small hole at the centre of each pot pie to allow steam to escape.
Brush the pastry with the beaten egg and place on a heavy baking tray.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the pastry is golden. Cool for 5-10 minutes before serving with some steamed vegetables on the side.
Notes
Keep the pastry in the fridge until you need it and try using all butter puff pastry. If you want to make a homemade pastry topping, this recipe never fails me.
Like a classic beef stew recipe, the best beef for steak pie is beef chuck, aka “stew beef.” This affordable cut of meat can sometimes be a little less tender, making it the best option for the slow roasting required for this savory steak pie.
You don't have to blind bake your pie shell without the filling, but it does help give you a crispier crust. Another option is to place the pie on the lowest rack in the oven. The bottom will cook faster, the filling won't soak into the crust, and the top can bake more slowly so it doesn't burn.
Blind-bake your base before adding a filling to help to firm the base and avoid liquid being absorbed into it. Prick the base with a fork to help steam escape, cover with foil or parchment, and weigh it down with ceramic baking beans, uncooked rice or white sugar. Then bake at 220°C (425°F) for 15 minutes.
Teaspoon for teaspoon, you will need to use about twice as much flour as you would cornstarch or tapioca to achieve the same thickening effects. Adding too much flour to your pie filling will turn it cloudy and pasty, with a distinctly floury taste.
Pot pies can be double-crust pies with the filling completely enclosed in pastry crust, or they can simply baked with the crust on top. Double crust pies should be blind-baked (pre-baked) for a few minutes to keep the bottom crust from getting soggy.
You do not need to pre-bake a pie crust for an apple pie or any baked fruit pie really, but we do freeze the dough to help it stay put. Pre-baking the pie crust is only required when making a custard pie OR when making a fresh fruit pie. you should probably get: Pie weights are super helpful to have for pre-baking.
And if you're wondering what the difference is between a pot pie and a meat pie—a pot pie is the American version of the European meat pie. A meat pie has both a top and a bottom crust. And who doesn't want more buttery, flaky pastry in their life?
If you want to make a puff pastry base for your pie
As you warm up your oven, put a baking tray in to heat up. Then when you put your pie in the oven, sit the dish on top of the hot baking tray. I find that this really helps to cook the base of the Steak Pie and stop a soggy bottom.
The fat melts when heated in the oven, and unless there is a filling to prop up the sides of the pie crust, it can slump. Another issue is billowing air pockets in the center. If you don't blind bake with weights, or poke holes into the bottom of the crust, the bottom of the crust can puff up.
Traditional chicken pot pies have a reputation for being rich in calories, saturated fats, and sodium, making them a questionable choice for those seeking a balanced diet.
1 pie, cooked (average weight) of beef pot pie (Frozen entree, prepared) contains 590 Calories. The macronutrient breakdown is 40% carbs, 47% fat, and 13% protein. This is a good source of protein (35% of your Daily Value), potassium (7% of your Daily Value), and vitamin b6 (27% of your Daily Value).
Black Angus filet mignon is the most tender cut of beef used for steaks. It comes from the smaller end of the tenderloin and should be well-marbled. You can grill it or cook it in a skillet and is best served blue rare or rare. Blue rare is a style of cooking that is becoming very popular for meat lovers.
These cuts—ribeye, New York strip loin, and filet mignon—can certainly be dubbed the best, and few will disagree. “Filet is the most tender cut, but has the least amount of flavor. Ribeye is the most flavorful, but the least tender of the three, and New York is in the middle.” Flannery explains.
Introduction: My name is Greg O'Connell, I am a delightful, colorful, talented, kind, lively, modern, tender person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.
