"Pies kind of have a soul of their own," says Brian Polcyn. Growing up in a working class family in Detroit, the half-Polish, half-Mexican chef encountered his first pie in the form of a pierogi. Polcyn recalls that when his grandmother lived with them, a pot of chicken soup with homemade noodles was always bubbling on the stove and leftovers were transformed into pies.
When he started working in professional kitchens, Polcyn encountered ingredients that would elevate his meat pies. At Lark, a 12-table restaurant with a European-run kitchen, guinea fowl was used to make an upscale pastry. The true magic of great cooking comes with a gasp, Polcyn says. An impressive pie filled with everything you'd find in a delicious meal but wrapped in pastry achieves that wow factor.
He already gave us a great recipe for a Post-Thanksgiving Turkey Pot Pie. He's back to talk about how to turn pot roast into delicious individually-sized pies. Both recipes come from his new book Meat Pies: An Emerging American Craft, which he co-authored with Michael Ruhlman.
Individual Pot Roast Pies with Roasted Carrots and Caramelized Onions
These individual double-crusted pies have all the flavor and rib-sticking deliciousness of a classic American pot roast. The construction of the pie is visually dramatic, with the pot roast on the bottom, topped with carrots, potatoes, onion, and spinach. It's bound with thickened braising liquid and served with more of the gravy-like braising liquid.
The preparation is lengthy but worth it, as all the components are cooked separately, cooled, and then assembled. It's best to start this recipe a day ahead, and in fact the meat can be cooked and refrigerated up to 5 days in advance. On the other hand, these pies are the perfect vehicle for leftover pot roast and mashed potatoes, in which case the preparation goes very quickly.
Ingredients
For the pot roast
- 1 pound/450 grams lean pot roast from the shoulder clod or plate (often labeled chuck roast)
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- All-purpose flour, for dredging
- Vegetable oil, for sautéing
- 3⁄4 cup/90 grams small diced onion
- 1⁄2 cup/60 grams small diced carrot
- 1⁄2 cup/60 grams small diced celery
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1⁄2 cup/120 milliliters dry red wine
- 2 cups/475 milliliters veal or beef stock
- 4 thyme sprigs
- 8 whole black peppercorns
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch slurry or beurre manié (see page 46) (below), or as needed
For the carrots
- 4 carrots (about 6 inches/15 centimeters long and about 1 inch/2.5 centimeters in diameter at the large end), peeled
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
For the caramelized onions
- 2 ounces/60 grams unsalted butter
- 1 pound/450 grams onions, thinly sliced
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
For the potatoes
- 8 ounces/235 grams russet potatoes
- 1 ounce/28 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1⁄4 cup/60 milliliters heavy cream or whole milk, warmed
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
For the wilted spinach
- 2 ounces/60 grams spinach leaves, stems removed
To finish the pie
- 10 ounces/280 grams 3-2-1 Pie Dough (see below)
- Egg Wash (page 28)
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 325°F/160°C.
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Season the meat all over with salt and pepper, then dredge in flour. Pour about 1⁄4 inch/8 millimeters vegetable oil into a large Dutch oven and heat over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, brown the meat on all sides, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer the meat to a plate lined with paper towels.
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Pour off the excess oil from the Dutch oven, leaving a thin coat. (If the flour has burned, wipe out the pot and add a thin coat of fresh vegetable oil.) Heat the oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic cloves and cook until tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Turn the heat up to medium-high and brown the vegetables, 4 to 5 minutes. Clear a spot in the middle, add the tomato paste, and let it cook and brown for 1 to 2 minutes.
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Deglaze the pan with half of the red wine, then allow it to reduce to a syrup, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the remaining wine and allow this to reduce to syrup, about 5 minutes. Add the stock, thyme, peppercorns, and bay and bring it to a simmer.
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Return the meat to the pot, cover the pot, and put it in the oven for 2 to 3 hours, until the meat is tender.
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Using a slotted spoon, transfer the meat to a bowl and set aside to cool. (If making ahead, refrigerate in an airtight container.)
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Strain the liquid in the pot into a medium saucepan (discard the solids) and reduce over high heat until thick, 6 to 8 minutes. It should easily coat the back of a spoon. If it remains too thin, thicken it with a cornstarch slurry or beurre manié. Set aside to cool. (If making ahead, refrigerate in a separate airtight container.)
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In a small baking pan, toss the carrots in the olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
Roast until tender, 35 to 45 minutes. Set aside to cool. (If making ahead, refrigerate in an airtight container.) -
Melt the butter in a large, heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-low heat. Add the onions and season with salt and pepper. Cover and cook until the onions release their liquid and begin to get soft, 10 to 12 minutes. Uncover, increase the heat to medium-high, and cook until the liquid evaporates and the onions turn golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
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Set aside to cool. (If making ahead, refrigerate in an airtight container.)
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Put the potatoes in a large pot, cover with cold water, and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down and simmer until the potatoes are tender but not falling apart. Drain.
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When cool enough to handle, peel the potatoes, then pass them through a food mill or ricer into a straight-sided saucepan.
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Heat the potatoes over medium heat, whipping with a stiff spoon or spatula to dry out the potatoes.
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While stirring, add the soft butter, a dab at a time, waiting until each is incorporated before adding the next, then the warm cream in a slow, steady stream. Season with salt and pepper and stir to combine.
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Set aside to cool. (If making ahead, refrigerate in an airtight container.)
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Pour about 1⁄4 inch/6 millimeters water into a medium pot. Heat the water over high heat, then add the spinach and toss with tongs. Cover and cook for 1 minute, then uncover and toss the spinach so that it all starts to wilt. Cover again and finish wilting, another minute or so. Remove from the heat, uncover, and let rest until it's cool enough to handle.
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Wring out the spinach and set it aside. (If making ahead, refrigerate in an airtight container.)
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Trim the cooled meat into two 2 by 5-inch/5 by 13-centimeter rectangles about 1⁄2 inch/1.25 centimeters thick. Lay out the meat slabs on a large platter or rimmed baking sheet.
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Cut the carrots in half lengthwise. Place them cut side down on top of the meat. Trim the carrots to the size of the meat. Spread the potato over the carrots, pressing the potato down to fill the cracks.
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Top with a layer of caramelized onions, then spinach. Coat with a few tablespoons of the reserved thickened braising liquid. Cover and refrigerate while you roll out the dough.
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Roll the dough into a rectangle 16 inches/40 centimeters long, 10 inches/25 centimeters wide, and 1/8 inch/3 millimeters thick. Cut the rectangle in half so that you have two equal pieces.
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For each pie, place a meat slab on one half of a piece of dough, vegetable side down. Egg wash the three edges of the dough around the meat, then fold the dough over the meat. Crimp to seal the three edges. Egg wash the top, refrigerate for 15 minutes, and egg wash again.
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Bake until the crust is golden brown and the filling is hot all the way through, 25 to 30 minutes. Let rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Reheat the thickened braising liquid in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Serve the pies with the sauce.
For 35 years, Polcyn's mother made dumplings at every Christmas and Easter celebration. When she turned 80, she finally began asking for help. Polcyn helped his mother transcribe her pierogi recipe so she could share it with her grandchildren. Happy to document a childhood memory, Polcyn watched over her shoulder, getting her a proper kitchen scale to measure the ingredients precisely rather than the handfuls of flour she grabbed from years of repetition.
"She made them," Polcyn says, "and she goes, 'It's amazing how good those pierogis come out every single time now!'"
Chef and cooking instructor Brian Polcyn has operated some of Detroit's most renowned fine dining restaurants. Photo by Joe Vaughn.
"Meat Pies: An Emerging American Craft" celebrates savory flavors wrapped in pastry. Photo courtesy of W.W. Norton & Company.