meat pies

[James A. Landau]

In a message dated 2/7/01 12:43:07 PM Eastern Standard Time,
Mark_Mandel at DRAGONSYS.COM writes:

<<
 How about chicken or beef pot pies? Those should be "meat pies" by any
 definition. I've always enjoyed it as a hot meal that has everything in one
 dish: meat, vegetable, sauce, and bread (the crust). >>

>From Mrs. Simon Kander _The "Settlement" Cook Book_ Milwaukee: 1901 page 128:

<quote>

            VEAL POT PIE

   Ends of the ribs, the neck or the knuckle may be used for a stew.  Cut the
meat in small pieces and remove the fine bones.  Cover the meat with boiling
water; skin as it begins to boil; add 1 onion, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon
pepper for each lb. of meat.  Simmer till thoroughly tender.  Cut 2 potatoes
in quarters, soak in cold water and parboil 5 minutes before adding the stew.
 Thicken with 1 tablespoon flour rubbed smooth in cold water, adding more
seasoning if liked.  Just before serving add 1/2 cup cream, water or milk
with 1 tablespoon butter or fat.  Serve with Dumplings.

</quote>

Well, the above is certainly not the "pot pie" that you buy in a
single-serving aluminum pie pan in the freezer section of the supermarket,
nor the single-serving in a dish that you get in Colonel Sanders or Boston
Market.  It's made in a pot but I can't see anything pie-like in the recipe,
which is in the chapter on "Meat", sandwiched (so to speak) between Veal
Cutlets and Hungarian Gulash.  Nor does it match the definition in MWCD10
page 912 "(ca. 1792) pastry-covered meat and vegetables cooked in a deep
dish".

Baffled but not potted

Jim Landau