Important question about pies

[Terabith]

I have a friend who bakes way more than I do.  She was talking about making pies, but when I asked excitedly what kind, she said chicken pot pies. Are pot pies actually pies?  Please discuss!

[Drama Llama]

How can they not be pies? Of course they are pies!  It's right there in the name!

Also, they are delicious.  

 

[Katy]

Yes, and one of the best pies IMHO.

[itsheresomewhere]

There are two types of pot pie. The ones baked in a crust with a crust top and the good kind that is noodles in the pot. So it is a pie. 

Edited October 29, 2023 by itsheresomewhere

[mmasc]

I don’t think of them as “pies”, but yeah, I guess they are and I LOVE them! This is my favorite recipe.

 

[Terabith]

In my brain they’re a different category from sweet pies. But British meat pies, that I’ve only experienced in books and tv, count as pies in my brain, but pot pies, while yummy, are a different brain category for me.  

[Drama Llama]

11 minutes ago, itsheresomewhere said:

There are two types of pot pie. The ones baked in a crust with a crust top and the good kind that is noodles in the pot. So it is a pie. 

I need a recipe for this pot pie with noodles and no crust.  I am skeptical that it is a pie, but still want to taste it.

[itsheresomewhere]

Just now, Drama Llama said:

I need a recipe for this pot pie with noodles and no crust.  I am skeptical that it is a pie, but still want to taste it.

It is so much better than a regular pot pie.  Look up PA Dutch pot pie or Amish pot pie. You can make gravy as thick or as thin as you want ( team thick gravy lol). 

[catz]

Savory pies are delicious!   On GBBO this week they made a free form savory pie called a pithivier  in the technical.  

[ScoutTN]

Absolutely, it is pie!

I ❤️ chx pot pie! It is my kids’ favorite comfort food. I have never made savory hand-pies, but that would be a fun cooking rabbit trail to explore. 
 

I make lots of pumpkin pie, a good bit of quiche and apple pie, and an occasional berry or peach pie. Cherry hand pies are for July 4th and chocolate pecan pie is for Christmas in our family. 

Edited October 29, 2023 by ScoutTN

[Faith-manor]

Yes. Americans tend to think of pie as a desserts and therefore, sweet. But in many countries pies are savory and filled with veggies and meats or veggies and cheeses for consumption as the main course. I make chicken pot pie on a regular basis. 

[TechWife]

Yes, it's pie.

The crust is what makes it pie!

 

 

[TechWife]

45 minutes ago, itsheresomewhere said:

There are two types of pot pie. The ones baked in a crust with a crust top and the good kind that is noodles in the pot. So it is a pie. 

The one that has noodles in the pot is chicken & dumplings. It's a specific type of noodle, though.

[ScoutTN]

Oh, and tomato pie! Yummmm.

[ScoutTN]

3 minutes ago, TechWife said:

Yes, it's pie.

The crust is what makes it pie!

 

 

This!

[Drama Llama]

31 minutes ago, itsheresomewhere said:

It is so much better than a regular pot pie.  Look up PA Dutch pot pie or Amish pot pie. You can make gravy as thick or as thin as you want ( team thick gravy lol). 

That looks absolutely delicious, and is going on my menu soon, but I can not figure out how that is not Amish chicken and dumplings or Amish chicken noodle soup.  

I think a crust is a defining feature of a pie.  

[itsheresomewhere]

2 minutes ago, TechWife said:

The one that has noodles in the pot is chicken & dumplings. It's a specific type of noodle, though.

That is not chicken pot pie made with noodles.  Chicken and dumplings are completely different. 

[TechWife]

Just now, itsheresomewhere said:

That is not chicken pot pie made with noodles.  Chicken and dumplings are completely different. 

Is there also a crust on this chicken pie with noodles?

 

[itsheresomewhere]

1 minute ago, Drama Llama said:

That looks absolutely delicious, and is going on my menu soon, but I can not figure out how that is not Amish chicken and dumplings or Amish chicken noodle soup.  

I think a crust is a defining feature of a pie.  

The noodles are thin and it is literally the pie filling basically.  Whereas dumplings are thicker and the tastes are not the same. 

[itsheresomewhere]

Just now, TechWife said:

Is there also a crust on this chicken pie with noodles?

 

No crust.  

[Terabith]

We have zucchini pie and corn pie and several other savory pies regularly, and they still fit in the pie section of my brain. But not pot pies. 

[Melissa in Australia]

Here if someone said they were going to eat pie or buy pie everyone would  assume a meat pie. 

A sweet pie like apple pie always is referred to by what type, 

[TechWife]

1 hour ago, itsheresomewhere said:

It is so much better than a regular pot pie.  Look up PA Dutch pot pie or Amish pot pie. You can make gravy as thick or as thin as you want ( team thick gravy lol). 

Those pictures are what we call chicken & dumplings. Maybe what it's called varies by region? This is from my dh's family in the midwest. I've also seen chicken & dumplings with drop biscuits instead of the flat noodle dumplings.

 

[TechWife]

27 minutes ago, itsheresomewhere said:

No crust.  

It's not a pie in my world, then. It would be a soup or stew. Chicken & dumplings is a type of stew.

Edited October 29, 2023 by TechWife

[Terabith]

I think pot pies aren’t pies because they’re too wet.  We eat a number of savory pies and those are solidly pie.  

[itsheresomewhere]

It depends on the area and culture on what they call it.  And how it was explained to me by someone who is a Mennonite-  it is pot pie as the filling is cooked in a pot.  Think of it the same way that as the disagreement about hand pies.  

[itsheresomewhere]

10 minutes ago, TechWife said:

Those pictures are what we call chicken & dumplings. Maybe what it's called varies by region? This is from my dh's family in the midwest. I've also seen chicken & dumplings with drop biscuits instead of the flat noodle dumplings.

 

The noodles are thinner than a usual dumpling noodle.  

[Arcadia]

My kids love KFC chicken pot pies if we go to KFC and they are often sold out. They also like McDonald’s apple pie. If someone said to bring a pie to a potluck end of school year party, I would be thinking the typical supermarket pie 🥧 and not the KFC or McDonald’s kind.

[Innisfree]

I’ve had two kinds of chicken pot pies, but I only accept one of them as proper, lol, even though I have also eaten and enjoyed the second kind.

A proper chicken pot pie, in my mind, has a top and a bottom crust, just like a fruit pie. Yes, the filling is heavy on gravy, but that’s not so different from some fruit pies. It’s cooked in a pie pan, which is the “pot.”

An ersatz chicken pot pie is the type that used to be served in my elementary school cafeteria. It’s made in a casserole dish, and has squares of pastry crust floating on top, for ease of serving large numbers of people. It can still be tasty, but suffers from a severe shortage of pastry.

Chicken and dumplings is delicious but not pie.

[Innisfree]

Raised pies (with a firmer pastry crust, thus not requiring a pot for support) and hand pies are also delectable. 😋

[YaelAldrich]

It's a pie.  So is my Sephardi meat pie (ground lamb and/or beef, eggs, ground onions and garlic, cumin, coriander (spice), paprika, salt, pepper and chopped coriander (the herb)).

Yummo and one of the things I miss most about my family turning veg*n on me....

[Forget-Me-Not]

I vote pie. Here’s my chicken pot pie: 

Edited October 30, 2023 by Forget-Me-Not

[itsheresomewhere]

5 minutes ago, YaelAldrich said:

It's a pie.  So is my Sephardi meat pie (ground lamb and/or beef, eggs, ground onions and garlic, cumin, coriander (spice), paprika, salt, pepper and chopped coriander (the herb)).

Yummo and one of the things I miss most about my family turning veg*n on me....

Yummy! 

[Innisfree]

6 minutes ago, YaelAldrich said:

It's a pie.  So is my Sephardi meat pie (ground lamb and/or beef, eggs, ground onions and garlic, cumin, coriander (spice), paprika, salt, pepper and chopped coriander (the herb)).

Yummo and one of the things I miss most about my family turning veg*n on me....

We might need a recipe. This sounds delicious.

[Pam in CT]

In my world, a big old round disk of crust is the defining feature that differentiates "pie" from "casserole" or "tart" or "turnover" or "pasty" or "empanada" or "samosa" or etc. Some pies have top crust, some pies have lattice, some like pumpkin or pecan or the various Creams and Meringues are open-topped; but all pie, sweet or savory, must have a full-pie-sized bottom crust. 

Chicken pot pie is 100% pie, as is shepherd's pie. I don't think I'm familiar with any other meat pies.  @YaelAldrich , please share the lamb.

I make quiche regularly, with a (frozen!) bottom crust, and I guess by that definition quiche is pie, though I've never really thought of it as such.

[Drama Llama]

1 minute ago, Pam in CT said:

In my world, a big old round disk of crust is the defining feature that differentiates "pie" from "casserole" or "tart" or "turnover" or "pasty" or "empanada" or "samosa" or etc. Some pies have top crust, some pies have lattice, some like pumpkin or pecan or the various Creams and Meringues are open-topped; but all pie, sweet or savory, must have a full-pie-sized bottom crust. 

Chicken pot pie is 100% pie, as is shepherd's pie. I don't think I'm familiar with any other meat pies.  @YaelAldrich , please share the lamb.

I make quiche regularly, with a (frozen!) bottom crust, and I guess by that definition quiche is pie, though I've never really thought of it as such.

You put a bottom crust on your shepherd's pie?  

I love shepherd's or cottage pie, but I must admit I am now wondering if they are actually pie.  If I go with the "crust" definition, then they go in the "things we call pie that really aren't" along with Amish pot pie, and cutie-pies.  

[Pam in CT]

1 minute ago, Drama Llama said:

You put a bottom crust on your shepherd's pie?  

I love shepherd's or cottage pie, but I must admit I am now wondering if they are actually pie.  If I go with the "crust" definition, then they go in the "things we call pie that really aren't" along with Amish pot pie, and cutie-pies.  

well sure otherwise it WOULDN'T BE PIE lol.

What's cottage pie?

[YaelAldrich]

6 minutes ago, Pam in CT said:

In my world, a big old round disk of crust is the defining feature that differentiates "pie" from "casserole" or "tart" or "turnover" or "pasty" or "empanada" or "samosa" or etc. Some pies have top crust, some pies have lattice, some like pumpkin or pecan or the various Creams and Meringues are open-topped; but all pie, sweet or savory, must have a full-pie-sized bottom crust. 

Chicken pot pie is 100% pie, as is shepherd's pie. I don't think I'm familiar with any other meat pies.  @YaelAldrich , please share the lamb.

I make quiche regularly, with a (frozen!) bottom crust, and I guess by that definition quiche is pie, though I've never really thought of it as such.

The recipe is basically what I said. I'm one of those annoying people who cook from sight and smell. 3 eggs, 1lb meat, heap'o'spices. Bake 375F until yummy smelling.

[YaelAldrich]

1 minute ago, Pam in CT said:

well sure otherwise it WOULDN'T BE PIE lol.

What's cottage pie?

Shepherd's pie is lamb. Cottage pie is beef

[Drama Llama]

1 minute ago, Pam in CT said:

well sure otherwise it WOULDN'T BE PIE lol.

What's cottage pie?

Shepherd's pie made with beef instead of lamb.

I have never seen a shepherd's pie made with a crust.  Is that just me? 

[Pam in CT]

Just now, YaelAldrich said:

The recipe is basically what I said. I'm one of those annoying people who cook from sight and smell. 3 eggs, 1lb meat, heap'o'spices. Bake 375F until yummy smelling.

but IN A PIE CRUST I presume???  Because otherwise....

[YaelAldrich]

Just now, Pam in CT said:

but IN A PIE CRUST I presume???  Because otherwise....

Yes, of course in a pie crust!  Lol

[Drama Llama]

2 minutes ago, YaelAldrich said:

The recipe is basically what I said. I'm one of those annoying people who cook from sight and smell. 3 eggs, 1lb meat, heap'o'spices. Bake 375F until yummy smelling.

In a crust shell, or more like an empanada?  

You can, at least, tell us which spices to heap in. 

[Pam in CT]

1 minute ago, YaelAldrich said:

Shepherd's pie is lamb. Cottage pie is beef

Yes, in my world shepherd's pie is (ground) lamb (and potatoes, and in my mother's version carrots, and in mine sundried tomatoes, and see above: CRUST).  What's in cottage beside (ground?) beef?

[Frances]

1 hour ago, Terabith said:

I think pot pies aren’t pies because they’re too wet.  We eat a number of savory pies and those are solidly pie.  

It all depends on the ratio of meat, veg, and sauce as to how thick or wet they are. Also, many fruit pies are very wet. I think it’s the crust with filling that makes it a pie.

[Drama Llama]

1 minute ago, Pam in CT said:

Yes, in my world shepherd's pie is (ground) lamb (and potatoes, and in my mother's version carrots, and in mine sundried tomatoes, and see above: CRUST).  What's in cottage beside (ground?) beef?

In my world, shepherd's pie is a layer of ground lamb with carrots and peas and onions and gravy, and a layer of mashed potatoes on top, maybe with some cheese, baked so the potatoes are kinda stiff like a pie crust.  Cottage pie is the exact same thing with ground beef.  I also make it with lentils instead of or mixed with meat, and with cauliflower or sweet potatoes instead of or mixed with the potatoes.  But it's always ground meaty bottom and mashed something top. 

[itsheresomewhere]

8 minutes ago, Drama Llama said:

Shepherd's pie made with beef instead of lamb.

I have never seen a shepherd's pie made with a crust.  Is that just me? 

I never saw shepherd’s pie with a crust until I moved up north.  I think it is regional thing. 

[Kuovonne]

If the crust is what makes a pie a pie, would a quiche be a pie?

[Drama Llama]

Just now, Kuovonne said:

If the crust is what makes a pie a pie, would a quiche be a pie?

And what about a crustless quiche?

[itsheresomewhere]

Just now, Drama Llama said:

And what about a crustless quiche?

Or crustless pumpkin pie?