Food For Thought

Pot Pie … that wonderful dish of meat and potatoes in a rich gravy tucked away between two flaky pie crusts, a true comfort food. Right? Wrong. At least if you’re Pennsylvania Dutch it’s wrong.

I came from a family that made traditional pot pie – a lovely stew baked in a crust, the stuff you could buy in single serving size from the freezer at the supermarket (only better) and named the same. So, when I met my mother-in-law and the subject of pot pie came up I was entirely confused by her version.

I argued that my family’s version was right, even the one in the store had the same name! No, she insisted, pot pie was so named because it was made in a pot and what we were eating was simply called “Chicken Pie” because, well … it was.

I had to concede there. I mean, where on earth did the name “pot pie” come from in reference to what the rest of us were eating? The name the Pennsylvania Dutch were using seemed far more fitting; they were, in essence, making a chicken pie, but they were making it in a pot.

So, for your perusal, recipes from both sides of the battle, the traditional Pennsylvania Dutch version, and the one the rest of us eat, even if it is poorly named. Either way, there’s no arguing the fact that both are delicious.

Chicken Pot Pie

1 chicken
3 onions
pastry (they don’t specify here but, mom-in-law uses a basic pie dough)
4 potatoes
Salt & pepper

Wash, clean and cut chicken into individual portions. Place a layer of
chicken in the bottom of a large iron kettle and cover with thick
slices of raw potato, then with slices of onion and salt & pepper.
Roll dough out rather thick and cut in 2 inch squares and place on
top of onion. Continue until kettle is filled having the top layer of
pie dough. Add water to cover contents halfway. Cover kettle tightly
and cook over a low flame until chicken is tender.

Pennsylvania Dutch Cook Book – Fine Old Recipes, Culinary Arts Press, 1936

Dutch Pot Pie

3 eggs
1/2 c milk
1 ts soda
1/2 ts salt
parsley, minced
1 tb butter, melted
1/2 c cream
3 c flour
potatoes
butter

Beat eggs, add milk, cream, soda, salt and melted butter. Mix well.
Gradually add flour until dough is stiff enough to roll. (May require
up to 4 cups). Roll on floured board and line a cooking kettle with
the dough. Place a large piece of butter in bottom of kettle and add
peeled and quartered potatoes alternately with small pieces of the
dough. The top layer should be potatoes. Sprinkle with salt, pepper
and minced parsley. Dot with butter. Add 1 1/2 to 2 cups water. Bake
at 350-F about 3 hours.

Pennsylvania Dutch Cook Book – Fine Old Recipes, Culinary Arts Press, 1936

Anne’s Chicken Pot Pie

This is one of those things that I just don’t have a recipe for. My basic method is to make pie dough for a 2 crust pie and then make a basic and thicker chicken stew; chicken, potatoes, carrots, onions, and gravy; and then line a 9×13 pan with 1 pie crust, add the “stew”, top with the remaining crust and cut a few slits in the top. I bake the whole thing at 350° until the crust is a golden brown and the “stew” is bubbling up through the slits in the dough.