Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Seitan Pot Pie!

It appears my new obsession is savory pies! I really didn't like Chicken Pot Pie as a child, and have had the most "Pot Pies" after becoming vegan, but I tried to make this pie as classic as possible. 

Something that I have found as a vegan and also when I was a vegetarian, is that you associate certain flavors with certain meats, for example: sage or rosemary with chicken. When you use sage or rosemary in a vegan recipe, it is reminiscent enough of the food that used to be there and is really satisfying. That being said, this pie makes use of sage, thyme, marjoram, and mustard, as well as a lot of wine, which, coincidentally is really important to vegan cooking!

This meal is also REALLY filling. You will not. I repeat- You will NOT feel like you just ate something vegan. I have been told by people who briefly tried vegetarianism that they just couldn't "get full" and that they had to go back to eating meat. I had a similar feeling when I became vegan, that is, until I relearned how to cook. Becoming vegan and learning how to cook this way has been really rewarding and has rekindled my interest in cooking, period. This recipe is is a product of that journey, so I hope you enjoy it!


Seitan Pot Pie

Makes: 6 servings

Time: 1 hour


Crust

2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup cornmeal 
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks (12 tablespoons), chopped
2/3 cup water

Filling

1 tablespoon buttery sticks
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/3 cup flour
2 teaspoons mustard powder
1 lb seitan, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 large yellow onion, diced
2 medium red potatoes, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
2 medium sized carrots, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon dried sage
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup white wine
3/4 cup vegetable broth
1/2 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup frozen peas

In a large bowl combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar, and salt. Throw in the "butter" and mix with two forks, a pastry mixer, or your two hands, until it resembles coarse sand. Drizzle 1/3 cup water over the mixture and then mix. If a coherent ball of dough does not form, add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough coalesces into a ball. Press into a disc, and keep in fridge while making the filling. 

Preheat the oven to 375ยบ.

To make the filling, heat the oil and margarine in a large skillet or dutch oven on medium-high heat. Add the flour and mustard powder, and whisk while browning the flour. Once the flour has come to a deep golden color add the onions, potatoes, seitan, celery, and carrots and stir until the vegetables become translucent. Add the garlic and herbs; stir for about a minute. Add the peas, corn, wine and broth to deglaze the pan, and bring to a boil. Once the liquid has thickened slightly, remove the pan from heat and season with salt and pepper. 

Pour the filling into a 2 quart square baking dish (or any dish where the filling sits about 2 inches thick). Roll the dough out into the shape that corresponds with your pan such that the perimeter extends about two inches beyond the edge of your dish in every direction. Place the dough on top of the filling, centering it on the pan, and then roll the edges upwards and over along all the sides into the pan, to give the crust a thick, raised edge. Push this edge downwards along the edges of the pan into the filling. This is nice because despite the fact that there is no crust on the bottom, the outer edge of the pie has a little bit. With a knife pierce the top of the pie several times to allow steam to escape. 

Bake until the crust is golden brown, about 45 minutes to an hour. Remove and enjoy.


Cheers!

7 comments:

  1. Hmm... Something white? I'm so bad at wine :( What do you think?

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  2. Made this for dinner this past week. My wife and I really enjoyed it. It is very filling and the crust is buttery delicious. We are "dabbling" in vegan right now- just for weeknight dinners. Great recipes like this make the switch from meat much easier!
    Oh, did you mean to put peas and corn in the ingredient list? It was mentioned in the directions.

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    Replies
    1. I'm so glad you liked it! And yes, I meant to put corn and peas on the ingredient list, thanks for pointing that out! Good luck! :)

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  3. This totally hit the spot. Loved it and am making it again!

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  4. This was my first TGBV recipe and I will be coming back for more. It was delicious. I had a pound of homemade seitan in the freezer waiting for your recipe. I didn't have white wine so I just increased the veg broth and I don't think that took away from the recipe at all.

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