Curried vegetable, lentil and cheddar pie

This savoury pie is a collaboration with my friend Stacey Mei Yan Fong, who wrote the incredible book 50 Pies, 50 States. The gorgeous, flaky all-butter pastry recipe is hers and the curried vegetable lentil filling is mine. In America, pies tend to be sweet, but the pies of my Australian youth were always savoury like this one. Curry pies are a classic of neighbourhood bakeries and served as inspiration for this recipe.

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A round savory pie with a golden, flaky crust sits on a gray plate, missing one slice; it rests on a striped cloth over a marble surface. - Hetty Lui McKinnon

The all-butter crust is from Stacey Mei Yan Fong’s cookbook 50 Pies, 50 States – I encourage you all to check it out.

There are many types of curry powder on the market and any brand should be fine. I personally only have S&B brand in my pantry (I try and overlook the cringeworthy product name).

There are a number of jobs required to make a pie from scratch. It’s a recipe that requires some planning ahead, particularly because the dough is best made the day before. If making a pie from scratch, feels intimidating, I completely understand as I feel the same way. However, I overcome this by breaking up the jobs to make the recipe feel more manageable. The dough can be made up to three days ahead and stored in the fridge; it can also be frozen for up to three months, just take it out of the freezer and thaw overnight in the fridge before using. The filling can be made up to three days ahead and stored in the fridge in an airtight container. You could even blind bake the pastry shell the day before and store it in the fridge in an airtight container. I promise you, the results are worth the effort.

If you can’t find Jerusalem artichokes (also known as sunchokes), substitute with carrot, parsnips, turnip, sweet potato, cauliflower, or simply use a bit more potato.

I always eat my savoury pies with tomato sauce (ketchup) and you should too.

IF YOU DON’T WANT TO MAKE THE PASTRY FROM SCRATCH, HERE ARE SOME OPTIONS:

If you are adamantly against making your own crust, here’s are some other ways you can use the filling to make a pie-esque type of dish:

Use a store-bough ready-to-bake pie crust (shortcrust pastry in Australia) and top with puff pastry (this will be close to the composition of an Australian pie). Make sure the store-bought crust does not contain too much sugar.
Pour the filling into an ovenproof dish and topping with puff pastry to make a ‘pot pie’. Brush with egg wash and bake until puffed and golden
Make a shepherd’s style pie. There’s already potato in the filling so use another mashed vegetable for the topping – mashed cheesy cauliflower or parsnip would work. Or try mashed sweet potato for something different
Use puff pastry to make hand pies
Eat the filling as a curry, with basmati rice 😉

Curried vegetable, lentil and cheddar pie

Serves

Ingredients

All butter pastry

300 g unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt (sea salt ok)
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
226 g cold unsalted butter, cut into ½ -inch (1.25cm) pieces
240 ml cold water
60 ml apple cider vinegar
½ cup ice

Pie Filling

extra virgin olive oil
1 onion (any color), cut into 1-inch (2-3cm) chunks
4 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
2 tablespoons curry powder
2 large potatoes (450g / 1 pound), washed and cut into 1-inch (2-3cm) chunks
225 g Jerusalem artichokes (sunchokes), washed and 1-inch (2-3cm) chunks (see notes for substitutes)
100 g black or green lentils
500 ml vegetable stock
10 -15 curry leaves
sea salt and black pepper
150 g frozen peas
2 tablespoons plain flour or rice flour
110 g grated cheddar cheese.
1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon milk

Instructions

For the pastry:

The day, night, or at least 3 hours before, prepare the all butter crust.
Stir the flour, salt, and sugar together in a large bowl with a flat bottom. Add the butter pieces on top of the dry ingredients. Using your fingers, toss the butter in the dry mixture so each cube is coated. Use a pastry blender or your fingers to cut or rub the butter into the mixture until it is in pieces a bit larger than peas (a few larger pieces are okay; be careful not to over-blend). You want to be able to have big butter chunks in your crust: It helps create a flakey effect, as well as adding delicious buttery hits of flavor!
In a separate large measuring cup or small bowl, combine the water, cider vinegar, and ice.
Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the ice water mixture over the flour mixture; do not add the ice, which is just there to keep your water cold. Using your hands in a circular motion, bring the mixture together until all the liquid is incorporated. Continue adding the ice water mixture, 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time.
Carefully mix until the dough comes together in a ball, with some dry bits remaining. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently until it comes into one mass; you don’t want to overwork it.
Separate the dough into two equal portions Shape each portion of dough into a flat disc, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, preferably overnight before using.

Make the pie

Spray a 9-inch / 23cm pie plate (Stacey recommends aluminum steel ones for a better bake, ceramic plates are very thick) with non-stick cooking spray.
Take one piece of dough out of the fridge (leave the other in the fridge), and let it come to room temperature for about 5 minutes. Dust your work surface, rolling pin, and dough with flour, and roll out the dough so it’s about 2 inches (5cm) wider than your pie pan. Transfer the pastry to the pie plate. Press the dough into the pan, pushing it down into the bottom, sides and seams. Fold the overhanging dough under itself to form a neat, tight edge. (Also don’t worry if it isn’t neat, might was pretty jagged, so it will still be fine). Press the edge down so it’s sitting flat against the rim of the pie pan. Chill the pie crust in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 220˚C / 425˚F.
Take the crust out of the fridge and prick it all over with a fork. Line the crust with 2 layers of foil and then fill with pie weights or dried beans, making sure the weights reach all the way up the sides of the pan. Place the pie pan onto a baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the pie weights and reduce heat to 190˚C / 375˚F and bake until a pale golden shade and the base looks partially cooked, about another 5 minutes. Allow to cool while you prepare the filling.

Filling

Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium high heat. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and add the onions, stirring until slightly softened, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic, tomato paste, mustard seeds and curry powder (if using) and stir until fragrant, 2 minutes. Add the potatoes and Jerusalem artichokes / sun chokes and stir to coat in the spices and then add the lentils, stock, and curry leaves, and season with about 1 teaspoon of salt and lots of black pepper. Bring to the boil and then cover, reduce heat to medium low, and cook until the lentils and vegetables are almost tender, about 20 to 25 minutes.
Meanwhile, whisk together 2 tablespoons of the flour with 1/4 cup water. Add the peas along with the flour slurry to the vegetables and stir constantly until the sauce is thickened. Taste and make sure you are happy with seasonings, adjusting salt and pepper if needed.

Fill the crust

Take the second piece of dough out of the fridge and allow to come to room temperature for 5 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 200˚C / 400˚F. Scatter half the cheese onto the base of the cooled pie crust. Add the filling, as much as will fit, allowing it to dome in the centre. Take half of your remaining cheese and scatter on top of the curry filling.
Roll out the second piece of dough so that it’s about 1 to 2 inches wider than your pan. Place the dough on top of your pie and scrunch the edges in so that it is flush with the edge of the pastry case and then press it down to seal the edge. Using a tip of your knife or kitchen scissors, snip the pastry 3 or 4 times to allow steam to escape during cooking. Brush the top of the pastry with the egg wash and then top with the remaining cheese.
Place into the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 180˚C / 350˚F and bake for another 15 minutes or until the top is golden and crispy.
Allow to cool for 10 minutes before cutting into wedges and serving. Eat with tomato sauce (ketchup), if you like, and a green salad.

Tips and Variations

Note: Wrapped tightly, the dough can be refrigerated for 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw frozen dough overnight in the fridge.

Note from Hetty: If you are using this pie dough for sweet pie, increase sugar to 1 tablespoon, as it is in Stacey's original recipe. If you're making the pie dough for a single crust pie recipe, freeze the second half for future pies.