Beef Pot Pie

Ingredients

• 1 package (2 crusts) refrigerated pie dough
• 1 1/2 lbs beef stew meat, browned
• 1 cup frozen peas and carrots, 1 diced onion, 2 stalks celery, diced
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups chicken or beef broth
• 1/2 cup milk or cream
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 tsp fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp dried)
• Salt and black pepper, to taste

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400°F (205°C).
2. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat and cook the onion, celery, and any raw protein until softened and lightly browned.
3. Stir in the flour and cook 1 minute, then gradually whisk in the broth and milk until smooth.
4. Add the remaining protein and vegetables, thyme, salt, and pepper, and simmer 8–10 minutes until thickened and the vegetables are tender.
5. Pour the filling into a pie dish or deep baking dish, fit the top crust over it, crimp the edges, and cut a few vents.
6. Bake for 30–35 minutes, until the crust is golden and the filling bubbles through the vents.
7. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

The Tale of Beef Pot Pie

Story updated September 18, 2026

Beef pot pie shares its roots with the broader pot pie tradition, a lineage running from the open meat pies of ancient Greece and Rome through the pastry-crusted dishes of medieval England, which used dough chiefly as a way to seal in and cook a filling rather than as a treat in itself. Beef was arguably the more traditional English pie filling historically, more common than chicken in early British and colonial American kitchens, appearing in recipes like the steak pies still popular in Britain today. Brought to America by English and other European settlers, beef pot pie became a homestead staple, a way to stretch a small amount of meat with vegetables and gravy under a thrifty crust. Its documented history as a distinct American dish is thin, largely because it evolved quietly in home kitchens and church cookbooks rather than through any single inventor, gaining new life in the 20th century through canned and frozen versions.