Pie is a crusty baked good. In some pies, the crust is on top, whereas in others, it is on the bottom. Even the top and bottom of some pies are crusted!
The crust is often made from pastry. When making pastry dough, flour, salt, butter, and water are combined. Some chefs will also use cream or sugar in their dough. The mixture is then formed into a crust.
Either sweet or savoury components are placed inside the crust. Among the sweet fillings are custards, almonds, and fruits. Sweet pies include cherry, pecan, and coconut cream varieties. Meats, eggs, vegetables, and cheese are all acceptable savoury fillings. A chicken pot pie is one kind of meat pie; it frequently has peas and carrots.
The ancient Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians all had distinctive pie varieties. The first pies were created by them to store and cook meats and other contents. The pie crust functioned as a plate. The initial pie crusts were heavy and stiff. People frequently avoided the rough crust in favour of the contents.
The meal was also kept fresh by the crust. The crust retained the cooked meat when it was kept cool. Later, the meat could be consumed. Additionally, pies made it simpler to store the prepared meal.
Pies were transported to new regions of the world as empires expanded. New pie varieties using various components were developed by chefs. Shepherd’s pie was invented in Britain by chefs. It has a potato crust on top instead of pastry. Pies were first baked in America by settlers using local produce like apples.
Additionally, chefs began cutting out pies from a single piece of dough. The dough would be divided in half, with the filling placed on one half. Pies are either fried or baked. Turnovers or hand pies are other names for these tiny pies.
All around the world, there are various variations of hand pies. Cornish pasties, which are popular in England, are packed with beef, potatoes, and onions. Empanadas, which are cooked with chicken, pork, or fish, are popular in both Latin America and the Philippines. Potatoes, lentils, or other vegetables are typically found inside triangle-shaped samosas in Central and Southeast Asia.
Content for this question contributed by Mary Roediger, resident of Willits, Mendocino County, California, United States, USA
