Get all of your favorite crawfish boil flavors in every bite of this luscious, deep-dish pot pie. The amount of spice needed for the filling will vary, depending on whether all or some of the tails, potatoes, sausage, corn, onions, celery and bell pepper have been first cooked in a boil’s spicy water. If you use unseasoned frozen tails and fresh or more mildly cooked ingredients, you may want to add more Creole/Cajun seasoning and salt than the recipe calls for. For best results, the pie should be filled and baked immediately unless you plan to freeze it. Take note: This pie must sit for at least 45 minutes when it comes out of the oven before serving, or it will be too loose to cleanly slice.
Deep-Dish Crawfish Boil Pot Pie
Ingredients
For the Deep-dish, Double Pie Crust:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon fine salt
12 tablespoons (1½ sticks) cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
4 tablespoons (½ stick) vegetable shortening
½ cup ice-cold water, plus more as needed
For the Filling:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter or olive oil
1 medium onion (8 ounces), chopped
2 celery ribs (4 ounces), chopped
¼ large bell pepper (3 ounces), any color, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced or softened
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups seafood or chicken broth, preferably unsalted
¾ cup half-and-half or heavy cream
Scant 3 cups (1 pound) crawfish tails, thawed and drained if frozen (do not rinse)
¾ cup (4 ounces) chopped smoked sausage
¾ cup (4 ounces) chopped cooked new potatoes, peeled or unpeeled
¾ cup (4 ounces) corn kernels
1 tablespoon Creole/Cajun seasoning, plus more as needed
¼ teaspoon fine salt, plus more as needed
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper, plus more as needed
2 scallions, thinly sliced (optional)
1 egg
2 deep-dish pie crusts, homemade or store-bought/frozen
Directions
In the bowl of a food processor, add the flour and salt (if using salted butter add only an ⅛ teaspoon of salt); pulse several times to combine. Add the butter and shortening and pulse until the flour is a mixture of pea-size pieces, with no large chunks of butter or shortening. Drizzle the water over the flour a little at a time and pulse until the dough just starts to come together.
Lightly flour a work surface and transfer the dough to the surface. Gently shape the dough into two 6-inch disks. It’s OK if there are tiny bits of visible butter, but there should be no dry flour. The dough should feel fairly smooth. Wrap each disk tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to 3 days.
For the pie:
Position a rack at the lowest position and preheat the oven to 400°F.
In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, melt the butter (or heat the oil). Add the onion, celery and bell pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. (If using vegetables softened in a crawfish boil, you can chop and sauté them in butter or oil and then proceed to the next step.)
Add the flour to the vegetables and stir until well-coated and the flour just starts to brown, about 3 minutes. It’s OK if bits stick to the pan.
Whisk in the broth, half-and-half (or heavy cream) and cook, stirring and scraping up any stuck-on bits, until well-combined. Bring to a boil and cook at a lively simmer for a few minutes, adjusting the heat and stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. The sauce should thicken and turn glossy.
Add the crawfish tails, sausage, potatoes and corn, and stir to combine. At this point, when you drag your spoon through the mixture, you should get a glimpse of the bottom of the pot before the mixture comes back together. If it is too thin, cook it a few more minutes; if too thick, add more broth or dairy.
Taste and add the Creole/Cajun seasoning, salt and cayenne.
Stir in the scallions and refrigerate the mixture until needed.
In a small bowl, whisk the egg until it is well-combined.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the first piece of dough to about ¼ inch thick and about 12 inches in diameter.
Roll the dough onto a rolling pin, and then unroll it over the pie pan, gently pressing it down into the pan, making sure there is an even lip of dough around the edge. Brush the dough with the egg. Place the pan in the freezer while you roll out the second piece of dough to the same thickness and diameter.
Remove the pie pan from the freezer and immediately fill it with the crawfish mixture.
Working quickly, roll the second dough onto the rolling pin, and then unroll it gently over filled pie, leaving an even measure of overhang all around. Tuck the edge of the top crust under the bottom crust on the rim of the pie pan and press to seal. The dough should be flush with the edge of the pan. Crimp as desired.
Using a sharp, clean knife, carefully cut four 2-inch slits radiating from the center of the pie.
Brush the surface of the pie with egg. Place the pie on a sheet pan to catch drips and place it in the preheated oven. Bake for 20 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 350°F, rotate the sheet pan and bake another 30 to 40 minutes, or until the crust is golden and the filling bubbles up through vents.
Transfer the pie pan to a wire rack and let the pie cool for at least 45 minutes before serving. Don’t rush it! The pot pie will be loose when it comes out of the oven, but will firm as it cools. Serve warm.
