How to box pies?

[43bakes]

I have been baking small pies for self consumptions and recently trying to muster up enough courage to ask friends to try my small (4.5 inches) meat pies. Do I need to completely cool the pie before putting them into a box? Will it make the pies soggy? Or do the box needs holes (ventilation) to allow for steam to escape from the box? I was thinking of putting the pies into a log cake box. When my friends receive these pies what wld be the best temperature to reheat and for how long. My pie based is short crust and top of the pie is rough puff pastry.  Thank you all and appreciate the help. A real pie novice here. 

[jimb0]

so you should just experiment and see what works best for your pies and your dough. if you aren’t doing a big assembly line of pies i can’t think of a reason to box them without letting them cool first. though if you must you could also just leave them open. 

 

my go-to for reheating pastry tends to be about a 350°F oven for however long it takes. you may want to change that if it doesn’t work for your specific recipes though. 

 

let’s see a picture of dem pies! 

[43bakes]

Hi jimb0! 

thank you for replying. I have never tasted a proper beef pie before (food restrictions & don’t have them here either). So my experience is based on friends who have had them before, plus it was because of their cravings that I decided to plunge on this. Today, I made a fresh batch, realised I put in the oven too long (slightly darker) and the based although stable was a bit delicate (are short crust supposed to be like this?). Maybe also my based pastry was thick ( but my fillings were plenty)...perhaps I might need to rethink my pastry thickness so the bottom is slightly “crispy”. If you have tips do share! My photo skills and lighting sucks - adds to the dark pastry look too. 

[jimb0]

1 hour ago, 43bakes said:

Hi jimb0! 

thank you for replying. I have never tasted a proper beef pie before (food restrictions & don’t have them here either). So my experience is based on friends who have had them before, plus it was because of their cravings that I decided to plunge on this. Today, I made a fresh batch, realised I put in the oven too long (slightly darker) and the based although stable was a bit delicate (are short crust supposed to be like this?). Maybe also my based pastry was thick ( but my fillings were plenty)...perhaps I might need to rethink my pastry thickness so the bottom is slightly “crispy”. If you have tips do share! My photo skills and lighting sucks - adds to the dark pastry look too. 

 

those look great! whereabouts are you, if you don't mind my asking?

 

yeah one might say the puff on top is a bit dark but between you and me i actually like that. when you say your bottom pastry is a little thick, and you want it to be crispier, do you mean that it's soft and doughy? do you blind bake (that is, bake the crust first, empty) before filling and rebaking the pies?

[43bakes]

I am from Singapore. I did stay in Australia for a while but due to diet restrictions never did try the pies there. The bottom is not doughy just delicate and pale. Will take a photo of it later. I made a 1st batch many moons ago (see the pic) u can see how the bottom has colour and crispy =sturdier. Also I used only shortcrust pastry. Yah I dont blind bake, I see many online dont do it. It is not undercooked just not the right consistency. I suspect it is just too thick! Need to work on my dough rolling. The pies in this pic, I didn’t blind bake them either. 

[AAQuesada]

These are Kiwi meat pies here is Los Angeles. I wanted to post this for you because there are some good pictures for you that might help. 

 

 

https://foodtalkcentral.com/t/ponsonby-road-cafe-a-new-zealand-shop-on-la-cienega-in-beverly-grove/12325/21?u=aaqjr

[JoNorvelleWalker]

@Franci has experience boxing cakes, perhaps she has advice that would be applicable to pies?