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Pie on the Indian plate

Perish the thought, dear reader, that you are ever caught ‘eating the humble pie’ or wasting your time ‘chasing the pie in the sky’.

Pie on the Indian plate

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Pushpesh Pant

Perish the thought, dear reader, that you are ever caught ‘eating the humble pie’ or wasting your time ‘chasing the pie in the sky’. We have long believed that even a small slice of the pie in hand is worth more than what the future might have in store for you. We have also been intrigued why our own cuisines don’t have something like a pie in our repertoire. More about it later, but what is a pie?

Simply put, it is a baked dish that uses pastry dough for the casing and can have myriad fillings — sweet and savoury, vegetarian and non-vegetarian. What’s more, it can be enjoyed hot or cold; can be served as a one-dish meal cooked in a pot or become an accompaniment with fish roast or soup. 

Indians encountered the dish when the British extended their control over the subcontinent though the French and the Dutch along with the Portuguese who preceded them. Chroniclers of Awadh in the times of nawabs tell us of the pies prepared for the gourmet ruler Wazid Ali Shah. These, when cut, allowed live birds encased inside to flutter away. Now that reminds us of the nursery rhyme that ends with the line, “Wasn’t that a dainty dish to put before a king!” Forget the flying birds, but Henry I did commission a royal version of the fish pie where symmetrically arranged fish heads invited the diner to dig in.

Ironically, in popular imagination, pie is seen as humble fare of the impoverished. One recipe is indeed named shepherd’s pie. Food historians tell us that traces of a pie filled with honey have been found in the pyramids of Egypt. They also believe that the pie as we know it has evolved from a Greek pastry. It became exceptionally popular as a convenient nutritious item of daily diet for sailors on long voyages or soldiers on march. It is documented that Pilgrim Fathers took the pie with them when they escaped to America and, till this date, mom’s all American apple pie symbolises a happy American family. A national pie council has been established in the USA to protect the nation’s ‘pie heritage’. At some places pie-throwing festivals are organised while ‘mud pies’ continue to be thrown at unpopular politicians.

Many a chowkidar-khansama in dak bungalows and rest houses in off-the-beaten track destinations frequented by the English sahibs endeared themselves to their white masters by acquiring skills to prepare a more than adequate dinner of steak and bacon pie or kidney or curried mince pie. At times, the casing was made with boiled and mashed potatoes. The trick was to spice it just right and not get caught utilising leftovers from the last meal! A cheesy crust or a wholesome rich sauce can transform an ordinary pie to a sublime delicacy.

If the Indians didn’t have a swadeshi version of the pie, the reasons are not difficult to guess. We have always had regional foods with long shelf life — parantha, kachori, bati-litti, etc. And in the hot and humid climate of the subcontinent, meaty pies could easily become a health hazard.

Now that the times have changed and refrigeration has transformed the way we eat, the pie is steadily extending its domain. Children love the sliced pies that are not very different from tarts and quiches. Healthy ingredients can be served in a delicious garb without provoking resistance. If the pizzas can go totally desi with paneer and tandoori toppings, we see no reason why the pie can’t do it better. 

A small OTG is all you need to innovate, improvise and treat the family (and yourself!) to a dish that has, over centuries and across continents, made the prince and the pauper drool alike. 

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