Savoury recipe: seafood pot pie

For a super-quick and filling meal, this tasty seafood pot pie pulls out all the stops.

The key to a great pot pie is a tasty crust. But who wants to make pie dough from scratch? And yet prepared pie doughs can be unsatisfying, too. The solution? Saltine crackers. When mixed with a little melted butter, they make an easy and delicious alternative. The best part is crushing the crackers for the recipe — it's a great stress reliever!

Prep time 15 min
Cook time 50 min
Serves 4

• 6 slices bacon, cut into 2 cm (1 in) pieces
• 375 g (3/4 lb) bay scallops
• 375 g (3/4 lb) peeled and deveined medium shrimp
• 90 ml (6 tbsp) unsalted butter, divided
• 375 ml (1 1/2 c) chopped onion
• 175 ml (3/4 c) chopped carrots
• 175 ml (3/4 c) chopped celery
• 10 ml (2 tsp) dried tarragon
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 50 ml (1/4 c) dry vermouth
• 375 ml (1 1/2 c) reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 250 ml (1 c) heavy cream
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) cornstarch
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) water
• 175 ml (3/4 c) frozen peas
• 2 ml (1/4 tsp) salt
• 2 ml (1/4 tsp) freshly ground black pepper
• 25 saltine crackers, coarsely crushed (about 300 g/1 1/4 cups)

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Coat a 18 centimetre (nine inch) deep-dish pie plate with cooking spray.
2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and cook the bacon until crisp, five to six minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a paper towel–lined plate to drain.
3. Add half the scallops to the skillet and cook until opaque and almost cooked through, two to three minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl and repeat with the remaining scallops.
4. Add the shrimp to the skillet and cook until pink, one minute per side; transfer to the bowl with the scallops.
5. Pour off any remaining bacon fat and wipe out the skillet with paper towels. Return the skillet to the stove over medium heat and melt 45 millilitres (three tablespoons) of the butter. Add the onions, carrots, celery, tarragon and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, eight to 10 minutes. Increase the heat to medium-high and add the vermouth. Cook until almost evaporated, about one minute.
6. Stir in the broth and cream. Bring to a boil and cook until reduced by almost half, five to seven minutes.
7. Combine the cornstarch and water in a cup. Add to the broth mixture and cook, stirring, until thickened, about one minute. Remove from the heat and stir in the bacon, scallops, shrimp, peas, salt and pepper. Transfer to the pie plate.
8. Melt the remaining 45 millilitres (three tablespoons) butter and toss with the crackers in a large bowl until well coated. Sprinkle over the scallop mixture.
9. Bake until the top is golden and the filling bubbly, about 20 minutes. Let stand for five minutes before serving.

Pot pies are one of those make-ahead dishes that you can store in the freezer and slip in the oven at a moment's notice.

• To make this one ahead, prepare the dish as directed up to the point of topping with the crackers.
• Cool completely to room temperature then wrap in a double layer of plastic and freeze for up to one month. F
• or the best results, thaw the pot pie in the refrigerator then bake in the oven as directed, adding an extra 10 to 15 minutes to the total baking time.

--------------------

Discover the smarter way to save time and money

Ready to start saving more on your groceries and pharmacy purchases? Download the FREE YP Grocery app today! It lets you create shareable shopping lists, automatically finds all the best deals and coupons, then delivers them right to you. No more manually scrolling through hundreds of flyers to find what you’re looking for!

Download the YP Grocery app now!