Transform your roast dinner leftovers into a mouthwatering puff pastry braid with this tasty leftover roast dinner pie. Whether you have succulent roast beef, tasty chicken or tender lamb, I'm sure this dish will have your family requesting it time and time again. This is the perfect way to breathe new life into your leftovers!
Let's be honest, everyone loves a tasty roast dinner. But when you've spent ages making a roast with all the trimmings, you always find yourself asking 'what do I do with all the leftovers?'
This recipe shows you how to take that leftover roast dinner and turn it into a delicious pie so you never have to throw away leftover vegetables or make endless roast meat sandwiches again.
Plus - you get an easy meal that will have everyone clamouring for seconds and begging you to make it again! Because let's face it, everyone loves a pie (even if it is made with leftovers 🙂 ).
The recipe I am sharing today uses leftover roast lamb, but you could just as easily make this leftover roast dinner pie with beef, chicken or even pork. You might also like to try this minted roast leg of lamb recipe - I love the slightly minty taste that the leftovers add to the pie!
As long as you've got some leftover roast meat and leftover vegetables and gravy, all you will need is a roll of puff pastry and you're good to go!
I find that adding some leftover gravy to the pie makes the filling moist enough for my taste. If your family likes extra gravy, you could easily mix up a batch of instant gravy and pour that over the pie too!
This recipe was inspired by my leftover lamb pie recipe, which, while delicious, does take a bit longer to make because you have to make a batch of shortcrust pastry and cook extra vegetables. This recipe for leftover roast dinner pie simply uses leftover meat, cooked vegetables and a roll of puff pastry. Couldn't be easier!
Jump to:
Let me show you how to make it.
Ingredients
This is more of a method than an actual recipe, and you can adapt it to suit whatever leftovers you have on hand.
As long as you have enough leftover roast meat and vegetables to fill up a roll of puff pastry, this will easily feed 4 people.
You will need approximately 5 cups of diced meat and vegetables and sufficient gravy to moisten.
- Leftover roast meat and vegetables - any leftover roast meat will work with this recipe - beef, chicken, lamb or pork. I've used lamb, along with some leftover steamed vegetables. The meat and vegetables should be cut into half-inch pieces (just over 1 cm) so they fit nicely into the pastry.
- Leftover gravy - I had a chunky gravy made with onions and mushrooms. A smooth gravy will work just as well. You don't need much, just enough to moisten the meat and vegetables. If you don't have leftover gravy, mix up a cupful using your favourite brand of gravy granules.
- Egg - this is used to egg wash the top of the pie.
- Puff pastry - I used a roll of shop-bought puff pastry.
- I also used a few sesame seeds (not pictured) for sprinkling on top. You could use poppy seeds instead.
For my pie, I used roast potatoes. I only had 2 small leftover potatoes (roast potatoes always seem to get eaten first for some reason) so if you intend to make this pie I suggest you make extra roasties.
I also used carrots, steamed broccoli and cauliflower, brussels sprouts and green beans, but you can use whatever vegetables you have.
**You can find the complete list of ingredients on the printable recipe card at the end of this post**
Instructions
Cut your meat and vegetables into small pieces and combine them in a mixing bowl, with enough gravy to moisten them. Don't add too much gravy or it will run out of the pie while it is baking.
Let your puff pastry come to room temperature and then unroll it onto the baking parchment it is wrapped in.
Arrange your meat and vegetable mixture down the centre of the pastry.
Cut an even number of strips down each side of the pastry. Make the strips about 1 inch wide.
Fold alternate pastry strips over the meat and vegetables to enclose them. Don't worry if you have a few small gaps, the puff pastry will swell up in the oven and close them up. Press the pastry down at either end to seal it.
Cut any excess paper away from either end, then use the paper to help you transfer the pie to a baking sheet. Leave the paper under the pie on the baking sheet - it will catch any drips that may cook out.
Brush the top of the pastry with lightly beaten egg, and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Bake in a preheated oven (200C / 400F) for 20 to 25 minutes or until the pastry is puffed and golden.
Serving suggestions
Serve hot with peas and a fresh green salad. If you have leftover gravy you could drizzle that over the pie too. You will notice in the photos that I served this pie with chips. That's because I didn't have too many roast potatoes left!
You might also like to serve this roast dinner pie with a side dish of sage and onion stuffing sausage balls.
This pie is also delicious when served cold as a light lunch. Hubby normally takes a slice of cold pie down to his vegetable allotment for his lunch.
Tips for a perfect outcome
Here are my tips to ensure this roast dinner pie turns out perfectly every time!
- Cut the meat and vegetables into small pieces to cram as much filling as possible into the pie.
- When unrolling the puff pastry let it come to room temperature first. That way you will avoid it cracking when you unroll it.
- Add just enough gravy to moisten the filling. Don't add too much gravy or the filling will be sloppy and ooze out as the pie bakes.
- Brushing the pie with a beaten egg encourages the pastry to brown. If you don't have a spare egg, brush the top of the pie with a little milk or cream.
- Sesame seeds are not essential, but they look pretty!
Vegetable suggestions
Aside from the normal steamed vegetables, here are a few other ideas for vegetable recipes you may consider making with your roast if you intend to use your leftovers for this roast dinner pie.
- Creamed cabbage - the sauce in this creamed cabbage recipe will add a delicious creaminess to the pie filling. For the same reason, you could use leftover cauliflower cheese.
- Buttered cabbage with leeks and mustard seeds - I would be inclined to use this recipe if I were planning on using leftover roast chicken. Chicken and leeks go well together.
- Minted smashed peas - the minty flavour of these peas goes beautifully with lamb.
- Braised red cabbage with apple and onion - this would go perfectly with leftover roast pork.
- Chilli tomato and onion sauce - this would make a great alternative to mixing the roast vegetables with gravy.
Storage
You can freeze the assembled pie (before baking). Wrap the pie in a layer of tinfoil and then wrap it securely with plastic wrap. Freeze for up to three months. Cook the pie from frozen, for the temperature in the recipe but add an extra 5 minutes to the cooking time.
You can store it for up to 3 days in a covered container in the refrigerator. Serve any leftover pie either cold or reheat it in a hot oven for a few minutes. I wouldn't recommend reheating the pie in the microwave because the pastry would turn soft and soggy.
Recipe FAQs
I think a leftover curry pie would be delicious. Why not make the filling with leftover easy lamb curry combined with these curried green beans or Indian-style green beans? And of course, don't forget the ever-popular saag aloo and aloo gobi!
You can certainly make this pie with a roll of shortcrust pastry. If you prefer to make your own pastry, you could use the recipe for shortcrust pastry that I use for my bacon and egg pie.
Save for later
If you would like to try this roast dinner pie yourself, why not save the recipe to one of your Pinterest boards so you can find it easily? Just click on the image below.
Alternatively, you can save the recipe by clicking on the floating heart icon on the right-hand side of the screen.
Related recipes
Here are some other homemade pie recipes that you may like to try:
📋The recipe
Leftover roast dinner pie
(Click the stars to rate this recipe)
Equipment
- Baking tray
- Mixing bowl
Ingredients
- 2 cups leftover roast meat diced
- 3 cups leftover vegetables diced
- 1 cup leftover gravy approximately (depending on thickness)
- 1 small egg beaten
- 11 ounces / 320 grams puff pastry shop-bought
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F
- Cut the meat and vegetables into small pieces and combine them in a mixing bowl, with enough gravy to moisten them. Don't add too much gravy or it will run out of the pie while it is baking.2 cups leftover roast meat, 3 cups leftover vegetables, 1 cup leftover gravy
- Let your puff pastry come to room temperature and then unroll it onto the baking parchment it is wrapped in.11 ounces / 320 grams puff pastry
- Arrange your meat and vegetable mixture down the centre of the pastry.
- Cut an even number of strips down each side of the pastry. Make the strips about 1-inch wide.
- Fold alternate pastry strips over the meat and vegetables to enclose them. Don't worry if you have a few small gaps, the puff pastry will swell up in the oven and close them up. Press the pastry down at either end to seal it.
- Cut any excess paper and use the paper to help you transfer the pie to a baking sheet. Leave the paper on under the pie on the baking sheet - it will catch any drips that may cook out.
- Brush the top of the pastry with lightly beaten egg, and sprinkle lightly with sesame seeds.1 small egg, 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
- Bake in a preheated oven (200C / 400F) for 20 to 25 minutes or until the pastry is puffed and golden.
Notes
- Cut the meat and vegetables into small pieces so that you can cram as much filling as possible into the pie.
- When unrolling the puff pastry let it come to room temperature first. That way you will avoid it cracking when you unroll it.
- Add just enough gravy to moisten the filling. Don't add too much gravy or the filling will be sloppy and ooze out as the pie bakes.
- Brushing the pie with beaten egg encourages the pastry to brown. If you don't have a spare egg, brush the top of the pie with a little milk or cream.
- Sesame seeds are not essential, but they look pretty!
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.
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