This Pirog Meat Pie is an easy made from scratch recipe, with no yeast! One of the many styles of Pirog recipes your family can enjoy for dinner. An easy unleavened dough recipe that can be prepared in advance. A rustic Russian meat pie!
This delicious Russian Pirog Meat Pie (Пирог с мясом) is made with beef and potatoes and is easy to make. This is a recipe from my childhood that my mother used to make for us all the time. Everyone loves a meat pie, and there are so many different ways to make them across so many cultures.
What is a Pirog Pie?
A Pirog is is Russian pie, covered in dough, baked and filled with a sweet or savory filling. If you have more than one, they're called Pirogi (пироги) which is not to be confused with Pierogi, a Polish boiled dumpling. Quite often, you never just make one! Pirogi are a very important part of Russian cuisine.
Dough for Pirog
This Russian Meat Pie can be made from a yeast dough, puff pastry or unleavened dough. Most commonly they would be made with a yeast dough, but my mom's homemade recipe was made as a no yeast pirog. This makes it an easy Russian meat pie recipe. Making yeast dough takes time, and this recipe is a time saver and tastes great.
If you want to make the yeast dough version, just watch the recipe below for the yeast dough instructions! My Russian Yeast Dough recipe can be use for almost anything!
Filling for Pirogi
Pirogi come in different shapes from round, oblong to rectangle. Different variations of fillings like beef, chicken or cabbage are common. Karelian Pastries are often filled with rice and boiled egg or buckwheat. This meat pie recipe is filled with ground beef, potato, peppers, carrot and green onions. Here are some other Pirog Pie fillings;
- Kulebyaka - Salmon and Rice Pie
- Piroshki - small hand pies
- Kurnik - round pie made with chicken
- Blueberry Pirog with Yeast Dough
- Cabbage Pie with Puff Pastry
Can You Freeze a Meat Pirog?
Mom would always make 2 Pirogi at the same time. It's really not much more work to make one meat pie or two meat pies. One was made for dinner that night and the other was frozen for another day. Yes, you can freeze this pie, but it needs to be baked first for best results.
This beef pie recipe is made with potatoes, red peppers, carrots and green onions. And don't forget the black pepper! Everyone loves making a meat pie, this one is bit more rustic, yeast free and delicious. Bon Appetit! Приятного аппетита!
Ingredients
For the filling
- 2 pounds ground beef (1 kg)
- 4 medium potatoes
- 1 red pepper thinly sliced
- 1 carrot quartered and thinly sliced
- 1 onion diced
- 1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced (about 5 stalks)
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon salt
- ¼ cup water or broth
- 2 tablespoons oil
For the dough
- 4 cups flour 500g
- 1 cup melted butter about 200g of butter
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ cup hot water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg
- 1 egg yolk for egg wash
Instructions
- To prepare the dough, place the flour, salt and baking powder into a large bowl. Add the melted butter and hot water, and mix using a spoon. When mixed, it will still feel a bit dry, add the egg and mix. If you add the egg with the hot butter, it can cook the egg, which ruins the dough.
- Place the dough on a lightly floured surface. The dough will be soft, so gently knead to keep the dough soft.
- Prepare the vegetables. Mix together the ground beef, thinly sliced vegetables, black pepper, salt, water and oil.
- Cut the dough in ⅔ and ⅓ pieces. The ⅔ piece will be used as the base of the Pirog pie, and the ⅓ piece will be the cover. Roll the dough into about ½cm or ¼" thick.
- Put the larger dough inside a 8.5" x 11.5 baking pan, including up the sides. You can lightly grease the pan if you like, however the dough has enough butter so I find it doesn't stick. Place the meat mixture inside and cover with the small piece of dough. Pinch the dough edges together to seal. Cut off any excess dough and set aside to make a dough pattern on top.
- Using a fork, pierce the dough randomly across the top, to allow steam to escape when cooking. Ensure the holes to seal up, you can also cut a round circle in the middle. Roll out the excess dough, and cut some leaf patterns. Place on top of the pie. Beat the egg yolk and brush the dough for a golden finish.
- Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C. Place into the oven and cook for about 50-60 minutes until golden brown, the potatoes are soft and the meat runs clear.
©PetersFoodAdventures.com
Alina
Hell Peter,
Looks amazing. Photos alone make me want to eat the entire thing. I was wondering if you cook the filling prior to placing it in the dough?
Peter's Food Adventures
Thanks Alina! I don’t cook the filling, it’s put in raw and baked together 😊
Amanda
You reversed the Celsius and Fahrenheit ☹️ made this at work & our clients were very upset to have to wait another 45 minutes to cook.
Peter's Food Adventures
Thanks for noticing, have fixed it - definitely 350F and 180F 👍🏻
Rosemary Thyme
Okay. The pie crust was so awful to work with. I’m so sorry. It was so bad. The meal is wonderful great flavor all that. But the crust? No. It was so unworkable and I followed every single step on your recipe. I run a blog, I talk a lot of food and I. Love. Pie. In my opinion, hot butter and hot water is where it went wrong. It should have been COLD ice water and softened butter cut into chunks. The problem with your dough, is that unless of you put it in the fridge (which isn’t noted in the recipe) it was too warm. It had hardly any stretch and if you didn’t use it right away, it would become too stiff in minutes. Maybe I did something wrong, but I know food and I followed your recipe to the letter. Anyways, thank you for the recipe the actual meat mixture was great. I would just highly recommend revising the pie crust to something better and more workable. Thank you.
Peter's Food Adventures
I'm sorry to hear this pie dough didn't work for you. Unsure as to the reason why it didn't work for you, as it works well for me, and is how my mother has made for over 50 years. As a blogger and a person who knows food, you would know that there are cold pie crust recipes and hot pie crust recipes, and this specific recipe has always been made as a hot crust pie (definitely not refrigerated). It sounds like you enjoyed the filling, and perhaps you'd have better luck with a different type of pie crust, or one you've worked with before 🙂 Thanks for your feedback
Kylie Archer
I was stopping by to make this again when I saw this comment. I have made this maybe 3, possibly 4 times, exactly following your recipe Peter and it has been amazing every.single.time.
I think the key thing for me is when I add the egg, I always make sure I've gotten it to the point of a workable dough before adding the egg, as that is integral.
It's such a different pastry to what I normally make and it does kind of make you question whether it will work the first time, but it's always been highly successful for me.
Peter's Food Adventures
Thanks Kylie, it’s an old family recipe and I’m glad you enjoyed it! Great tip on the egg 🥚 hopefully others might find it helpful. So glad to hear that you enjoy this savory pie recipe 🤗
Anna
Hi Peter. I want to make the recipe this week. Wanted to check it's plain flour, correct? Also vaguely recall my mother using sour cream. Does that ring any bells, or should I leave out. Thanks
Peter's Food Adventures
Hi Anna! Yes, just plain flour. You can use sour cream, but I wouldn't know the recipe amount. Sour cream in dough recipes is common in Eastern European cooking. It just adds more fat to the dough, maybe use a bit less butter and add some sour cream if you like. 👍🏻
Christina H.
Recommendation for how to cook a frozen pie (that I didn't bake first)?
Peter's Food Adventures
Hi Christina. I have only cooked from frozen when it has been parbaked. I'd still cook it at the same temperature from frozen, don't thaw it or it be be all soggy. I think it will require longer time in the oven.You will just need to keep checking. The important thing is that the meat is cooked. Enjoy 🙂
Shiryl
Thanks Peter
I have fond memories of my “once in a lifetime” trip to Russia in 1991. Loved all the home made dinners served by our hosts. Your recipes have been a joy to look at. I will return to your blog site often to add to my collection of old world country recipes
Bon Appetite!😊 Shiryl
Peter's Food Adventures
Thanks Shiryl for checking them out!
Yasmin
Why 4 stars only after your fond comment?
Christine @ myblissfulmess
For some reason I always thought that cooking recipes from other countries would be difficult. I've recently started taking a look at other recipes from around the world when I found this site, and I'm so glad I did! This pie looks amazing, and it's not at all difficult! Except maybe the dough. Not that your recipe is difficult, it's just that dough and I don't get along so that's more of a me problem. LOL Seriously, I am going to have to try my hand at dough again, just to make this. This is something I can bring to my dinner table and wow family with. I am loving your blog too!
Peter's Food Adventures
Lol - thanks for your comments, made me smile 😊Hope you enjoy it!
Karen (Back Road Journal)
I'm happy that I came across your post today. Your meat pie looks and sounds great. I'm pinned and will be making it for friends soon.
Peter's Food Adventures
Thanks Karen! I hope you love it as much as we do!! Thanks for pinning! 👍🏻