Leftover Roast Dinner Pie
Turn last night’s roast into a bubbling, golden-topped pie — hearty, economical and ready in under an hour.
Leftovers deserve better than reheated slices and soggy veg. This Leftover Roast Dinner Pie turns yesterday’s roast into a hearty, bubbling bake with a crisp mash top — the ultimate comfort reheat.
It’s a forgiving recipe: use whatever roast meat and vegetables you have. It’s brilliant midweek, feeds a family and tastes like effort with minimal fuss.
Ingredients
- 500 g leftover roast meat — shredded or chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 600 g leftover roast potatoes — rough pieces, will be mashed for the topping
- 350 g leftover mixed roast vegetables — carrots, parsnips, sprouts or similar, roughly chopped
- 250 ml leftover gravy
- 1 brown onion — finely sliced
- 15 ml plain flour — for thickening
- 100 ml hot beef or chicken stock — use whatever matches your meat
- 25 g butter — for mash topping and dotting
- 50 ml whole milk — for loosening the mash
- 15 ml olive oil
- sea salt — to taste
- black pepper — to taste
- 10 g fresh parsley — roughly chopped, for garnish
Equipment
- baking dish (20 x 25 cm)
- potato masher
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 200°C fan/220°C conventional. Grease a baking dish roughly 20 x 25 cm.
Make the potato topping: break up the leftover roast potatoes in a saucepan or microwave until warmed through. Mash with the butter and whole milk until smooth-ish — you want a rough texture, not a completely silky mash. Season to taste with sea salt and black pepper.
Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over a medium hob. Add the sliced brown onion and a pinch of sea salt and sweat gently until soft and pale golden, about 6–8 minutes.
Add the chopped leftover roast meat and the chopped leftover mixed roast vegetables to the pan and toss to warm through. Sprinkle over the plain flour and cook, stirring, for 1–2 minutes to remove the raw flour taste.
Pour in the leftover gravy and the hot stock, stir well and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook for 5–7 minutes until the sauce has thickened slightly and the filling is bubbling. Taste and adjust seasoning with sea salt and black pepper.
Spoon the hot filling into the prepared baking dish and level the surface with the back of a spoon.
Top the filling with the mashed roast potatoes, spreading evenly. Rough up the surface with a fork to create peaks and valleys (they crisp nicely) and dot the top with small bits of the remaining butter.
Bake in the preheated oven for 20–25 minutes until the filling is bubbling at the edges and the potato topping is golden.
Remove from the oven and rest for 5 minutes. Scatter the chopped fresh parsley over the top and serve straight from the dish.
Tips
- If your leftover gravy is thin, reduce it in the pan until it coats the back of a spoon before adding stock.
- For extra crispness, place the pie under the grill for 1–2 minutes at the end — watch it constantly to avoid burning.
- Make the mash a little firmer than you’d normally like; it will loosen slightly while baking and hold a better crust.
- This is a great make-ahead: assemble and chill (covered) for up to 24 hours, then bake 30–35 minutes from chilled, adding a few minutes if needed.
- If using leftover roast potatoes that are already very seasoned, taste the filling before adding extra salt.
Substitutions
leftover roast potatoes → 800 g raw floury potatoes (peeled, boiled and mashed)
Stays closeleftover roast meat → 400 g cooked lentils or a mix of chestnut mushrooms and cooked lentils
Noticeably differentleftover gravy → 200 ml stock plus 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce and 1 tsp soy sauce
Stays close
Nutrition
Per serving · estimated
- 675
- Calories
- 36 g
- Protein
- 37 g
- Carbs
- 43 g
- Fat
- 6 g
- Fibre
- 5 g
- Sugar
- 700 mg
- Sodium
FAQ
Can I use cold filling straight into the oven?
Yes, but heat the filling through in the pan first so the centre is piping hot when the pie comes out. Cold filling will lengthen the bake time and may dry the mash.
How long will this keep in the fridge?
Stored covered, it will keep 2–3 days. Reheat in a 180°C fan oven until piping hot throughout.
Can I freeze the pie?
Yes — freeze before baking for up to 1 month. Bake from frozen at 180°C fan for 50–60 minutes, loosely covered with foil for the first 35 minutes, then uncover to brown.
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