Squab pie chops. The mixture should be covered with water, though less than in some pies, covered with pastry and baked in the oven for about two hours. Within the UK, the most common variation is to use lamb instead of mutton. Gloucester Squab pie did not require lamb and suggests any leftover meat could be used. Other ingredients can be included, for example Agatha Christie produced a variant which included hard-boiled eggs and another recipe took the concept of serving with clotted cream and adds cream to thicken. Outside of England, the concept of squab pie does exist, but in a
Pie bird Pie bird A pie bird, pie vent, pie whistle, pie funnel, or pie chimney is a hollow ceramic device, originating in Europe, shaped like a funnel, chimney, or upstretched bird with open beak used for supporting or venting a pie. Funnel-style steam vents have been placed in the center of fruit and meat pies during cooking since Victorian times; bird shapes came later. Pie funnels were used to prevent pie filling from boiling up and leaking through the crust by allowing steam to escape from inside the pie. They also supported the pastry crust in the center of the pie,