Australian Meat (Chunky steak) Pie: loss of Gravy/Sauce after cooling/freezing

Main Question:

When cooking the beef stew portion of the Australian Meat (Chunky steak) Pie recipe, the created sauce/gravy ‘disappears’ after cooling or freezing.

How can one prevent this from happening?

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When the pie is baked directly after the stew has been completed, the pie has (almost) the desired amount of sauce/gravy.

The crust (both the base and top) a is Puff pastry and the base has been pre-baked and allowed to cool before filling.

But when reheated later, there is no sauce/gravy

• 180°C (355°F) [160°C Fan] / Gas 3 for 15-25 minutes

When the cooked filling is allowed to set for a day (in a second attempt) in the refrigerator, the gravy is no longer fluid but more of a mass between the meat chunks. So this seems also to happen before the pie is filled.

I have been told by a Canadian friend than when a store bought pie, that is not in a tin, is warmed up does contain gravy/sauce.

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Secondary Question:

• What are the proper dimensions for a 4 or 5 inch Pie Pan?

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Sources:

• Individual Meat Pies | Australia’s Best Recipes
• Meat Pie recipe! | RecipeTin Eats