Chicken Lemon And Leek Pot Pie Food

CHICKEN AND LEEK POT PIE

Steps:

• First, pour the cider into a medium saucepan, along with the carrots, bay leaf, sprig of thyme and some salt and freshly milled black pepper. Bring to simmering point, then cover with a lid and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Now take the tough green ends off the leeks, then make a vertical split halfway down the centre of each leek, and run them under cold water to rid them of any hidden grit. Then slice them in half lengthways and chop into 1/2 inch (1 cm) slices. Add the chicken and leeks to the pan and simmer, covered, for a further 10 minutes. For the sauce, all you do is place the milk, flour, butter and cayenne pepper into a medium saucepan and place it over a gentle heat. Then, using a balloon whisk, begin to whisk while bringing it to a gentle simmer. Whisk continually until you have a smooth, glossy sauce, and simmer very gently for 5 minutes. Then add the cheeses and whisk again, allowing them to melt. Then season with salt, freshly milled black pepper and some freshly grated nutmeg. Next, drain the chicken and vegetables, reserving the liquid, but not the bay leaf and thyme. Now pour the liquid back into the pan, bring it to the boil and reduce to about 2 tablespoons. Meanwhile, skin the chicken and cut it into bite-sized strips. Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 6, 400F (200C). Now stir the cheese sauce into the cider, bring to a simmer, and stir the chicken, carrots and leeks into the sauce, before transferring the whole lot to the dish. Next, to make a lid, roll the pastry out thinly on a lightly floured surface. Cut out a 9 inch (23 cm) round, then roll out the trimmings and cut a 1/2 inch (1 cm) strip. Now dampen the edge of the dish with water and press the strip of pastry around the rim. Dampen the strip and carefully lift the pastry lid over the top. Press it firmly over the edge to get a good seal all round, then trim, using a knife. Finally, gather up the trimmings and re-roll them to cut into leaf shapes. Brush the surface of the pie with beaten egg, and arrange the leaves on top. Now, brush the leaves with beaten egg, sprinkle with Parmesan and bake on the baking sheet for 20 minutes.

CHICKEN & LEEK POT PIES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Chop the parsnips and potatoes into chunks, then boil for 15 mins until tender. Drain, reserving the water, then mash with a little seasoning.
• Cut chicken into small chunks, then toss in the cornflour. Heat the oil in a large pan, add the leeks, then fry for 3 mins until starting to soften. Add the chicken and 200ml water from the potatoes, then bring to the boil, stirring. Reduce the heat, then gently simmer for 10 mins, until the chicken is just tender. Remove from the heat, then stir in the lemon zest, parsley, crème fraîche and mustard.
• Divide the chicken filling between four 300ml pie dishes. Spoon over the mash and spread roughly with a fork to seal in the filling. Bake for 25 mins until the topping is crisp and golden.

CHICKEN, LEMON AND LEEK POT PIE

Steps:

• chicken meat into large dice. dust with the flour, using a plastic bag works well shaking off the excess. Chicken thighs have a better flavour than using breast.
• Using a skillet or large frying pan cook the chicken in the oil in two batches so that its sealed all over and slightly brown. Remove from the pan and put to one side.
• Heat up the frypan, adding a touch more oil if necessary. add the leek, garlic, carrot and the thyme cook for a couple of minutes then add the stock and the wine and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the lemon juice and seasoning to taste.
• Place into a pie dish, and cover with the puff pastry, glaze with the beaten egg. Place in a preheated oven 190c and cook for 15-20 minutes until the pastry has risen and golden brown.
• Serve and Enjoy.

MUSTARD CHICKEN & LEEK ONE-POT

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a wide casserole dish over a medium-high heat, and season the chicken all over. Cook the chicken on all sides until the skin is crisp and golden brown (they don't need to be cooked through at this point). Transfer to a plate.
• Discard all of the fat in the pan except about 1 tsp, and fry the leeks for 5-6 mins until starting to turn bright green and tender. Add a splash of water if the leeks are beginning to turn golden. Scoop out and set aside with the chicken.
• Tip the potatoes into the pan, then pour over the chicken stock and nestle in the thyme. Cook, uncovered, over a high heat for 10 mins, then reduce the heat to medium. Stir in the mustard, crème fraîche, peas and leeks. Nestle the chicken back into the pan, so it's mostly covered by the sauce.
• Put on the lid and cook for about 20-25 mins until the chicken is cooked through and the potatoes are tender. If you prefer a thicker sauce, mix the flour in a small bowl with 2 tbsp cold water. Stir into the sauce and simmer with the lid off for 2-3 mins more until the sauce thickens. Grind over some black pepper to serve.

CHICKEN, BACON AND LEEK POT PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 180C.
• Chop the shallots and garlic.
• Heat olive oil in heavy base medium sized deep casserole on stove.
• Add shallots and garlic and fry gently til transparent.
• Chop bacon into small squares and fry.
• Discard green section of leeks 1 inch above white section.
• Clean leek stalks carefully.
• Chop leeks into disks and add to fry mixture.
• When leeks are soft, add sliced mushrooms.
• Fry til mushrooms are darker and soft.
• Add white wine and bring to boil.
• Simmer for 5 minutes.
• Add shredded bbq chicken pieces including skin pieces.
• Add chives and some salt and pepper.
• Add water and bring to simmer.
• Mix flour with a bit of water in a cup til it is a paste.
• Add flour/water paste slowly, simmering mixture, until desired thickness is achieved. (think about the inside of a pie, and make it a little runnier than that). Add more water if necessary.
• Add sour cream.
• Fit circle of puff pastry over casserole and puncture surface with fork.
• Bake in oven til pastry is golden.

CHICKEN, LEEK & CIDER PIE

Steps:

• Melt 40g of the butter in a saucepan and add the flour. Stir this over a medium-low heat for 1 min to make a roux. Remove from the heat and start adding the cider a little at a time. Mix well with a wooden spoon to ensure there are no lumps. Keep stirring until all the cider has been added, then add the milk in the same way. Season, return the pan to the heat and, stirring continuously, bring to the boil. The mixture will thicken considerably and, once it has come to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for about 3 mins. Stir in the mustard, lemon juice and crème fraîche , and taste for seasoning.
• Melt the rest of the butter in a frying pan and gently fry the leeks and the apples for 5 mins. Add 2 tbsp of water, season, cover and cook over a low heat for 8-10 mins until tender. If there are lots of juices, increase the heat to reduce them.
• Add half the cheese to the sauce, then bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and gently stir in the leeks and apples and taste - you may want to add more mustard or lemon juice. Cool and chill the sauce until you're ready to assemble the pie.
• Stir the chicken into the cooled sauce. Put the mixture into a 25 x 20cm pie dish or a round dish measuring 25cm across (with a 1.3 litre capacity). Sprinkle with the rest of the cheese and leave to cool completely.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/ gas 6. On a lightly floured surface, roll the pastry out to the thickness of a 50 p coin. Cut off a strip the same width as the lip of the pie dish. Wet the lip and press this strip onto it. Brush the strip with water and lay the rest of the pastry on top. Press the pastry lid onto the pastry strip, then cut off the excess. Crimp the edges and use the remaining pastry to decorate the top of the pie. Make three small slits in the pastry near the middle to let the steam escape. Brush the top with the egg mixture and bake in the oven for 30 -40 mins, until the pastry is a deep golden colour and puffed up. Serve immediately.

CHICKEN, LEEK & LEMON PIE

Steps:

• Combine oil& lemon juice.
• Toss with chicken breasts and season to taste.
• Preheat broiler or use grill pan.
• Broil breasts 5 minutes per side or until they are still slightly pink in the center.
• Cool, cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes& reserve.
• Place garlic in cold water, bring to a boil& boil for 5 minutes.
• Drain garlic, peel& reserve.
• Cut dark green leaves from leeks& discard.
• Wash leeks well& cut into 1 inch sections.
• Heat butter in skillet on medium heat; add leeks& garlic and saute for about 3 minutes or until leeks soften.
• Stir in flour& cook until golden, about 4 minutes, adding more butter,if necessary.
• Stir in chicken stock, tarragon, lemon juice& zest; bring to a boil.
• Add cream, reduce heat& simmer for about 5 minutes or until thick& glossy.
• Season to taste.
• Stir in green peas& chicken.
• Place in a 6 cup (1 1/2 litre) baking dish or individual baking dishes.
• Roll out your own pastry or my No Fail Pastry 1/4 inch thick to cover the top of the dish.
• Cut a 1 inch strip from the edges of the pastry.
• Brush the edges of the baking dish with water& lay the strip around the edges.
• Brush with egg.
• Lay the remaining pastry on top, sealing edges.
• Cut a steam hole& brush with egg.
• Bake in preheated 375F oven, on the middle rack for 30 to 35 minutes or until pastry is golden& mixture bubbles.

CHICKEN, LEEK & MUSHROOM PIE

Steps:

• Put the chicken in a large pan with the bay, half the thyme sprigs, the parsley stalks, onions, garlic, stock and seasoning. Pour the milk over the chicken and, if you need to, top up with water to make sure the chicken is covered. Bring the chicken to the boil, then turn down and simmer for 15 mins. Lift from the liquid and leave to cool.
• Drain the poaching liquid through a sieve into a large jug - you need 650ml to make the sauce for your pie.
• Meanwhile, heat the butter in a saucepan over a low-medium heat. Add the leeks and the mushrooms, and cook for 5-10 mins until soft, then season well. Add the flour and stir to coat the vegetables. Slowly add the poaching liquid, stirring until you have a thick sauce.
• Using two forks, pull the chicken apart into thumb-sized chunks rather than chopping it - I feel you get a far better pie this way. Chop the parsley leaves, then stir into the leeks with the thyme leaves, crème frâiche and chicken. Check the seasoning, then spoon the mixture into your pie dish (or dishes) to cool slightly.
• Heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Roll out the pastry on a lightly dusted work surface to the thickness of a £1 coin. Cut thin strips from the edges and use a little water to stick these around the lip of the pie dish, then wet the top of the pastry strip. Lift the pastry on top of the pie, trim the edges and crimp them with your fingers or a fork. Brush the top with milk and cut a steam hole in the middle.
• Put the dish on a baking sheet and cook in the oven for 20-25 mins until the pastry is risen and golden. Some of the filling will have bubbled up through the steam hole. Have a bottle of tomato ketchup on hand to serve, if you like - and be careful, the pie will be hot.

CHICKEN & LEEK PIE

Steps:

• Put the chicken into a deep pan that is just large enough to hold it quite snugly. Pour in enough water to half-cover the bird, then tip in the peppercorns, bay leaves, thyme, onion and celery. Add ½ tsp salt and bring to the boil on the hob, then reduce the heat, cover tightly and simmer for 1 hr-1 hr 15 until tender.
• Transfer the chicken to a plate. Strain 425ml of the stock into a measuring jug (top up with water if you need to). Strip the meat off the chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces and put in a 1.7-litre pie dish.
• Put the eggs in boiling water and boil for 6 minutes. Drain, cool them under cold water and remove the shells. Quarter the eggs and nestle them in the pie dish among the chicken pieces.
• Heat the butter and oil in a large frying pan and fry the bacon until crisp. Add the leeks and cook for 2 minutes until softened. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Pour in the chicken stock a third at a time, stirring continuously and making sure the sauce is thick and smooth before adding the next batch. Stir in the mustard, crème fraîche and parsley, then add a squeeze of lemon juice and black pepper to taste. Add salt if needed. Spoon over the chicken and leave to cool.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Reserve a quarter of the pastry for decoration and roll out the remainder to a shape about 5cm larger than the top of the pie dish, then cut a 2.5cm strip from all round the edge. Brush the edge of the dish with water and stick the pastry strip to it. Brush the strip with water. Flip the pastry lid over the rolling pin, lift it up and unroll over the pie. Press the edge on to the pastry strip to seal, and trim any excess with a sharp knife.
• Tap the blade of a small sharp knife all along the outside edge of the pastry (this helps the edge to rise during cooking), then flute it using the back of the knife. Make a hole in the lid centre with the tip of the knife, to allow steam to escape as the pie bakes.
• Roll out the pastry you put aside earlier. Cut 8 long strips each about 1cm wide, and two more strips each about 4cm wide. Cut the wider strips diagonally to make eight diamond leaf shapes. Mark the veins of the leaves with the tip of a sharp knife. Brush the pastry lid with beaten egg, then lay the eight thin strips on top, as in the picture. Brush again with egg and arrange the leaves in the centre, between the strips. Brush with egg.
• Chill the pie for 15 mins, if you have time, to set the pastry. Will keep in the fridge for one day - just add 4-5 mins to baking time. Bake for 30-35 mins until the pastry is crisp, puffed up and deep golden brown.