Jamie Oliver Chicken And Leek Food

PROPER CHICKEN PIE

Steps:

• Use a large sharp knife to carefully cut down the back bone of the chicken, cutting it in half. Season with sea salt and black pepper.
• Drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil into a large non-stick frying pan on a high heat. Add the chicken, skin-side down, and sear for 10 minutes, or until golden. Reserve the pan for the cabbage.
• Meanwhile, chop the pancetta into 1cm chunks, pick in the thyme leaves and place in a large shallow casserole pan with 1 teaspoon of oil. Put it on a medium heat so the fat renders out, while you wash and trim the white part of the leek (save the green for making soup) and the celery. Peel the onion and carrot, then roughly chop all the veg into 1.5cm chunks and add to the pan. Cook for 10 minutes, or until softened.
• Stir in 2 heaped tablespoons of flour, cook for 2 minutes, then pour in the cider. Let it bubble away for 2 minutes or until almost evaporated, then stir in the mustard and stock. Add the chicken breast-side down, bring to a simmer, then cover and cook on a low heat for 1 hour, or until the chicken is cooked through and tender.
• Meanwhile, for the pastry, put the flour in a bowl with a good pinch of salt. Grate in the cold butter, then rub with your fingers until it resembles breadcrumbs. Pour in 100ml of cold water, mix with a fork, then bring together with your hands until it forms a dough, adding an extra splash of water if needed. Divide into 2 pieces - you will need ⅓ for the lid and ⅔ for the base - flatten with your hands and chill until needed.
• Finely slice the mushrooms and set aside.
• Transfer the chicken to a plate and shred the meat (discard the carcass).
• Stir the mushrooms into the pan, followed by the shredded chicken and the crème fraîche, mix well and season to taste.
• Strain the chicken mixture through a sieve over a clean pan to catch the liquid, gently pressing to help it along, and reserve for your gravy. Leave to cool.
• Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/gas 5.
• Lightly grease a 30cm pie dish with oil. Roll out the larger piece of pastry between 2 sheets of greaseproof paper to just a few millimetres thick and use it to line the dish - allow an overhang. Press firmly into the edges and up the sides of the dish.
• Fill with the cooled chicken mixture, then carefully roll out and top with the remaining piece of pastry. Beat the egg and brush a little over the edge of the lid then fold over the overhang and press down gently to seal. Egg wash the pie all over, then make a small incision in the centre to let the steam escape and bake at the bottom of the oven for 1 hour, or until the pastry is golden and the pie is piping hot.
• Click off and discard any tatty outer leaves from the cabbage, then cut in half. Halve the core, then finely slice. Roughly chop the rest into large chunks. Place the chicken pan on a high heat, add the cabbage stalks and fry for 2 minutes, then go in with the leaves and a splash of water and cook for 5 minutes more, or until softened and lightly charred. Stir in the mustard, then add a pinch of salt and white pepper with a splash of water, and simmer for 1 minute, tossing a few times.
• Reheat the gravy and enjoy with the pie and cabbage. Delicious served with creamy mash.

CHICKEN, LEEK & PEA PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4. Grease a 30cm x 25cm baking dish.
• Cook the pasta in a large pan of boiling salted water, for slightly less time than given on the packet so it's just undercooked. Drain and run under cold water to stop it from cooking further. Return to the saucepan and coat with a drizzle of olive oil.
• Meanwhile, roughly chop the leeks. Put the butter in a frying pan and gently fry the leeks for 10 minutes or until they're soft. Peel, mince and add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the stock and wine, then cook for 8 to 10 minutes, or until almost all the liquid has evaporated. Add the peas, stir and cook for 30 seconds.
• Dice the cooked chicken.
• To the drained pasta, add the leek mixture, chicken, milk and two-thirds of the ricotta. Mix gently to combine and season with salt and pepper.
• Spoon the pasta mixture into the baking dish. Top with the remaining ricotta, grate over the Parmesan and drizzle with olive oil, if you like. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until piping hot and starting to crisp up on top.

CHICKPEA AND LEEK SOUP

Steps:

• Rinse the soaked chickpeas, cover with water, and cook with the potato until tender. Remove the outer skin of the leeks, slice lengthways from the root up, wash carefully and slice finely.
• Warm a thick-bottomed pan, and add the tablespoon of oil and the knob of butter. Add the leeks and garlic to the pan, and sweat gently with a good pinch of salt until tender and sweet. Add the drained chickpeas and potato and cook for 1 minute. Add about 2/3 of the stock and simmer for 15 minutes.
• Puree half of the soup in a food processor, and leave the other half chunky. This gives a lovely smooth comforting feel but also keeps a bit of texture. Now, add enough of the remaining stock to achieve the consistency you like. Check for seasoning, and add Parmesan, to taste, to round off the flavors.
• This is classy enough for a starter, but I like it best for lunch in a big bowl with a good drizzle of my best peppery extra-virgin olive oil, a grinding of black pepper and an extra sprinkling of Parmesan.

LEEK AND POTATO SOUP--JAMIE OLIVER

Steps:

• Remove roots, outer leaves, and tops from leeks. Cut each in half lengthwise, then crosswise into 1/2" slices. Immerse in cold water; swirl. Drain.
• Bring broth to a boil in a large saucepan over medium high heat.
• Heat oil in a large dutch oven over medium high heat. Add leek, onion, celery, carrot, and garlic. Partially cover, and cook 20 minutes. Stir occasionally.
• Add hot broth and potato; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer until potato is tender. Stir in pepper and salt.
• Serve chunky, or puree with an immersion blender.

PROSCIUTTO-WRAPPED CHICKEN & LEEK TERRINE

Steps:

• Gently cook the leeks for 15 mins in 2 tbsp olive oil until soft, then set aside to cool. In the remaining oil, fry the mushrooms with the garlic and thyme for 2 mins, then set aside to cool. Soak the gelatine in cold water, then heat the stock. Dissolve the gelatine in the stock, season, then set aside. Gather all the ingredients so you have them to hand when you start to assemble the terrine.
• Line a terrine dish or loaf tin with cling flim. Line with slices of prosciutto so that they overlap to cover the base and sides, and overhang the edges.
• Wet the bottom of the dish with a drizzle of stock. Arrange a single layer of chicken so that everything is even - don't worry about any gaps - then pour over a little more stock.
• Scatter over a layer of mushrooms (discarding the garlic and thyme). Season with salt and pepper, then moisten again with a little more stock.
• Add more chicken followed by a layer of leeks, another layer of chicken, then the herbs. Drizzle stock between every layer and season with salt and pepper as you go. Repeat until all the ingredients are used up or the terrine is full to the brim. Finish with a final scattering of herbs, a last ladleful of stock, then tap the dish down a few times so that the stock gets into all the gaps.
• Fold the prosciutto over to encase the terrine. Fold the cling film over and press down gently. Sit the terrine in a dish to catch any juices. Lay a tray on top, weigh it down with a can and chill overnight. Twenty mins before serving, remove the tray. Put the terrine in the freezer to firm. Just before serving, lift it out of the dish. Wrap it tightly in more cling film.
• Carefully slice the terrine, still wrapped in its cling film. Remove the cling film and place a slice in the centre of each plate. Arrange chunks of spiced pear (recipe below) around terrine. Drizzle a little chicken poaching liquid around the plate, then drizzle with a tiny bit of oil. Neatly scatter a few baby salad leaves over the pear, then season the terrine with some sea salt and pepper before serving.

CHICKEN & LEEK FILO PIE

Steps:

• Heat a third of the butter in a large saucepan, cook the leeks for 10 mins or until softened, then tip onto a plate and repeat with another third of the butter and the mushrooms. Heat the remaining butter in the same saucepan and, once melted, stir in the flour and cook the sandy paste for 1 min, then stir in the chicken stock a ladleful at a time. Leave on a low heat to simmer for 5 mins, then stir the chicken, leek, mushrooms, cream and mustard into the sauce, add the parsley and season with salt and cracked black pepper. Spoon into a 20cm pie dish and leave to cool.
• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Lay a sheet of filo on a chopping board and brush with olive oil, then place on top of the pie with the corners resting on the sides of the dish, then repeat the process, placing the next sheet slightly off-centre - the idea is to fan the sheets of filo. Brush every layer with oil, and on the last layer sprinkle over salt, thyme leaves and nigella seeds. Press the pastry gently into the edge of the dish. Bake for about 1 hr until the pastry is deep golden, then remove from the oven and serve with buttered cabbage and mashed potato, if you like.

THE BEST CHICKEN AND SWEET LEEK PIE WITH FLAKY PASTRY

Steps:

• Prepare the chicken:Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Take a large casserole pot and add your olive oil and butter.
• Add the chicken, leeks, carrots, celery, and thyme and cook slowly on the stove for 15 minutes. Turn the heat right up, add the flour, and keep stirring for a couple of minutes before adding the wine, a wineglass of water, and the milk. Season with a little salt and freshly ground black pepper, then cover with a tight-fitting lid and simmer very slowly on the stove for 30 to 40 minutes until the chicken is tender. Stir it every so often so it doesn't catch on the bottom of the pan. The sauce should be loose but quite thick. If it's a little too liquid, just continue to simmer it with the lid off until it thickens slightly. (At this point you can let it cool and keep it in the fridge for a couple of days if you want to - it can also be eaten as a stew.)
• Assemble the pie: Pour the chicken mixture into an appropriately sized pie dish. Squeeze the meat out of the sausage skins, roll it into little balls, brown them in a little oil and sprinkle them over the stew.
• Roll out your pastry to about 1/4 inch thick. Egg-wash the rim of the dish and drape over the pastry, using a knife to trim the edge of the dish. Egg-wash the top of the pastry to make it go golden while cooking, then pinch it to crimp it round the edges (there's no need to do this, but I like to as my mum always does it and it makes it look pretty). I use the back of a knife to lightly crisscross the top - this allows the pastry to go crisp and flaky. Cook the pie in the center of the oven for about 30 to 40 minutes, until golden on top. I like to serve this with corn off the cob and mashed potato.