Traditional Chicken Pie 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.

TRADITIONAL CHICKEN PIE

Steps:

• Place the chicken in a large pan. Stud the onion with cloves and add it to the pan with the carrot, bay leaves, stock cube and peppercorns. Cover with cold water and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the chicken is cooked. This will take about 45 minutes-1¼ hours, depending on the size of the chicken.
• Meanwhile, make the pastry. Sift the flour and salt together into a large mixing bowl. Dice the cold butter and vegetable shortening and rub them into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Mix in just enough cold water to form a stiff dough. Turn this out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently to form a smooth ball of dough. Wrap in clingfilm or place in a plastic bag and chill for at least 30 minutes.
• When the chicken is cooked, take the pan off the heat. Remove the chicken and place it on a plate. Put the pan back on the heat and reduce the cooking liquid to about 250ml/9fl oz. Strain the reduced liquid into a jug and leave to cool, then skim off the fat and discard it.
• When the chicken is cool enough to handle, cut the meat into chunks and discard the skin and bones.
• For the sauce, remove the cloves from the onion. Put the onion in a food processor with the reserved stock. Blend until smooth, then add the milk and set aside.
• Melt the butter in a pan and stir in the flour. Gradually add the stock and milk, then bring to the boil, stirring continuously. Reduce the heat and simmer for 4-5 minutes to cook out the taste of the flour. Season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then fold the meat gently into the sauce. Set the mixture aside to cool.
• Preheat the oven to 220C/210C Fan/Gas 7. Roll out two-thirds of the pastry and use it to line a 20-25cm/8-10in pie plate and add the cooled chicken mix.
• Roll out the remaining pastry to make a lid for the pie, brush the edge with beaten egg and pinch the edges together to seal.
• Decorate the top of the pie with leaves made from pastry trimmings and brush all over with beaten egg. Make a hole in the top of the pie to allow the steam to escape, then bake in the preheated oven for about 45 minutes, or until the pastry is golden-brown.

EASY CHICKEN POT PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• In a bowl combine the mixed vegetables, chicken, cream of chicken soup and milk. Pour mixture into one of the pie crusts. Turn the other crust over and pop out of the tin onto the top of the filled pie. Seal the edges and poke holes in top crust.
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes or until crust is golden brown.