The Single Crust Chicken Pot Pie proves to be a relatively simple recipe. A puff pastry crust covers a richly sauced filling. The filling comprises of vegetables and shredded chicken. There’s nothing too complicated about this pie. It breaks down into easily manageable steps.
Chicken Pot Pie Process & Ingredients
Now, let’s delve into the ingredients and the process in more detail. But first, allow me to express how splendid this pie is. While you can opt to make your own puff pastry you don’t have to. Shop-bought ready-rolled puff pastry, especially if it’s an ‘all butter’ variety, works exceptionally well. Utilising the ready-rolled pastry is what maintains the simplicity of this recipe.
The filling for the pie use the chicken meat of your preference. Personally, I always favour skinless, boned chicken thighs for their succulence. But chicken breast works equally well. The vegetable ensemble consists of finely chopped onion, celery, carrot, as well as peas. Additionally, the creamy sauce, has a butter and flour roux, blended with milk, chicken stock, mustard, and fresh thyme. This sauce, combined with the chicken and vegetables, makes the ideal filling for the pie.
While the process isn’t overly challenging, it does demand a bit of time. However, the time invested is truly worthwhile for such a stellar pie. Start by lightly browning the chicken pieces and then setting them aside. Then, gently fry the onions, celery, and carrots until they’ve softened, and set them aside as well. The next step involves making the sauce. It starts with a roux of melted butter and flour. Then stir in milk and stock to create a silky, smooth sauce. Incorporate Dijon Mustard and fresh thyme leaves, and the sauce is complete, pending seasoning to taste.
Assembly & Baking
Once the sauce is ready, add the chicken and vegetables, including frozen peas, and bring everything to a gentle simmer. Cover the pan and cook for approximately 20 minutes, ensuring the chicken is thoroughly cooked. Shred the chicken into pieces, taste the sauce, and adjust the seasoning. Then, transfer the filling into a 9-inch/23 cm pie dish. Cover the filling with puff pastry, tucking in any excess. Brush the top with egg wash, create one or two vent holes. Bake the pie for about 40 minutes until the top is nicely brown. That concludes the process.
My Chicken Pot Pie
My chicken pot pie baked for 40 minutes, resulting in nicely browned and well-risen puff pastry. The filling was bubbling beneath the crust too. As I was rather hungry, I served myself a generous portion. The chicken was succulent in the creamy sauce, the vegetables were perfectly cooked, and the puff pastry crust was delightfully crisp. Altogether, it was a highly successful combination, creating a splendid dinner.
Another great pie recipe is Deep Filled Minced Beef Pie
Single Crust Chicken Pot Pie
4
servings30
minutes40
minutesKeep the screen of your device on
Ingredients
1 sheet of ready rolled puff pastry
1kg(2.2lbs) skinless, boned, chicken thighs(or chicken of choice)
300g(2 cups) finely chopped onion
200g(1 1/2 cup) finely chopped carrot
130g(1 cup) finely chopped celery
130g(1 cup) frozen peas
480ml(2 cups) whole milk
240g(1 cup) chicken stock
15ml(1 tbsp) Dijon Mustard, or other mustard
3g(1 tbps) fresh thyme leaves
30ml(2 tbps) flavourless oil
50g(3 1/2 tbsp) unsalted butter
50g(1/3 cup, based on scooping packed flour into a 250ml cup)plain flour
salt and pepper to taste
1 beaten egg, for egg wash
Directions
- Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large pan.
- Brown the chicken lightly, in batches, and set aside.
- Add the remaining oil into the pan and lower the heat a little then add the onions, celery and carrots.
- Cook them for about 10 minutes, until they have softened. Then transfer to a bowl and set aside.
- On a low heat add the butter and allow it to melt.
- Add in the flour and stir vigorously to make a smooth paste.
- Slowly add in the milk, whisking all the while, to make a smooth sauce.
- Pour in the chicken stock and add the mustard and thyme too.
- Season the sauce with salt and pepper, to your own taste.
- Add the chicken, softened vegetables and the frozen peas and stir through the sauce.
- Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer then cover the pan and allow it to cook for about 20 minutes, until the chicken is thoroughly cooked. Mine reached between 88C and 92C(192F- 197F).
- Use a couple of forks to shred the chicken in to pieces.
- Transfer the filling to a 9 inch/23cm pie dish and leave to cool for a short while.
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/390F.
- Cut the sheet of puff pasty to a size just a little larger than the top of the pie dish.
- Brush the edge of the dish with beaten egg.
- Lay the pastry over the top of the pie dish and tuck the edge under, pressing down onto the dish.
- Make a couple of vent holes in the pastry.
- Brush the pastry with beaten egg.
- Place the pie dish on a baking tray, to catch any sauce that might seep out of the pie.
- Bake the pie for 35 to 40 minutes, until the pastry has browned nicely on top and the filling is bubbling.
- Remove the pie from the oven and serve just as soon as you are ready.