As I start to think ahead to upcoming Christmas celebrations and all of the favourite festive season staples, I’m drawn to one of the ultimate classics, the chicken pie. It’s a timeless favourite and crowd pleaser that has so much potential for playing around and adding a fun twist or two. This season I’ve tried a Festive Chicken Potato Pie, complete with bacon bits. Delicious!
FESTIVE CHICKEN AND POTATO PIE
TIME: 3 hours | SERVES: 6
INGREDIENTS
for the filling
6 leeks
olive oil
125 g cream cheese
salt and freshly ground black pepper
10 deboned and skinless chicken thighs
250 g streaky bacon, cut into cubes
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 sprig fresh thyme
125 ml chicken stock
3 medium size potatoes
for the warm water pastry
300 g (325 ml) butter
320 ml water
600 g (1070 ml) cake flour
10 ml salt
30 ml melted butter
1 egg, beaten
METHOD
for the filling
Heat the oven to 180 °C. Slice the leeks in about 1 cm slices. Rinse thoroughly to get rid of any grid or sand. Drizzle a little olive oil in a saucepan. Add the leeks and fry over low heat till soft. Add the cream cheese and cook for another 1 minute till well blended. Season with salt and pepper.
Slice the chicken in smaller pieces. Drizzle some olive oil in a cast iron pot. Add the chicken and fry for about 1 minute. Add the bacon and fry till crispy. Add the garlic, thyme and stock and close with a lid. Place in the oven for 1 hour till chicken is soft. Take out and add the leeks. Mix through and leave to cool. Boil 2 of the potatoes till soft. Peel and slice in slices. Peel the last potato and slice extremely thin with a mandolin. Place the raw potato in water till needed.
for the warm water pastry
Place the butter and water into a saucepan. Place on medium heat until the butter has melted. Take the saucepan off the heat and add the flour and salt. Stir until well mixed. Place the dough onto a floured surface and knead for at least 5 minutes. Be careful – the pastry will be hot. Spray a 18 cm loose base cake tin with edible food spray. Divide the dough in half. Roll the dough on a floured surface and line the cake tin with the dough. Spoon half of the filling in the prepared tin. Place a layer of the cooked potato on top. Spoon the rest of the filling on top. Place the sliced raw potato on kitchen towel to make sure its dry. Overlay the potatoes in a fan effect on top of the filling. Brush on top of the potatoes with melted butter. Roll the rest of the dough on a floured surface. Cut a long strip of dough and place this dough around the edge on top of the potato. Brush with egg. Cut out decorative shapes of your choice. Decorate the outer edge and centre of the pie. Brush with egg wash and place the tin on a baking tray. Place in the oven and bake for 1 hour. Take out and serve warm.
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