Creamy, savoury and delicious. Steamy and bubbly, covered up above and below – there’s no stew with a hat in here, it’s pastry all over!
- 400g chicken breasts, cut into chunks
- 3 tbsp plain flour
- Salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp veg oil
- 1 tbsp salted butter
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 leek, trimmed, rinsed and chopped
- 1 celery stick, trimmed and chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp dijon mustard
- 50ml white wine
- 100ml milk
- 300ml chicken stock
- 150g cooked ham, diced
- Small handful parsley, chopped
- 2 packs shortcrust pastry (2 x 320g)
- 1 small egg, beaten
- Season 1 tbsp flour with salt and pepper. Toss the chicken in the flour until coated
- Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat
- Fry the chicken in batches until lightly golden all over then transfer to a plate
- Lower the heat and melt the butter
- Add the onion, leek, celery and garlic
- Stir together and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 mins until softened and lightly coloured
- Add the other 2 tbsp flour and mustard. Stir in and cook for a minute
- Pour in the wine and bubble it away, then add the milk and stock
- Bring to the bubble, stirring to get all the brown bits off the bottom of the pan
- Turn the heat down to a simmer and season well. Cook for 5-10 mins until sauce is thickened and smooth
- Add the chicken back in, and throw in the ham and parsley. Take off the heat and stir
- Taste to check the seasoning, adjust if needed and scrape the filling into a bowl to cool
- Pre-heat oven to 180C fan (200C), put a baking tray in to heat, and take pastry out of the fridge to come to room temp
- Roll one sheet of pastry into a round baking dish, draping the extra over the sides
- Fill with the cooled filling and brush the edges with beaten egg. Top with the other sheet of pastry and press down around the edges
- Trim the edges, and then press a fork all the way around to completely seal and make a pretty pattern
- Brush the top of the pie with beaten egg and cut a little hole into the middle to let the steam out
- Bake on the pre-heated tray in the oven for 40 mins until the pie is golden brown all over and the filling is bubbly hot
Sophie cooks 