Chicken, Leek and Mushroom Pot Pie

From John Torode’s Chicken & Other Fowl

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup of butter
  • 2 leeks, cut into 1cm pieces
  • 6 celery stalks, chopped
  • 1/3 cup of all purpose flour (plus a little extra)
  • 1 cup of chicken stock
  • 1/2 cup of light cream
  • 200g of button mushrooms
  • 800g of roast chicken meat (no skin/bone) shredded
  • 1/4 cup of parsley, chopped
  • 1 sheet of frozen puff pastry, thawed
  • 1 egg yolk, beaten (for glazing)
  • 1 tbsp of milk (for glazing)

Tip:

Feel free to use the filling, with pre-made pie casings for smaller individual serve pies.

Method

In a large saucepan, melt half the butter, then add the leeks and celery. Cook for 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of flour and mix to a paste. Stir in the stock and cream. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 15minutes. Remove from heat and add the chicken and mushrooms.

Preheat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius, lay out the sheet of puff pastry. Put a 5-cup baking dish that is 7.5cm deep upside down on the pastry. Cut around it, with an extra 3.5cm border. Also cut a strip of pastry 2cm wide to fit around the rim of the dish. Brush the rim with water and stick the strip onto it.

Fill the dish, piling up high in the centre. Moisten the pastry strip, then place the pastry lid on top of the dish and press to seal to the strip. Cut a small slit in the centre of the lid and brush with the egg glaze.

Bake for 25 minutes then reduce to 200 degrees Celsius until golden, roughly 15 minutes.  If the pastry browns too quickly, cover it with a folded sheet of damp parchment paper. Serve hot, straight from the dish.