When my clients request a comfort food Chicken Pot Pie is the first thing that comes to mind. It is a very versatile dish that I can modify to fit everyone’s needs.
This recipe has omitted dairy with a gluten free option. By far my favourite flavour combination and a true hit with my crew. And it is an easy recipe to create which is a bonus.
3 tbsp of butter flavoured Olive Oil (I use Evoolution)
1 tbsp of dried Thyme
3 tbsp of Corn Starch
6 cups of homemade Chicken Stock
8 strips of thick cut Bacon diced
1 Egg
1 box with two rolls of Puff Pastry thawed in the fridge.
Salt and Pepper to taste
Fresh minced Parsley for garnish
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400° c
Prepare 8 small individual pie plates with non-stick spray and set aside.
Remove the meat from the chicken body, coarsely chop and set aside.
In a medium sized pot, add the potatoes, carrots ad chicken stock. Bring to a boil, add some salt and thyme, and cook until the potatoes are easily pierced with a fork.
Toss the chicken with the corn starch and then dump the chicken into the stock pot. Bring back to a boil. The mixture should thicken nicely. Once it does, turn the heat down low.
Using a frying pan, fry the bacon until crisp. Lift using a slotted spoon and dry on a paper towel. Then add to the stock mixture.
Drain off all but 1 tbsp of the bacon grease from the pan into a dish and set aside. Add 1 tbsp of butter flavoured oil to the remaining bacon grease in the pan, add the onions and celery and sauté. Add a pinch of salt and some pepper. Cook until onions are translucent. Then add to the stock mixture.
Add the peas to the stock mixture. Cook for 5 minutes. Taste for seasoning. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Divide the mixture between 8 dishes. Remove the Puff Pastry from the fridge and roll out. Cut each roll into 4 equal squares. Lay a square on top of each dish and using a sharp knife, score diagonal lines into a checker design without cutting all the way through the pastry.
In a small dish, beat the egg and using a pastry brush, brush the pastry top. Then place dishes on a baking sheet lined with parchment to catch the drips. Bake for 20-25 minutes until pastry is puffed and brown.
Serve with a sprinkle of minced fresh parsley and enjoy.
Notes
To make this gluten free, use a Potato Rosti instead of the puff pastry on top. To make the potato, grate a peeled russet potato. Sprinkle with salt. Using a cheese cloth, squeeze out all of the liquid. Add one egg white , salt and pepper, and 2 tsp of rice flour to the mix. Fry the grated potato in the bacon pan like you would a pancake. Spreading the potato mixture into a pancake form. Cook until brown. Flip. Cook until brown and crisp. Set on top of the pie and bake until the mixture is bubbly. Enjoy. one 2" pancake per pie plate.
adoptedtomato
