Ultimate Whole Chicken Pie
Ingredients
For the filling
- 1 whole chicken (about 1.4–1.6 kg)
- 1 onion, halved
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 carrots (for the poach)
- 2 celery sticks (for the poach)
- 1 few peppercorns (for the poach)
- 2 bay leaves (for the poach)
- 200 g streaky bacon, chopped
- 250 g brown mushrooms, sliced
- 1 leek, sliced (or a second chopped onion / spring onions if no leek)
- 50 g butter
- 50 g flour
- 200 ml cream
- 15 ml Dijon mustard
- salt and black pepper
For the top
- 400 g puff pastry (one roll, or an all-butter block rolled to about 3 mm)
- 1 egg, beaten with a splash of milk
Instructions
- 1
Put the whole chicken in a large pot with the halved onion, carrots, celery, peppercorns and bay leaves. Cover with water, bring to a simmer, and poach gently for about 50–60 minutes until cooked through. Lift the chicken out, let it cool enough to handle, then strip all the meat off and shred it. Keep the poaching liquid — that is your stock.
- 2
Strain and reserve about 400 ml of the stock.
- 3
In a large pan, fry the bacon until it starts to crisp. Add the chopped onion, leek and mushrooms and cook until soft and any liquid has cooked off.
- 4
Push the veg aside, melt the butter in the pan, stir in the flour and cook for a minute. Gradually whisk in the 400 ml reserved stock, then the cream, until you have a smooth, thick sauce.
- 5
Stir in the Dijon and the shredded chicken. Season well with salt and pepper. The filling should be thick — not runny — or it will make the pastry soggy. Let it cool a bit.
- 6
Tip into a pie dish. Top with the puff pastry, trim and crimp the edges, cut a couple of steam slits, and brush all over with the egg wash.
- 7
Bake at 200°C for 25–30 minutes until the pastry is deep golden and puffed.
Notes & Tips
Crisper pastry tip
A cold or lukewarm filling under the pastry gives you a crisper base — do not lid it while the filling is piping hot.