Chicken And Leek Pot Pie With Garlicky Kale
Chicken And Leek Pot Pie
A chicken pie is just the thing for a dinner party in February in my opinion. Wholesome, warming and guaranteed to please. There are many ways to make a chicken pie. Some use cream, some use stock. Some require you to brown the chicken, some require you to poach it. I prefer the poaching method and opt for poaching the whole chicken and making use of its entirety. True, it requires a little more effort than working with pre-prepared thighs or fillets, but the result is a much more flavourful pie, and you are also rewarded with a bounty of delicious stock to use in curries, risottos or soups. You will be reassured to know that there is no need to make pastry. I use a shop bought puff pastry here to create the ‘lid’ which does an excellent job and saves time too. I suggest getting on with something else whilst your chicken poaches. Perhaps setting the table or making pudding.
Ingredients
| Serves 4 generously |
You will need a 1.6 litre round pie dish. Mine measured 27cm diameter
For the pie
1 large bunch of thyme
1 small free-range chicken (about 5.5-6 pounds)
3 bay leaves
1 tsp black peppercorns
1 white or red onion
1 carrot
Olive oil
4 small leeks (about 300g when chopped)
1 large clove of garlic
200g chestnut mushrooms, cut into quarters
2 tbsp corn flour
1 large glass of dry white wine (150 ml)
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
Sea salt
1 block ready rolled puff pastry
1 egg
For the Kale
1 large bunch of kale
1 clove of garlic
Olive oil
Sea salt
Method
Reserve a few sprigs of thyme so that you have 1tsp worth of leaves. Finely chop the leaves and set aside for later. Tie the remaining bunch with string.
Place the whole chicken, bunched thyme, bay leaves and peppercorns into a large stock pot. Halve the onion and the carrot and add to the pot. Fill the pot with water to just cover the chicken. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until the chicken is done. About 30-40 mins.
Remove the chicken and allow to cool slightly. Then pull the meat of the bone (discarding the skin for stock) and chop and shred it into convenient sized pieces.
Allow the poaching liquid to cool slightly, then skim the fat from the top and reserve about a mug full (or 200ml) of liquid.
I like to enrich the stock and return the carcass and skin to the liquid before simmering on a low heat for 1-2 hours until it has reduced slightly and smells rich with chicken flavour. Strain the stock, allow it to cool once more (I tend to place it in the fridge overnight). Skim the fat once more and reserve the stock for risottos, soups or dahls. I always like to have stock on hand in the freezer.
Returning to the pie, wash, trim and chop the leeks into roughly 1cm rings, discarding the tough green leafy ends, or adding these to the simmering stock.
In a large casserole dish, heat a good glug of olive oil. Add the leeks and cook over a gentle heat until they have started to soften (about 5 minutes). Add the grated garlic and finely chopped thyme leaves and cook for one more minute.
Add the mushrooms and cook for a further 5 minutes, until the leeks are well softened and the mushrooms have begun to sweat.
In a small bowl, using a fork, mix the cornflour with enough of the reserved poaching liquid until it resembles the consistency of double cream. Add to the vegetables and cook for 2 minutes.
Increase the heat and add the wine, allowing the alcohol to cook off until almost evaporated. Then add just 100ml of stock, the Dijon mustard and a good pinch of sea salt. Stir to combine, then add the chicken. Stir and taste to season.
You are looking for a loose filling for the pie. If you feel it could be wetter, add more of the stock.
Switch off the heat and preheat the oven to 180 degrees fan setting.
Roll out the puff pastry and cut a disk about 1.5cm wider than your pie dish. I find the easiest way is to place the dish upside down on the rolled pastry and score a circle slightly bigger than the dish using a small knife.
Place the filling into the pie dish, then top with the pastry lid, pressing the sides into the top of the dish. Use a fork to crimp the edges. Cut four dashes in a cross shape in the centre of the pie to allow steam to escape whilst cooking.
Brush with beaten egg and bake for 30-40 mins until the pastry has puffed up and is golden.
For the garlicky kale, wash the kale and tear it from the woody stems.
Peel and finely slice the garlic. Heat roughly 2tbsp of olive oil in a large saucepan over a gentle heat and add the garlic. Cook very gently for about 4 minutes until the garlic has softened and is beginning to look translucent. Then add the kale.
Using a wooden spoon toss the kale to coat in the garlicky oil. Add a good splash of water (about 2 tbsp) and cover with a lid to allow the kale to steam gently. Check after 5 minutes. The kale should be cooked but still have texture. Add another glug of olive oil or a knob of butter if you like. Season to taste.
Serve the kale alongside the chicken pot pie. Some roasted squash or sweet potato goes very well with this too.
