Chicken Pie

Chicken pie makes everyone happy. Its comfort food at its best, hitting the spot every time.  In summer, serve it with whatever salad you feel like making, or for a hearty winter alternative, add roast veggies and  gravy.

Always looking for the easy way out, I use store bought puff pastry sheets. Although they don’t really fit the pie dish, with a little trimming and pushing together, it works just fine. Once you add the lid, you’ll find you have little triangles left over after you have trimmed the edge. I roll these up, and spread them out, forcing them into little rose shapes to add to the top. With only 4 corners and 6 people, there’s always a fight over who gets a flower.

• 2 chicken breasts (500-600g), diced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 5 medium mushrooms, sliced
• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (optional)
• 1/3 cup cream
• 2 tablespoons plain flour
• salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 sheets ready-made puff pastry, or a 300g block

Preheat oven to 190 degrees celsius.

Place flour in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper. Add diced chicken and mix around until all chicken is coated.

Heat 1 – 2 tablespoons oil in a large frying pan. Add chicken pieces, shaking off excess flour, and stir-fry until lightly browned and sealed, but  not cooked all the way through. Remove chicken from pan and set aside.

Place onion and garlic in pan and fry gently until soft and wilted.You may need to add a little extra olive oil.  Add mushrooms and fry for an extra 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low and add cream and mustard, stirring to combine. Add chicken and thyme and mix. Remove from heat and let cool while you prepare the pie tin.

Lightly grease pie dish and line with pastry. Spoon filling into pastry case. Place top on the pie and seal with a fork. Brush the top with milk, or egg yolk, and make three piercings with a fork in the top of the pie.

Bake in the oven for approximately 35 minutes, or until golden brown. Serves 6.