Best Chicken Leek Cider Pie Recipes

PROPER CHICKEN PIE

Steps:

• Use a large sharp knife to carefully cut down the back bone of the chicken, cutting it in half. Season with sea salt and black pepper.
• Drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil into a large non-stick frying pan on a high heat. Add the chicken, skin-side down, and sear for 10 minutes, or until golden. Reserve the pan for the cabbage.
• Meanwhile, chop the pancetta into 1cm chunks, pick in the thyme leaves and place in a large shallow casserole pan with 1 teaspoon of oil. Put it on a medium heat so the fat renders out, while you wash and trim the white part of the leek (save the green for making soup) and the celery. Peel the onion and carrot, then roughly chop all the veg into 1.5cm chunks and add to the pan. Cook for 10 minutes, or until softened.
• Stir in 2 heaped tablespoons of flour, cook for 2 minutes, then pour in the cider. Let it bubble away for 2 minutes or until almost evaporated, then stir in the mustard and stock. Add the chicken breast-side down, bring to a simmer, then cover and cook on a low heat for 1 hour, or until the chicken is cooked through and tender.
• Meanwhile, for the pastry, put the flour in a bowl with a good pinch of salt. Grate in the cold butter, then rub with your fingers until it resembles breadcrumbs. Pour in 100ml of cold water, mix with a fork, then bring together with your hands until it forms a dough, adding an extra splash of water if needed. Divide into 2 pieces - you will need ⅓ for the lid and ⅔ for the base - flatten with your hands and chill until needed.
• Finely slice the mushrooms and set aside.
• Transfer the chicken to a plate and shred the meat (discard the carcass).
• Stir the mushrooms into the pan, followed by the shredded chicken and the crème fraîche, mix well and season to taste.
• Strain the chicken mixture through a sieve over a clean pan to catch the liquid, gently pressing to help it along, and reserve for your gravy. Leave to cool.
• Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/gas 5.
• Lightly grease a 30cm pie dish with oil. Roll out the larger piece of pastry between 2 sheets of greaseproof paper to just a few millimetres thick and use it to line the dish - allow an overhang. Press firmly into the edges and up the sides of the dish.
• Fill with the cooled chicken mixture, then carefully roll out and top with the remaining piece of pastry. Beat the egg and brush a little over the edge of the lid then fold over the overhang and press down gently to seal. Egg wash the pie all over, then make a small incision in the centre to let the steam escape and bake at the bottom of the oven for 1 hour, or until the pastry is golden and the pie is piping hot.
• Click off and discard any tatty outer leaves from the cabbage, then cut in half. Halve the core, then finely slice. Roughly chop the rest into large chunks. Place the chicken pan on a high heat, add the cabbage stalks and fry for 2 minutes, then go in with the leaves and a splash of water and cook for 5 minutes more, or until softened and lightly charred. Stir in the mustard, then add a pinch of salt and white pepper with a splash of water, and simmer for 1 minute, tossing a few times.
• Reheat the gravy and enjoy with the pie and cabbage. Delicious served with creamy mash.

CHICKEN AND LEEK POT PIE

Steps:

• First, pour the cider into a medium saucepan, along with the carrots, bay leaf, sprig of thyme and some salt and freshly milled black pepper. Bring to simmering point, then cover with a lid and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Now take the tough green ends off the leeks, then make a vertical split halfway down the centre of each leek, and run them under cold water to rid them of any hidden grit. Then slice them in half lengthways and chop into 1/2 inch (1 cm) slices. Add the chicken and leeks to the pan and simmer, covered, for a further 10 minutes. For the sauce, all you do is place the milk, flour, butter and cayenne pepper into a medium saucepan and place it over a gentle heat. Then, using a balloon whisk, begin to whisk while bringing it to a gentle simmer. Whisk continually until you have a smooth, glossy sauce, and simmer very gently for 5 minutes. Then add the cheeses and whisk again, allowing them to melt. Then season with salt, freshly milled black pepper and some freshly grated nutmeg. Next, drain the chicken and vegetables, reserving the liquid, but not the bay leaf and thyme. Now pour the liquid back into the pan, bring it to the boil and reduce to about 2 tablespoons. Meanwhile, skin the chicken and cut it into bite-sized strips. Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 6, 400F (200C). Now stir the cheese sauce into the cider, bring to a simmer, and stir the chicken, carrots and leeks into the sauce, before transferring the whole lot to the dish. Next, to make a lid, roll the pastry out thinly on a lightly floured surface. Cut out a 9 inch (23 cm) round, then roll out the trimmings and cut a 1/2 inch (1 cm) strip. Now dampen the edge of the dish with water and press the strip of pastry around the rim. Dampen the strip and carefully lift the pastry lid over the top. Press it firmly over the edge to get a good seal all round, then trim, using a knife. Finally, gather up the trimmings and re-roll them to cut into leaf shapes. Brush the surface of the pie with beaten egg, and arrange the leaves on top. Now, brush the leaves with beaten egg, sprinkle with Parmesan and bake on the baking sheet for 20 minutes.

CHICKEN, LEEK & CIDER PIE

Steps:

• Melt 40g of the butter in a saucepan and add the flour. Stir this over a medium-low heat for 1 min to make a roux. Remove from the heat and start adding the cider a little at a time. Mix well with a wooden spoon to ensure there are no lumps. Keep stirring until all the cider has been added, then add the milk in the same way. Season, return the pan to the heat and, stirring continuously, bring to the boil. The mixture will thicken considerably and, once it has come to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for about 3 mins. Stir in the mustard, lemon juice and crème fraîche , and taste for seasoning.
• Melt the rest of the butter in a frying pan and gently fry the leeks and the apples for 5 mins. Add 2 tbsp of water, season, cover and cook over a low heat for 8-10 mins until tender. If there are lots of juices, increase the heat to reduce them.
• Add half the cheese to the sauce, then bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and gently stir in the leeks and apples and taste - you may want to add more mustard or lemon juice. Cool and chill the sauce until you're ready to assemble the pie.
• Stir the chicken into the cooled sauce. Put the mixture into a 25 x 20cm pie dish or a round dish measuring 25cm across (with a 1.3 litre capacity). Sprinkle with the rest of the cheese and leave to cool completely.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/ gas 6. On a lightly floured surface, roll the pastry out to the thickness of a 50 p coin. Cut off a strip the same width as the lip of the pie dish. Wet the lip and press this strip onto it. Brush the strip with water and lay the rest of the pastry on top. Press the pastry lid onto the pastry strip, then cut off the excess. Crimp the edges and use the remaining pastry to decorate the top of the pie. Make three small slits in the pastry near the middle to let the steam escape. Brush the top with the egg mixture and bake in the oven for 30 -40 mins, until the pastry is a deep golden colour and puffed up. Serve immediately.

CHICKEN & LEEK PIE

Steps:

• Put the chicken into a deep pan that is just large enough to hold it quite snugly. Pour in enough water to half-cover the bird, then tip in the peppercorns, bay leaves, thyme, onion and celery. Add ½ tsp salt and bring to the boil on the hob, then reduce the heat, cover tightly and simmer for 1 hr-1 hr 15 until tender.
• Transfer the chicken to a plate. Strain 425ml of the stock into a measuring jug (top up with water if you need to). Strip the meat off the chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces and put in a 1.7-litre pie dish.
• Put the eggs in boiling water and boil for 6 minutes. Drain, cool them under cold water and remove the shells. Quarter the eggs and nestle them in the pie dish among the chicken pieces.
• Heat the butter and oil in a large frying pan and fry the bacon until crisp. Add the leeks and cook for 2 minutes until softened. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Pour in the chicken stock a third at a time, stirring continuously and making sure the sauce is thick and smooth before adding the next batch. Stir in the mustard, crème fraîche and parsley, then add a squeeze of lemon juice and black pepper to taste. Add salt if needed. Spoon over the chicken and leave to cool.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Reserve a quarter of the pastry for decoration and roll out the remainder to a shape about 5cm larger than the top of the pie dish, then cut a 2.5cm strip from all round the edge. Brush the edge of the dish with water and stick the pastry strip to it. Brush the strip with water. Flip the pastry lid over the rolling pin, lift it up and unroll over the pie. Press the edge on to the pastry strip to seal, and trim any excess with a sharp knife.
• Tap the blade of a small sharp knife all along the outside edge of the pastry (this helps the edge to rise during cooking), then flute it using the back of the knife. Make a hole in the lid centre with the tip of the knife, to allow steam to escape as the pie bakes.
• Roll out the pastry you put aside earlier. Cut 8 long strips each about 1cm wide, and two more strips each about 4cm wide. Cut the wider strips diagonally to make eight diamond leaf shapes. Mark the veins of the leaves with the tip of a sharp knife. Brush the pastry lid with beaten egg, then lay the eight thin strips on top, as in the picture. Brush again with egg and arrange the leaves in the centre, between the strips. Brush with egg.
• Chill the pie for 15 mins, if you have time, to set the pastry. Will keep in the fridge for one day - just add 4-5 mins to baking time. Bake for 30-35 mins until the pastry is crisp, puffed up and deep golden brown.