Monday, April 6, 2009

Chicken Pot Pie


I have always wanted to make chicken pot pie. Nothing with cream of chicken soup as the base, but a good, homemade chicken pot pie. Ok, so I didn't make the crust from scratch, but as you know I don't bake, and making dough qualifies as baking in my book.

I looked at several recipes and decided to make some changes to this recipe for Chicken Potpie by Martha Stewart. The original recipe can be found in the above link. I changed many things, so my adaptation is below.

Ingredients
  • 3 chicken breasts
  • 4 cups of low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 large yellow onion cut into large chunks
  • 2 dried bay leaves
  • 1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
  • 1 tsp dried thyme plus 1/2 tsp
  • 1 rib celery, cut into chunks
  • 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 3 tbsp butter plus 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 large potato cut into small, bite-sized pieces
  • 1/2 onion, chopped
  • 2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch-thick half-rounds
  • 1/2 red pepper, chopped
  • 1/3 c frozen peas
  • 1/3 c frozen corn
  • 3 large white mushrooms, chopped
  • 1 cup light cream
  • 1 tsp fresh lemon zest
  • 1/2 teaspoon each salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • Approximately 1 tbsp dried parsley flakes (or fresh)
  • 1 can pie dough, biscuits, or crescent rolls. I bought a can of biscuits and they were already cut, so I had to flatten and stretch them a bit to make my crust...but it worked!

Directions

  • Combine chicken, chicken stock, yellow onion, bay leaves, peppercorns, 3 thyme sprigs, and celery in a stockpot, and add enough water just to cover the chicken. Bring stock to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, for 1/2 hour.
  • Drain chicken, and reserve the stock. Chop the chicken into bite-sized chunks, and set aside. Strain the stock, and set aside 2 cups. Reserve the remaining stock for another use.
  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  • Heat butter and oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat.
  • Add potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes become translucent in the center, about 4-5 minutes.
  • Add carrots, peppers, and onions, and cook 4 to 5 minutes
  • Add mushrooms, peas, and corn, and cook for 2 minutes
  • Add the flour, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
  • Stir in reserved chicken stock and cream, and bring to a simmer. Cook until thick and bubbly, stirring constantly, 2 to 3 minutes.
  • Add reserved chicken pieces, parsley, remaining thyme, lemon zest, salt, and the ground pepper; transfer to a large casserole dish. (I used a round and deep glass baking dish)
  • Roll out the dough and place over the top of the chicken mixture, and tuck extra dough around the edges. Since I used biscuits I had small spaces between each biscuit. If you use one sheet of dough, cut slits so the steam can escape.
  • Bake until crust is golden, 25-30 (make sure you have foil or a baking sheet under the dish as it may bubble over. Serve hot.

I love color when I'm cooking, so I have to share this beautiful picture of the veggies in the pan -

And here it is, the finished product. It doesn't look too bad with the biscuits on top, right?

This was better than I expected. So comforting and flavorful - it hit the spot, especially on a cool and rainy day.



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5 comments:

  1. I've never made chicken pot pie. The crust has always scared me since I don't bake either. Using biscuit dough sounds like a great idea!

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  2. Yum! This would be perfect for the kind of weather we've been having lately...cold and rainy.

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  3. This pot pie is "high" on my list :)

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  4. I LOVE chicken pot pie. When I was little, I thought the little box ones were awesome and special. I have made one using Bisquick biscuits before. Thanks for reminding me about doing that. I really need to make it again. It has been years.

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  5. That chicken pot pie is looking good!

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