Chicken and bacon pie is a classic comfort food which is delicious thanks to its savoury flavours, meaty protein and crispy pastry.
It can be made in a variety of different ways, but Mary Berry’s has raving reviews on BBC Good Food.
The recipe notes said: “This chicken and bacon pie would make a wonderful centrepiece for a family meal.
“My granddaughters Abby and Grace helped me to make it for the TV programme.”
The pie takes just 30 minutes to prep and just 30 minutes to cook in the oven.
It also serves six people, a perfect winter dish if you’ve got a gathering throughout the festive period.
Ingredients:
Six skinless chicken thighs
Four celery sticks, diced
Four bay leaves, roughly sliced
200ml dry white wine
300ml chicken stock
250g smoked back bacon, cut into small pieces
One large onion, roughly chopped
50g butter
60g plain flour
Two tablespoons full-fat crème fraîche
One tablespoon of grainy mustard
Two x 375g ready-rolled, all-butter puff pastry
One egg, beaten
Salt and pepper
Method:
Preheat the oven to 160C or 140C Fan and then put the chicken legs, celery and bay leaves into an ovenproof saucepan. Pour over the wine and stock, seasoning well with salt and pepper.
Bring to a boil on medium-high heat, cover with a lid and transfer to the oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is tender, then set aside to cool.
Once cool, remove the meat from the chicken bones which can be reserved and used for a stock. Break the bite into bite-sized pieces, then strain the stock, reserving the celery and discarding the bay leaves, measuring out the liquid. You should have 750ml, if not make this up with extra stock or white wine.
Heat a large frying pan and fry the bacon for three minutes. Add the onion, cover with a lid and fry for a further 10 minutes until softened. Add the butter, stirring until melted, sprinkle in the flour to make a roux. Pour in the reserved liquid into the roux a little at a time, whisking as it is added until it has reached a smooth sauce consistency.
Add a little salt and pepper, the celery, crème fraîche and mustard to combine before adding the chicken pieces. Spoon the filling into the ovenproof dish and level the top. Leave to cool fully, then cover and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare the pastry for the pie. On a floured surface, roll out each pastry sheet to 3mm thick, cutting each piece into long, thick ribbons, about 3cm wide. You’ll need around 16 in total to cover the pie.
Weave the ribbons together on a piece of baking paper until you have a pastry top large enough to cover the pie, chill it in the fridge for 15 minutes, then brush it with a beaten egg before placing it on the pie mixture.
Trim the edges, and increase the oven temperature to 200C or 180C Fan and bake for 30 minutes until it’s golden and cooked through, serve immediately.
This pie can be chilled and covered for up to two days in the fridge, but it also freezes well uncooked.
