Chicken Pot Pie Redux: Tokyo Drift
Remember last September when Jeff was craving chicken pot pie? That time we made the All-Sold-Out Chicken Pot Pies with the chicken and vegetables that were bathed in a heavy cream sauce and lovingly tucked under blankets of cream cheese crust? Yeah, they were good.
Last weekend was cold and rainy – perfect pot pie conditions – but I wasn’t up for spending a lot of time in the kitchen or tempting a coronary during the season finale of “Flight of the Conchords,” so it was time to trim this pie to the bare essentials and bring forth a lean(er), mean Spring Chicken Pot Pie.
Spring Chicken Pot Pies
Adapted from Rebecca Rather’s “The Pastry Queen”
Serves 6
Filling
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 1 large russet potato, peeled and diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 4 ounces carrots, diced
- 4 ounces celery, sliced
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 purchased rotisserie chicken or 1 whole stewed chicken, cooled
- 8 ounces green beans or sugar snaps, fresh or frozen
- 4 ounces frozen corn
- 4 ounces frozen peas
Sauce
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 cups chicken stock
- Dash of Frank’s Hot Sauce
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
Crust
- 1 package (17.3 ounces/2 sheets) puff pastry, defrosted
To Make The Filling: Melt the butter in a large sauté pan set over medium heat. Add the onion and potato; sauté for 5 minutes. Add the garlic, bell pepper, carrots and celery, and sauté about 15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. Stir in the crushed red pepper and add salt and pepper to taste.
While the vegetables are sautéing, skin the chicken, pull the meat off the bones, and shred the meat or cut into bite-size pieces. Place the green beans or sugar snaps in a microwave-safe bowl and add enough water to cover. Cover the dish and microwave on high power about 10 minutes, until the beans are tender. Drain thoroughly. Stir the beans, peas, corn and chicken into the vegetable mixture. Set the filling aside.
To Make The Sauce: Melt the butter over medium heat in a large saucepan. Add the flour and whisk until smooth. Whisk in the chicken stock and cook the sauce over medium heat until it thickens to the consistency of a cream soup. Add the hot pepper sauce, salt and pepper to taste. Pour the sauce over the chicken filling and stir to combine. Fill individual 1 1/4-cup capacity oven-safe bowls three-quarters of the way to the top with the creamed chicken filling.
To Make The Crust: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Unfold a sheet of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface. Use a floured rolling pin to roll the dough out slightly. Measure the diameter of the pot pie bowls, and cut out dough rounds that are slightly larger in diameter. Repeat with the second pastry sheet to make 6 circles in all. Whisk the egg in a small bowl. Lay the dough rounds on top of the pot pies. Brush the dough lightly with the beaten egg. Bake the pies for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown. Serve immediately.
Variation: Pot pies lend themselves to all manner of vegetable additions, such as sliced mushrooms, cut-up asparagus spears, sliced fennel, or diced turnips. Just add them to the sauté mix and enjoy.
Awesome!! We LOVE the All Sold Chicken Pot Pies (I've made them several times now!) but have been on a 'get healthy, lose weight' meal plan so yeah, the heavier one isn't really something we should be eating.
Thank you so much for doing a redux!!!
I'm trying this recipe of yours tonight. thanks!
Mmm, these spring pot pies look fabulous! I love when comfort foods transition so beautifully from winter to spring. Hope you and the hubby enjoyed this awesome dish!
You chicken pot pie redux looks fabulous!
Love the colors! Looks so good.
I love the idea of it being lean(er). That makes it totally healthy, right? Sure it does! Looks great.
As a matter of fact, I DO remember your chicken pot pie recipe from last fall. It still haunts me at night sometimes, I crave it so. But it's good to have a lighter one in the arsenal — we want to stay alive long enough to hear another rendition of "Sugalumps" if we can help it.
I have never ever had a chicken pot pie, but this has my mouth WATERING! I NEED THIS!
Chicken pot chicken pot chicken pot piiiiie! Always feel like saying that when a yummy pot pie's on the table.
That looks like a great pot pie. I have a hard time finding ones that I like because they never seem exactly picture, but your pictures show what seems to be a perfect pot pie. Great job.
No problem! You guys sound like us.
Awesome! Hope you like it.
Thanks! We loved it. A painless way to eat more veggies.
Thanks! We didn't miss the cream or the cream cheese. Pretty fair trade.
I can't believe we got eight different vegetables into one pot pie. That's a record for us!
All those veggies MUST cancel out the butter. I'm sure of it.
I NEVER get tired of hearing "Sugalumps." Love the Party Prince.
What, what, WHAT?!? Get thee to a pot pie, Teanna! Posthaste!
Piiiiiie! I couldn't agree more. Love singing to my food.
Thanks! I know what you mean. This pot pie has a great balance of chicken, vegetables and crust without the typical pot pie heaviness or pastiness. Hope you like it!
Damn, that looks like one delicious pot pie!!! I love pot pies, but hate that they are such fat bombs. This is one recipe that I can enjoy guilt-free (and save my calories for dessert :) ).
Damn, that looks like one delicious pot pie!!! I love pot pies, but hate that they are such fat bombs. This is one recipe that I can enjoy guilt-free (and save my calories for dessert :) ).
I really love reading your blog, you have the most delicious things, so I am giving you an award on my website:
http://www.donutstodelirium.com/2009/04/woo-hoo-a...
You and Ina motor well together. Looks fantastic!