Large Plates
When the wind starts blowing in the fall and we have drizzling days and nights, chicken pot pie is the epitome of American soul food. It is easy to toss together, the pie baking smells enticing, and the sensory experience of digging into the crispy crust is down right exhilarating. This is an all in one stove top-to-oven-to table supper that may be made in advance right up to the step in which the puff pastry is added to finish off the baking in the oven. If refrigerating until ready to bake, simply heat stove top over medium before adding the pastry and popping in the oven. The secret ingredient in this recipe is the mustard which helps to emulsify the stock, but also adds heat, dimension, and flavor to the pie.
Ingredients
- 4 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin-on
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 skinny carrots, sliced into 1/4
- 3 skinny celery stalks, cut into 1/4
- 2 garlic clove, minced
- 1 large onion, diced
- 4 sprigs thyme, leaves only
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 1/3 cup parsley, chopped
- 1/4 cup frozen corn
- 1/2 cup frozen peas
- 3 ounces mushrooms, sliced
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 14 ounces puff pastry, halved
- 1 large egg, beaten
Directions
- Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Pour the oil into a 10-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat.
- Place the chicken in the skillet skin-side down and sear it until golden brown, 5 to 8 minutes.
- Flip the chicken skin side up and cook about 8 to 10 minutes more.
- Remove the chicken from the skillet and reserve the drippings in the skillet.
- Add the carrots, celery, mushrooms, garlic, onion, and thyme to the skillet drippings. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally until vegetables are tender and just cooked through, about 5 minutes.
- Add the flour and stir to coat the vegetables. Stir constantly until the flour begins to turn a light golden brown, about 3 minutes.
- Slowly add the chicken stock ½ cup at a time, using a wooden spoon to blend and scrape up the browned bits on the bottom of the skillet. Add the mustard and stir to incorporate. Bring to a simmer and then remove from the heat.
- Remove the bones and the skin from the chicken and shred the meat.
- Add the chicken, corn, peas, and parsley to the skillet and season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Carefully unfold the puff pastry and working quickly, place it on top of the skillet (do not worry about it being a perfect circle), letting some of the dough hang over the edge. Tuck the edge over and into the skillet to form a seal around the skillet.
- Whisk the egg with 1 teaspoon of water and brush onto the top of the puff pastry.
- Cut slits in the puff pastry to let air escape during cooking. Use the extra puff pastry to make designs on the top of the pie (optional).
- Bake until the puff pastry is golden brown on top and the filling is starting to bubble up, 20 to 25 minutes. Reduce temperature to 375 degrees and continue to cook until puff pastry is baked through all the way and the filling has thickened, about 15 minutes.
- Serve oven-to-table immediately.
Kitchen Notes
When cooking for two, we prefer to use two smaller cast iron gratings and freeze one of the pies at the step just before adding the puff pastry to the top. Simply divide the ingredients equally among the two cast iron gratins (two chicken thighs in each, etc.) and proceed with the directions, reserving half the puff pastry until you are ready to bake the second pie.