Sunday lunch chicken pie (2024)

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• Published:31 Jan 13
• Updated:18 Mar 24

• Test kitchen approved

Imagine all the great things about a Sunday roast lunch wrapped in pastry – that’s what this chicken and vegetable pie recipe is all about.

If you struggle with ideas for Sunday lunches, take a look at our Sunday lunches page – we’ve pulled together six wonderful menus to inspire you.

Ingredients

• 1.8kg free-range chicken
• 10 baby carrots, trimmed
• 2 or 3 parsnips, peeled and cut into quarters lengthways
• 200g baby new potatoes
• 1 garlic bulb, cloves separated
• 2-3 tbsp olive oil
• Handful of fresh lemon thyme or thyme, leaves stripped
• 1 lemon
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• 150ml dry white wine
• 250ml fresh chicken stock
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 3 tbsp crème fraîche
• 150g frozen peas

For the pastry

• 1 large baking potato (about 200g) or leftover mashed potato
• 200g plain flour, plus extra to dust
• 100g cold unsalted butter, cubed
• 25g lard
• 1 medium free-range egg yolk, plus 1 egg to glaze

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan180C/gas 6. Season the chicken and put it in a large roasting tin. Toss the carrots, parsnips, potatoes and garlic in a bowl with the olive oil and season well. Mix through half the thyme and tumble into the roasting tin around the chicken.
2. Tuck the rest of the thyme inside the chicken’s cavity. Halve the lemon and squeeze the juice over the chicken, then push the halves inside. Roast for 50 minutes, then transfer the chicken to a warm place to rest under foil, retaining any juices. Roast the veg for 15-20 minutes more.
3. Meanwhile, for the pastry, bake the potato for 1 hour until tender. Halve, scoop out the flesh, then cool.

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4. Sift the 200g flour into a bowl with a good pinch of salt. Quickly rub the butter and lard into the flour with your fingertips until it resembles breadcrumbs (you can do this in a food processor). Mix in the cooled potato. Quickly mix in the egg yolk until the mixture just starts to come together, then knead briefly on a dusted work surface. Shape into a disc, wrap in cling film and chill for 20-30 minutes.
5. In a pan, whisk 1 tbsp fat from the roasting juices (or use vegetable oil) with the 1 tbsp flour over a low heat and cook for 1-2 minutes. Stir in the wine, then bubble until the liquid has reduced by a third. Add the stock and any juices left from the resting chicken, then simmer for a couple of minutes. Whisk in the mustard and crème fraîche, then taste and season. Set aside.
6. Shred the chicken and put it, including the skin if you like, in a 1.8-2 litre pie dish with the roasted root veg and frozen peas. Add the gravy and mix well. Add a pie funnel to the centre of the dish if you like.
7. Roll the pastry out on a lightly floured surface to the thickness of a pound coin and use to cover the pie. Use any trimmings to decorate the top of the pie, then glaze well with beaten egg. Bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes until golden brown, then serve.

Nutrition: per serving

• Published:31 Jan 13
• Updated:18 Mar 24

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