No one can resist a delicious cake. While apple pie generally ranks as a favorite, chicken pie ranks a very close second.
Why is the chicken pot pie recipe such a popular dish for the housewife and their families? On the one hand, chicken pot pie can already be considered a complete meal due to the proteins and carbohydrates that can be derived from the meat and chicken rind, respectively, and the necessary fiber from legumes and vegetables that you add to the filling.
However, because you can find chicken cakes pretty much everywhere, they have been unfairly labeled as “ordinary” food. Some not so discriminated against have even claimed that all chicken cakes taste the same, even though there are thousands of varieties of chicken cakes recipes you can find on the internet.
This comment cannot be said for chicken cakes made by culinary experts from the world’s leading five-star restaurants today. Just watch reality TV cooking shows and you’ll see Master Chefs transform humble chicken pot pie into a gourmet delight.
A good example of a gourmet chicken pot pie recipe is Chef David Coulson’s creation of chicken mushroom pot pie on the popular BBC cooking competition show “MasterChef” The Professionals. Try this recipe in your own kitchen and discover the culinary magic that Master Chef can weave into a humble chicken pot pie recipe …
MasterChef David Coulson Chicken and Mushroom Pie
Ingredients for the chicken:
1 large whole chicken
olive oil, for drizzling
Salt
freshly ground black pepper
100ml / 3½ fl oz chicken broth
100ml / 3½ fl oz Madeira
Ingredients for the sauce:
25g / 1oz butter
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 small carrots}
1 stick of celery} Make sure these 4 ingredients are finely chopped
1 shallot}
1 clove garlic}
1 leek, clean and sliced
100 g / 3½ oz of mixed mushrooms (ideally morels and girolles), cleaned and chopped
150ml / 5fl oz dry white wine
100ml / 3½fl oz double cream
4 large flat mushrooms (remove stems)
Ingredients for the pastry:
225g / 8oz of ready-made puff pastry
flour, for dusting
1 free-range egg, beaten
Instructions:
1) Preheat your oven to 200C or 400F or gas 6.
2) Using a boning knife, cut the chicken legs and wings and set aside. Gently cut the breasts. Drizzle the breasts with a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Tightly wrap chicken breasts in plastic wrap and set aside.
3) Place the chicken legs in a roasting pan and drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill the legs for 30 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through (poke the thickest part of the leg with a fork or skewer to see if the juice runs clear). Drizzle the chicken as often as needed while cooking.
3) Unwrap the chicken breasts from the cling film. Blanch the breasts for 20 minutes (or until cooked through) in a pot of boiling water. Gently shred the meat into a bowl and set it aside.
4) Let your chicken and Madeira broth in your small skillet simmer for a few minutes before adding the chicken wings. Cook the wings for 20 minutes or until cooked through. Set the wings aside, but keep your cooking broth in reserve.
5) Cook the sauce by heating the butter and 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a skillet. Sauté the carrots, celery, leek and shallot for 4-5 minutes or until the vegetables begin to soften. Add the garlic and mushrooms along with the remaining oil and sauté for another 4 to 5 minutes. Pour in the wine and simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated. Add the cream. Put your shredded chicken leg meat.
6) Place your mushrooms flat on a baking sheet and pour the mushroom sauce on top.
7) For the dough, start by rolling out the puff pastry on a floured surface. Using a pastry cutter, cut circles the same size as the flat mushrooms that you have arranged on your baking sheet. Place the dough on a separate baking sheet. Prick the surface with a fork or skewer. Brush the batter with the beaten egg. Bake this along with the stuffed mushrooms for 8 to 10 minutes, or until just risen and golden brown.
8) To serve, cut the chicken breast into thick slices with a knife. Remove all the bones from the chicken wings. Arrange the mushrooms on a serving plate. Place a circle of dough on top and at an angle. Place the chicken breast and wings on the side. Reheat the reserved chicken broth and madeira sauce and drizzle over the plate. Decorate the cake with fresh thyme. Serve with cream of potatoes.