Chicken and Leek ‘Pie’ with Crispy Potatoes
Don’t be fooled by the apparent simplicity of this dish, it is absolutely delicious and very satisfying without being cloyingly carbohydrate rich. My family love it and they are quite fussy about what they eat.
I generally make this ‘pie’ as a means of using left-over roasted free-range chicken, but you can also make it with a couple of chicken breasts, sliced and cooked in the oil for a few minutes before adding the leek. The quality of the chicken is important so use free-range or organic.
Serves 4
Preparation time 10 minutes. Cooking time 15 minutes
2 large potatoes, micro-waved or boiled until just tender
1 large leek
1 small cooked free range chicken
1 sheet fat reduced frozen puff pastry
2 tbs olive oil
3 tsp cornflour
100ml full cream milk
500ml chicken stock or water and stock cube
- Slice leek discarding the tough green part, and rinse well. Drain. Remove skin from chicken. Remove the meat from the bones, shred into bite sized pieces and set aside.
- Peel potatoes and slice into 1cm slices. Spray with a little olive oil, sprinkle with salt and place in a greased baking tray and bake for about 15 minutes.
- Remove a sheet of puff pastry from pack, thaw for a few minutes, and cut into 4 squares. Prick several times with a fork, place in hot oven to bake for 12 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large pan and fry the leek on medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring often.
- Pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Turn down to a simmer. Dissolve the cornflour with milk and add to the pan stirring constantly until thickened. Cook stirring for another 2 minutes. Add the chicken and heat through. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
- Divide the chicken and leek mixture between 4 warmed plates and place a square of pastry on top. Serve with crisped potatoes and fresh steamed vegetables.
Tip: Cook extra pastry squares as you are sure to get requests for more.