Description
Hearty “Chicken and Ham Pie” brings comfort from British culinary traditions, blending savory meats and flaky pastry into a classic winter meal. Warmth and nostalgia fill each delicious slice, inviting you to savor a slice of homemade comfort.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients:
- 4 chicken thighs
- 125 g ham, roughly chopped
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- 2 sprigs of fresh thyme
Pie Crust Ingredients:
- 250 g (8.8 ounces) plain flour
- 125 g (4.4 ounces) butter, roughly chopped
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1–2 tablespoons cold water
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Seasoning and Liquid Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon plain flour
- 200 ml (6.8 fluid ounces) chicken or vegetable stock
- 100 ml (3.4 fluid ounces) milk
- 1 teaspoon wholegrain mustard
- salt
- black pepper
- 1 egg beaten (optional for glazing), or milk
Instructions
- Combine butter and flour in a food processor until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Add egg and cold water to the dough, mixing until clumps form and adding more water if needed.
- Gently knead the pastry on a board to bring it together, then wrap in cling film.
- Refrigerate the pastry for a minimum of 2 hours to firm up.
- Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper.
- Heat olive oil in a skillet and cook chicken for 5 minutes per side until browned.
- Remove chicken from the pan and set aside.
- In the same skillet, sauté onions in remaining oil for 5 minutes until softened.
- Add crushed garlic and fresh thyme, cooking for 1 minute.
- Sprinkle flour into the pan and stir.
- Pour in stock, milk, and mustard, creating a smooth sauce.
- Slice chicken into bite-sized chunks and add to the sauce.
- Simmer for 30 minutes, allowing the chicken to finish cooking.
- Let the mixture cool in a 17 x 26cm dish, then fold in chopped ham.
- Preheat oven to 200°C fan/220°C/392°F.
- Remove pastry from refrigerator and let rest for 5 minutes.
- Dust a work surface with flour and roll pastry to 3-5mm thickness.
- Optional: Cut pastry strips and line the dish edges, brushing with beaten egg.
- Drape pastry over the filling, trimming edges with a sharp knife.
- Decorate with pastry scraps, securing with beaten egg.
- Create small steam vents in the pastry top.
- Brush the entire pie surface with beaten egg or milk.
- Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown and bubbling around the edges.
Notes
- Chill pastry thoroughly to ensure a flaky, tender crust that doesn’t shrink during baking.
- Cut chicken into consistent bite-sized pieces for even cooking and uniform texture throughout the pie.
- Use room temperature ingredients like eggs and milk to help create a smoother, more cohesive pastry dough.
- Consider substituting ham with smoked turkey or vegetarian protein for dietary variations without compromising flavor complexity.
- Prep Time: 2 hours 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Lunch, Dinner
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: British
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4
- Calories: 406 kcal
- Sugar: 2 g
- Sodium: 520 mg
- Fat: 22 g
- Saturated Fat: 9 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 11 g
- Trans Fat: 0.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 30 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 27 g
- Cholesterol: 110 mg