A savory chicken pot pie filling inside flaky pastry dough. The perfect hand held meal!
One of my all time favorite comfort foods has got to be chicken pot pie. I mean whats not to love?
Delicious chicken, tender veggies, flavorful gravy all cooked in a pie…
What could possibly be better then that?
How about a handheld version?
You heard correctly, lets take that delicious filling and put it into an empanada shell!
The key to any great dish is the foundation which in this case will be the stock for the gravy
We are using 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts to start with (around 2 pounds of chicken)
We are basically going to poach these
Where stock gets most of it’s flavor is from the fat and bones of the protein your cooking
Chicken breasts are quite lean so we are going to add some extra flavor
We will need 1 stalk of celery, 1 tablespoon of chicken base, 1 tablespoon of peppercorns and 2 bay leaves
What is chicken base?
Chicken base is a highly concentrated chicken stock. It’s basically a thick liquid form of bouillon and a great way to a lot of flavor in a stock or soup
Whisk the chicken base and 4 cups of water together in a pot
Add in the celery, peppercorns, bay leaves and chicken
Cover and bring to a boil then reduce to a low simmer and cook 20-25 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through
Remove the chicken and set aside to cool
Once cooled use 2 forks to shred the chicken
Strain the pot into a bowl reserving the liquid and discard the solids
Trust me the little extra step here to make a stock will make all the difference to the gravy
Next up we will need 2 tablespoons of butter, 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 4-5 fresh sage leaves
Add the butter and oil to a large pan over medium heat
Once the butter has melted and is bubbly chop the sage and add it to the pan
Cook for 2 minutes stirring around occasionally
Next we will need 2 carrots peeled and chopped, 1 onion peeled and chopped, 2 celery stalks chopped and 2 garlic cloves peeled and chopped
Add the veggies to the pan along with a sprinkle each of kosher salt and ground black pepper
Cook 6-8 minutes stirring occasionally until the carrots start to soften and the onions become translucent
Next add in the chicken
We will also need 1 cup of frozen peas
You guessed it, add them to the pan
Add in 2 cups of stock to start and mix everyone together
Bring to a boil then simmer while we work on a roux
Add 2 tablespoons of butter and 1/4 cup of flour to a saucepan over medium low heat
Whisk together
Continuously whisk the roux until it has a light golden brown color. This will help cook off the flour flavor
You want a nice thick gravy but you don’t want to taste the flour
Whisk in only some of the roux at a time and let the gravy thicken
If the gravy is still too loose whisk in some more, remember you can always add but you can’t take away
Likewise if the gravy tightens up too much you can add more stock to loosen it
I’m thinking we are looking good!
Next we will need 1-2 tablespoons of fresh chopped parsley
Add this to the mix
Remove to a bowl and set aside to cool slightly
Taste and season with salt and pepper accordingly
Now at this point if you happen to have 2 pie crusts laying around looking for something to do, you know what I mean….just chillin’, you could certainly make a regular chicken pot pie…
Or you can make some hand pies!!!
We are taking a short cut and using 10 inch empanada discs… they come with 10 per package and we are making 20 hand pies
These are typically found in the frozen section of the supermarket and will need to be thawed before use
Basically it is pre-formed pie dough… I mean WHAT????
Perfect!!!!
Preheat your oven to 350 F
We will also need a small bowl of water for sealing, 1 egg whisked for a wash and kosher salt for sprinkling
Lay out a disc on a cutting board
Using a 1/3 measuring cup scoop out the chicken pot pie filling and place in the center of the disc
Using your fingers dip them in the water and wet the outside edge of the dough
Fold one side into the other and press the edges together
Using a fork crimp the edge to seal it
Place on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper that has been sprayed with cooking oil
Using a pastry brush coat each pie with the egg wash and sprinkle with a pinch of kosher salt
Place in the oven
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown
Serve them up and watch them disappear!!!
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Enjoy!!!
Simply Sundays! ~ Chicken Pot Hand Pies
Ingredients
For the chicken
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 cups of water
1 celery stalk
1 tablespoon of chicken base
1 tablespoon of peppercorns
2 bay leaves
For the filling
2 tablespoons of butter
2 tablespoons of olive oil
5 fresh sage leaves chopped
precooked chicken shredded
1 onion
2 carrots
2 celery stalks
2 garlic cloves
2 cups of chicken stock
1 cup of frozen peas
2 tablespoons of butter
1 tablespoon of fresh chopped parsley
kosher salt
ground black pepper
2 packages of 10 ” empanada shells (10 per package)
1 egg
Directions
For the chicken
Add 4 cups of water to a pot along with 1 tablespoon of chicken base and whisk. To the same pot add 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, 1 celery stalk, 1 tablespoon of peppercorns and 2 bay leaves
Bring to a boil then reduce and simmer for 20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Remove the chicken and set aside. Once cooled shred the chicken with 2 forks. Strain the liquid reserving the stock and discard the solids
For the filling
In a large pan add 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Once the butter is melted and bubbly add in 5 fresh chopped sage leaves and cook stirring occasionally for 2 minutes
Next add in 2 carrots peeled and chopped, 1 onion peeled and chopped, 2 celery stalks chopped and 2 garlic cloves peeled and chopped. Sprinkle with kosher salt and ground black pepper. Cook 6-8 minutes stirring occasionally until the carrots start to soften and the onions become translucent
Next add in the shredded chicken and 1 cup of frozen peas and mix to combine. Add in 2 cups of the reserved chicken stock. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer
In a sauce pan add in 2 tablespoons of butter and 1/4 cup of flour and whisk together. Cook on low heat until the ingredients are incorporated and the roux has a nice golden brown color
Whisk the roux into the filling. Add just enough to get a gravy consistency. Stir in 1 tablespoon of fresh chopped parsley. Remove from the heat and transfer to a bowl and allow to cool slightly. Taste and season with salt and pepper accordingly
Preheat your oven to 350 F. Lay 1 ten inch empanada disc onto a cutting board. Using a 1/3 measuring cup scoop out pot pie filling and place in the center of the dough disc. Dip your fingers in some water and rub the edge of the shell
Bring one edge of the shell over the filling and onto the other edge and press together. Run a fork around the outside of the edges to seal. Repeat with the rest and place them on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper sprayed with cooking oil
Whisk 1 egg in a bowl and using a pastry brush egg wash all the hand pies. Sprinkle with a little kosher salt. place in the oven and bake 25-30 minutes or until golden brown
Anchor Hocking 8 Cup Measuring Cup Glass Batter Bowl with Spout
Architec Carving Board, Gripperwood
NuWave Flex Precision Induction Cooktop
Pyrex Prepware 1-Cup Measuring Cup
Reynolds Kitchens Parchment Paper
Royal Classique 10 Piece Stainless Steel Measuring Cups and Spoons Set with Silicone Handles
Cooks Standard Multi-Ply Clad Stainless Steel Tagine and Extra Glass Lid, 4.5-Quart
Wilton Recipe Right Non-stick Cookie Sheet Set, 2-Piece
ZELITE INFINITY Chef Knife 8 inch
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[…] Chicken Pot Hand Pies […]
Looks incredible. 👁👁🍂
Thank you!!