Deep-filled Chicken and Bacon Pie Recipe

1. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 5.
2. Unroll the shortcrust and puff pastry, leaving the pastry on the baking sheets provided.
3. Peel and cut the potatoes roughly into 2cm cubes. Boil until they are cooked through but still firm. Be sure not to overcook otherwise the potatoes will crumble.
4. Lightly grease a 20cm x 30cm pie dish with butter and line the bottom and sides with a generous layer of the shortcrust pastry. Blind bake in the oven for 10 minutes. Once done, set aside to cool.
5. In a large, non-stick deep frying pan, heat the oil, then fry the bacon. Once browned, scoop the bacon from the frying pan and set aside.
6. Add the chicken to the frying pan and fry until the chicken begins to turn white. Add the onion to the same pan and fry for a further 2 to 3 minutes or until softened. Scoop from the chicken and onions from the frying pan and set aside.
7. Reduce the heat, add the vegetables into the frying pan and cook until they have softened. If you’re using frozen vegetables, defrost them in a microwave first. Skip this step altogether for already cooked leftover vegetables.
8. Make the roux sauce (see instructions below).
9. Add the chicken and bacon to the vegetables in the frying pan, and stir in the roux sauce to make the filling.
10. Spead the potato into a layer in the pie dish and then pile your chicken-bacon-vegetable filling on top.
11. Roll out the puff pastry for the pie topping. Brush the edges of the pastry in the pie dish with the beaten egg, then cover with the puff pastry, taking care to tuck in the edges.
12. Brush the top of the assembled Chicken and Bacon Pie with the beaten egg. Make two or three slits in the top of the pie with a sharp knife to allow for steam to escape.
13. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until the pastry is risen and golden-brown. Allow to cool slightly before serving.

To make the roux sauce:

A roux (pronounced ‘roo’) is the name given to the cooked mixture of butter and plain flour that thickens and forms the base of various sauces. It consists of equal quantities of butter and plain flour.

The fat is melted, the flour is mixed through over a gentle heat. The hot liquid is then gradually mixed into the paste to make a silky sauce which needs a few minutes more cooking before serving or using.

1. In two saucepans, warm the chicken stock and the milk separately (you can microwave in separate dishes). Do not combine the chicken stock and milk.
2. In a small saucepan, gently melt the butter over a low heat.
3. Add the flour and combine with the melted butter using a whisk. Cook for at least 2 minutes to “cook out” the raw flour.
4. Add the warm chicken stock to the flour mix in batches, ensuring that each batch is mixed through thoroughly before the next.
5. Now repeat the process by adding the warm milk in batches, again ensuring that each batch is mixed through thoroughly.
6. Keep adding the milk in batches, and stirring with the whisk to ensure a lump-free, velvety sauce with the consistency of double cream. You may not need all of the milk.