Chicken pot pie, the All-American comfort food… would you believe it isn’t American at all? Yep, you can thank the Greeks and Romans for this. The first pies, made by the Greeks, were baked meats in an open crust pastry known as “traps”. Historians believe Romans made this a prize of victory after they conquered Greece later adding the top crust commonly referred to as “coffins”. Sounds a bit depressing, eh? Maybe it’s time for a chicken pot pie pick-me-up!
Ingredients
- 2 9″ refrigerated, rolled, unbaked pie crusts
- 3 lbs of chicken (or 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken)
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup carrots, medium dice
- 1/2 cup leeks, sliced (or celery if you’re boring)
- 1 oz prosciutto, chopped
- 1 cup frozen green peas
- 1/2 tbs soy sauce
- 1/3 cup butter
- 1/3 cup chopped onion
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 tsp celery seed
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 1 egg yolk
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and cook it in the skillet on the skin side to brown it and to render the fat from the skin, about 15 min. Turn the chicken over and cook on the bone side for about 5 min. Remove the chicken and when cool to touch, remove skin and bones and cube. (NOTE: If you’re using boneless, skinless chicken, I recommend mixing both white and dark meat for added depth and flavor)
- Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat from the pan. Add the garlic, carrots, leeks, and prosciutto and sauté until the vegetables are softened, 8 to 10 min.
- Stir cubed chicken, soy sauce and peas into the pan and remove from heat.
- Melt butter in the saucepan over medium heat and cook onions until soft and translucent. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and celery seed. Slowly stir in chicken broth and cream. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick and remove from heat.
- Spray a 9″ pie pan with a non-stick spray and lay down one pie crust and top with the chicken mixture.
- Pour liquid mixture on top of chicken mixture and lay top crust over and seal edges.
- Make several slits for steam to escape and lightly baste top crust with egg yolk. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Crust should be golden brown. Cool before serving.
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