Delicious Chicken Pot Pies

Many of us grew up eating the pot pies that you can find in your grocery store’s freezer section, but making your own pot pie is certainly worth the extra effort. As with any food, making it yourself is usually healthier and tastes better. We had a delicious chicken pot pie when we were in Strasbourg and it was rustic and simple. Obviously you can make pot pies with turkey or beef as well, but chicken works out really well. It is a perfect way to use leftovers this holiday season in a way that doesn’t really feel like a leftover. We happen to have a mini-pie maker, which helps, but you don’t have to have one in order to make your own pot pies. You can buy premade pie crusts that are personal size in tin trays and just top with store-bought pie crust. The key to a really good pot pie is the stock that you use, so making a homemade stock is certainly worth the effort. Chicken pot pies are a perfect dinner for a cold winter evening.

Pot Pie Ready to Eat

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 cups Chicken Stock
  • 4 tbsp Unsalted Butter
  • 2 tbsp Vegetable Oil
  • 2 tbsp All-Purpose Flour
  • 1 Egg – egg white only
  • 1/2 cup Carrot – diced
  • 1/2 cup Onion – diced
  • 1/2 cup Celery – diced
  • 1/2 cup Frozen Corn – off of the cob (or peas)
  • 1 cup Russet Potatoes – parboiled and diced
  • 1 cup Cooked Chicken – diced
  • 1 tsp Garlic Powder
  • 1 tsp Dried Thyme
  • 1 tsp Dried Rosemary
  • 2 sheets Pie Crust (store-bought) – one package
  • Salt and Pepper to taste
Diced Vegetables
Miniature Pie Maker

INSTRUCTIONS

Be sure to cut the celery, carrots, and onion into equal sized pieces. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter along with the vegetable oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the carrots and cook for about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the celery and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes and then finally add the onions and cook until they are translucent. Remove the vegetables from the pot, leaving any drippings. Add the remaining butter and heat until melted. Add the flour and whisk until it is slightly brown and nutty, do not over cook. Heat the stock in a microwave until hot and then add the stock to the roux, making sure to whisk frequently as pouring it into the pot. Add the garlic, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper, and continue to heat until it reaches a slight boil. Reduce the heat to low and add the potatoes, carrots, celery, onion, corn, and chicken and cook until heated thoroughly and the stock has thickened. Spoon the mixture into the bottom sheet of pie crust (if using store bought pie pans, prick with a fork and partially cook in an oven before adding the mixture). The mixture should be about a quarter of an inch from the top of the crust. Cut the pie crust to fit the top of the pie and place over the mixture being sure to crimp the edges together with a fork or with your fingers. Brush with egg white and cook in the pie maker (or in the oven) for the directed amount of time, 12 to 15 minutes in our case. Let them rest a few minutes before serving.

Cook Vegetables
Flour and Butter to Make a Roux
Chicken Pot Pie Mixture
Pies with Filling
Brush with Egg White
Finished Pot Pie

 

Learning Different Cooking Techniques When Traveling

Like many people, we not only like to try local dishes when we travel, but we also like to learn about how they prepare the food as well. Whether it is wrapping fish and vegetables in banana leaves, digging a pit, or using special pots like a tajine, the technique has as much to do with the flavor as the spices and meats. We can’t necessarily create all of the same techniques at home, but we try to whenever we can. We definitely love eating in small, family owned restaurants and if we are ever given the opportunity to eat with a local family, which happens occasionally, we absolutely enjoy that as well.

Cooking in a Tajine
Preparing a Local Meal in the Amazon
Traditional Chestnut Soup in Strasbourg
Ham Curing in Southern Spain

One thing that we have noticed through our travels is that we rely too much on modern technologies for cooking and they aren’t truly necessary. There is something special about a rustic meal prepared with traditional methods. The problem in today’s world is that people don’t have the time to prepare and cook meals in such a way that requires hours of time to prep ingredients or cook over open fires. Obviously we’re not suggesting that we turn back the clock to a time when there weren’t all of the conveniences and that a wonderful can’t be created by using them, just that there is something special about a meal made by hand and with love.

Cheese Fondue in Switzerland
Wrapping in Banana Leaves
Cooking Over Open Flames
Shopping for a Tajine in Morocco