Easy Chicken & Leek Pie - My Kids Lick The Bowl (2024)

Course: Family Dinner Ideas

Cuisine: New Zealand

Keyword: chicken and leek pie, chicken leek pie, chicken and leek pie recipe, leek pie

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• 1-2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large leek
• 1 medium carrot
• 500 g chicken breast or thighs
• 2 medium zucchini
• 300 ml chicken stock
• 1 tablespoon wholegrain mustard optional
• 2 tablespoon sour cream optional
• 1 Sheet puff pastry

• Heat the oil in a fry pan over a medium heat

• Slice the leek thinly (into rings) you want the white and pale green part, you can discard most of the dark green leaves, sauté the leek in the oil

• Finely dice the carrot and add to the pan, continue to sauté the leek and carrot until both are tender and fragrant (approx 5 mins)

• Dice the chicken, add this to the fry pan and seal the chicken. It doesnot need to be browned all over, it will cook in the stock which you add next

• Add the stock, grate the zucchini and add this too. Bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer, Leave the mix to simmer for 20-30 mins, you want the liquid to reduce right down as this will be the filling of your pie, if it's too liquidy you end up with pie soup! You will think there is not enough liquid, but as the zucchini cooks it releases moisture too, so try to wait before you add extra stock

• Once the chicken and veggie mixhas reduced down, turn off the heat and stir through the mustard and sour cream. You can skip this step, but I do find the flavour of the pie is absolutely amazing with the addition of these last 2 ingredients!

• Transfer the chicken and leek mix into the pie dish

• Top with puff pastry, pierce the pastry with a knife to create a few holes for steamto escape, and if you have the inclination brush the pastry with a little milk or an egg wash.

• Bake at 200 degrees Celciusfor 15 minutes or until the pastry is golden

• Serve with mash and some green veggies, it's delicious with a 50:50 cauliflower and potato mash!

• Don't be tempted to add extra stock unless absolutely necessary, you want the chicken and leek pie filling to be quite dry so that you don't end up with a soggy pie.
• In this type of recipe the part of the leek that you really want is the white part so when you are at the grocer, try and choose a leek that has loads of white, the dark green leaves you can chuck in a stock for extra flavour, but in this type of dish you want the white and light green part of the leek as it cooks down sweet
• If you want to you can always get a little bit creative with the pastry top, only if you want to though, the pie tastes great however the pastry looks on top of the pie.

Ingredient notes and substitutions

• Chicken: You will want a cut chicken that is easy to dice, I use boneless chicken breasts or boneless chicken thighs. You can also substitute raw chicken for shredded left over cooked chicken or rotisserie chicken.
• Wholegrain mustard: Any mild mustard can be used such as dijon, or this ingredient can be left out.
• Sour cream: This can be substituted for creme fraiche, cream, evaporated milk, cream cheese or a dairy free version of these. The sour cream can be left out entirely although I find the creaminess makes for a nicer final pie.
• Carrot and zucchini: This pie is also delicious with grated mushrooms
• Chicken stock: To boost the protein in this pie you can also use a chicken bone broth.