Chicken pot pie recipe to keep the winter nights warmer

An up-and-coming chef has shared his favourite chicken pot pie recipe.

With winter getting colder and colder, many would like to have a warm filling meal to get them through the cold nights. Emmarentia-based chef and catering company founder Koketjo Semenya has a solution to this with his signature chicken pot pie dish. The Northcliff Melville Times was got the recipe from the chef himself.

Ingredients

• 500 grams chicken breast
• Salt and pepper
• Oil
• Onion
• Crushed garlic
• Mixed herbs and oregano
• Chicken noodle soup
• Chopped chilli
• Two bay leaves
• One cup of mixed vegetables
• Butter
• Flour
• Milk
• 200 grams cheddar cheese
• Packet of mushrooms
• Puff pastry
• Egg

Method

Part one: Chicken strips

• Season the chicken breast with salt and pepper and leave for 10 minutes
• Cut chicken into small strips
• Heat oil on medium heat in a saucepan and then add your chicken strips and slightly saute
• As the chicken changes to a golden brown colour, remove from the pan and put it in a bowl
• Add a chopped onion to the remaining oil along with crushed garlic, half a teaspoon of mixed herbs and oregano and saute until onions are golden brown
• Add chicken noodle soup to the mixture and let simmer until the sauce begins to thicken
• Add the chopped chilli and two bay leaves and let it cook for five minutes
• Add mixed vegetables and the sauteed chicken strips.

Part 2: Mushroom sauce

• Add a tablespoon of butter to a saucepan on a low to medium heat and let it melt
• When it begins to bubble, add two tablespoons of flour and mix together
• Add 300ml of milk and stir until it begins to thicken
• Add grated cheddar cheese slowly while stirring. Add a pinch of salt while stirring.
• Add sliced mushrooms and let boil for three to five minutes while frequently stirring.

Part 3: Pot pie

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees
• Mix chicken strips and mushroom sauce and let simmer for 10 minutes
• Coat pie tray with butter and put a sheet of puff pastry on the surface and then trim the sides
• Add the mixture of chicken strips and sauce
• Place another layer of puff pastry
• Trim the edges and seal it all around by pressing a fork against the edges
• Puncture the middle of the pie with a fork
• Beat an egg in a small bowl and baste the top of the pie
• Cut the remaining puff pastry into long strips
• Line the strips on top of the pie in criss-cross. Baste this with beaten egg
• Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes, until it is golden and shiny
• Let pie cool for 5 minutes and it will be ready to serve.