Coq au vin-style pie

Serves: 2
Preparation time: 50 minutes
Difficulty level: Medium

We love a good chicken pie and this deliciously simple, chef-curated recipe doesn’t disappoint. Time to bust out the pots and pans!

Ingredients

• 1 pack bacon lardons
• 1 echalion shallot
• 1 punnet chestnut mushrooms
• ½ bunch thyme
• 280g diced chicken thigh
• 5 potatoes
• 1 pot red wine stock
• 1 sachet tomato puree
• 16g plain flour
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 puff pastry sheet
• 1 bunch flat leaf parsley
• 20 grams flora original
• 200ml water

Directions

1Preheat your oven to 220°C bring a large saucepan of water to the boil and boil your kettle. Heat a drizzle of oil in a frying pan on medium-high heat and add the pancetta. Stir- fry until golden, reducing the heat slightly if needed, 4-5 mins. Meanwhile, halve, peel and thinly slice the shallot. Quarter the chestnut mushrooms. Pull the thyme leaves off their stalks (discard the stalks).

2When the pancetta lardons have browned, add the chicken along with a grind of pepper and mix together. Stir-fry with the pancetta lardons until browned on the outside, 4-5 mins. Next, add the shallots, mushrooms and thyme to the pan with a pinch of salt and pepper, stir together and cook until the veggies have softened, another 4-5 mins.

3As the veggies cook, chop the potatoes into 2cm chunks (no need to peel) and add to the pan of boiling water to cook for 15-20 mins. TIP: The potato is cooked when you can easily slip a knife through. Mix the boiling water from your kettle (see ingredients for amount) with the stock pot in a measuring jug and stir to dissolve.

4Once the veggies are soft, add the tomato purée to the pan, stir together and cook for 1 minute, then add the flour, stir again and cook for 2 mins more. Pour in the stock and add the bay leaf. Stir together and bring to a simmer. Add a pinch of salt and pepper and simmer until the mixture has thickened and the chicken is cooked, 4-5 mins. IMPORTANT: The chicken is cooked when no it is longer pink in the middle.

5Tip the potatoes into the chicken mixture and gently fold through to combine. Stir in the parsley and season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Transfer into an ovenproof dish. Trim the pastry to the size of the dish then lay on top of the filling. TIP: It doesn’t matter if the pastry goes over the edge of the dish or just sits on top, it will depend on the size of your dish!

6Whilst the pie cooks, roughly chop the parsley (stalks and all). When the potato is done, drain in a colander, return to the pan (off the heat) and mash with a potato masher until smooth. Add the parsley, Flora original and a splash of milk (if you have some). Stir together until well combined. Taste and add salt and pepper if it needs it. Cover with a lid to keep warm. Serve the pie with the parsley mash on the side, and remember not to eat the bay leaf! Enjoy!

Recipe curtesy of HELLOFRESH