I was making pie crust as I normally do, with Crisco Shortening. I was taught and told when I was younger that the recipe on the back of the Crisco Shortening box was a no fail recipe for pie crust. Sure enough, it has never failed me. Then I find out that pastries or crusts can be made with butter or with animal fat and that shortening is a vegetable “fat” or oil. This was a shock for me but also something new to try. It seems Tenderflake is a lard or animal fat and Crisco Shortening is a vegetable oil. I’m not sure which I used for the pie crust for this chicken pie recipe but there is a post on crusts coming up.
As for the chicken pie recipe below, the filling for the pie isn’t an absolute. I noticed I didn’t include any spices in the ingredients. This certainly doesn’t have to be adhered to. I’m not a fan of flavourless food but also don’t feel only certain spices and flavours are required. Some spices that can be used are,
- ground ginger
- garlic powder
- curry powder
- tumeric
- garam masala
- pepper
- chili powder
- herbs – oregano, basil, etc.
- salt
sauces such as,
- Worcester sauce
- soya sauce
- ketchup
- bbq sauce
- chili sauce
- any other favorite sauces.
I don’t suggest using all the above suggested spices or sauces, but only your “favorites”. As for the filling itself, potatoes and mushrooms don’t have to be vegetables you add in. Some other possibility for the vegetable(s), if any, could be,
- carrots
- peas
- sweet potatoes
- stewing vegetables
Even the meat doesn’t have to be chicken. You could use, beef, lamb, venison, bison, anything that would work in a stew would work.
Chicken Pie
Notes
Gravy:
Ingredients:
- 5 tbsp flour
- 1/4 c unsalted butter
- 2 1/2 c milk
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1.5 tsp ground black pepper
- seasoning - herbs of your choice
- Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat.
- Whisk in flour until smooth.
Ingredients
- 1 lbs chicken without bones
- 1 potato, cubed
- 1 onion, sliced
- 3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 inch ginger, grated
- 1/2 lbs mushrooms, sliced
- Double pie crust
- Gravy (ingredients below)
Instructions
- Pan fry the chicken.
- Cut the fried chicken into small cubes.
- Cook sliced onions, chopped garlic, grated ginger and cubed potatoes in a fry pan until potatoes are soft.
- Fry sliced mushrooms in a separate pan.
- Make the gravy from the recipe below.
- Let everything cool.
- While cooking, put the pie crust pastry into the pie plate.
- Mix chicken, potatoes, mushrooms and gravy into a "stew-like" consistency.
- Pour chicken mixture into the crust.
- Put top crust pastry over top the chicken mixture.
- Poke holes in to the top crust.
- Bake at 350C for 40-45 minutes or until crust is golden brown.
- Gravy directions below.
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