Get the Recipe: Curried Chicken Pot Pie
A twist on the classic, this curried chicken pot pie features warm Indian flavours, coconut milk, sweet potatoes and peas, and store-bought puff pastry topping.
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon cooking oil
- 1/3 cup onion, peeled and diced
- 1 Tablespoon Madras curry paste, plus more to taste *see Note 1 below
- 3/4 cup (165 ml) coconut milk, full-fat or fat-reduced *see Note 2 below
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 1/2 cups sweet potato or butternut squash, peeled and diced *see Note 3 below
- 3/4 - 1 cup red or orange bell pepper, seeded and diced
- 3 cups cooked chicken, diced
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 Tablespoons lime juice, or water
- 1 cup frozen green peas
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
For topping:
- 1/2 lb puff pastry, thawed, about 1 large sheet
- 1 large egg
- 1 Tablespoon cold water
Instructions
- Tip! This recipe calls for cooked chicken. You can use leftover cooked chicken, frozen cooked chicken or rotisserie chicken. If you only have fresh chicken, cube it up and quickly cook it in the skillet before starting this dish.
- In a large skillet, heat the cooking oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until the onion is softened and just starting to colour. Add the curry paste and cook together with the onion for about 1 minute. Add the chicken broth and stir to combine. Add the coconut milk and stir in. Add the sweet potato (or butternut squash) and the bell pepper.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer, then cover the skillet with a lid (or place a large baking sheet overtop) and simmer until the sweet potato is tender, about 10 minutes, depending on the size of the dice. Test the sweet potato with a fork to be sure it is tender. Remove the lid and stir in the chicken. Bring the mixture back to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes.
- In a small bowl, stir together the cornstarch and lime juice. (You can substitute water if you don't have a lime on hand, or you can use part lime juice/part water). Stir the cornstarch mixture into the skillet and cook, stirring, for about 2 minutes while the mixture thickens. Stir in the frozen peas.
- Taste the filling and add salt and freshly ground pepper, as needed. If the flavours test a bit flat, it needs more salt! You can also stir in a bit more curry paste at this point if you like.
- Transfer the curried chicken filling to a bowl, cover and refrigerate until well cooled, about 45-60 minutes.
- Tip! It is important that the pot pie filling be cooled before placing the puff pastry on top. Otherwise, the heat from the filling will soften the puff pastry and affect the rise once it goes in the oven.
- Preheat oven to 425F (non-convection/not fan-assisted).
- In a small bowl, stir together the egg and cold water to make the egg wash. Set aside.
- Tip! You can make individual chicken pot pies or one large chicken pot pie. You should get 3 or 4 individual chicken pot pies, depending on the size of the individual making dishes. For one large curried chicken pot pie, use an oven-safe, shallow baking dish in the 8x11-inch range (smaller than a 9x13-inch).
- Spoon the cooled pot pie filling into the baking dishes or single dish. If making individual pot pies, cut the puff pastry sheet into pieces sized to fit nicely overtop of the baking dishes. Either leave a little gap around the edges or cut a slit in the centre of the pies with a knife to allow the steam to escape during cooking. If making one large pie, simply place the sheet over your single baking dish and trim if necessary. Cut a slit in the centre of the pastry if there is no gap along the sides to allow steam to escape. You can assemble to this point and refrigerate for up to 12 hours before baking. Remove from the refrigerator for 15 minutes before baking.
- Brush the top of the puff pastry with the egg wash.
- If making individual portions, you may wish to place them onto a baking sheet to make it easier to transfer to the oven and to catch any bubble-overs.
- Bake the pot pies for 15 minutes, then loosely cover with foil to prevent over-browning and continue baking for 20-25 minutes or until the filling is bubbly.
Notes
Note 1: Madras curry paste is easily available in the Indian products at most grocery stores. Tikka Masala curry paste would be a good substitute. Indian curry powders could be used, but they lack the additional aromatics of the pastes, such as garlic and ginger, so if using powder, you may want to add these with the onion. You may need less powder than paste. Add a bit to start and adjust up to taste.
Note 2: The mini cans of coconut milk (165ml/5.5oz) are perfect here. If you only have a large can, stir it well before measuring out. Leftover coconut milk can be frozen.
Note 3: You could use frozen, diced butternut squash, though it may break down more than you like. Be careful not to over-cook it which will help it to retain its shape.
Tips!
This recipe will make 3 large individual pot pies. (I only show 2 here as I only had 2 of the dishes shown here, but it did make a similar-sized 3rd pie.) You would easily get 4 medium-sized pot pies from this recipe.
You can make one large pot pie if you prefer. Opt for a medium-sized, shallow baking dish (smaller than a 9x13-inch). Something in the 8x11-inch range works well.
If you are feeding more, double the recipe and make it in a 9x13-inch pan.
These pot pies are not super saucy. If you prefer a saucier pot pie, you could double up the broth, coconut milk and thickener.
Be sure to read the notes above this Recipe Card for more tips on making this recipe. You'll find substitution suggestions, step-by-step photos and a recipe video that you might find helpful.
Watch how to make it
Serving: 1serving, Calories: 721kcal, Carbohydrates: 50g, Protein: 33g, Fat: 44g, Saturated Fat: 18g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 17g, Trans Fat: 0.3g, Cholesterol: 87mg, Sodium: 371mg, Potassium: 940mg, Fiber: 5g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 9032IU, Vitamin C: 57mg, Calcium: 58mg, Iron: 5mg
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