Chicken and Ham Pie

4.84 from 6 votes

This is traditional English cooking at its best: chicken and ham pie with peas, a luscious white sauce, and puff pastry.

Prep Time30

Cook Time45

Total Time1 15

Course: Poultry

Cuisine: English

Servings: -6 servings

Calories: 379kcal

Author: Adina

1 disc puff pastry large enough to cover the pie, about 12 inches/ 30 cm diameter, Note 2
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons milk

Cook chicken: Place the chicken breasts in a pot, and cover with water. Add peppercorns, bay leaves, and allspice. Bring to a boil, add a little sea salt and the stock cube, turn the heat down, simmer for about 10 minutes or until the chicken breasts are cooked through.
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts/ 450 g + 5 peppercorns + 2 bay leaves + 4 allspice corns + 1 cube chicken stock + water
Add the frozen peas during the last 3 minutes of the cooking time.
1 ¼ cup frozen peas/ 200 g
Chop chicken: Lift the chicken from the water, and let it cool for about 5 minutes. Chop into 0.7 inch/ 2 cm cubes. Chop the ham into small cubes as well. Drain the peas reserving the cooking water. Discard the spices.
7 oz cooked ham/ 200 g

Preheat the oven to 180°C/ 360°F.
White sauce: Chop the onion finely. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Cook the onion until golden. Sprinkle the flour on top and stir gently until the flour gets lightly golden as well.
1 small onion + 2½ tablespoons butter + ⅓ cup all-purpose flour/ 40 g
Add liquids: Gradually add the reserved cooking water and the milk while whisking continuously. Turn the heat down and stir until the desired thickness is achieved, about 8 minutes. Add salt, pepper, and nutmeg to taste.
1 cup cooking water from the chicken/ 250 ml + 1 cup cup milk/ 250 ml + a few gratings of nutmeg + fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Combine: Take off the heat and stir in the chicken, ham, and peas. Adjust the taste again, adding more salt, pepper, and nutmeg if necessary. Pour the mixture into the pie dish.

Cover with pastry: Unroll the puff pastry disc and cover the pie with it. Seal the pie by pressing the pastry disc firmly on the sides of the dish. I used a fork and pressed and crimped all around the pie dish. Trim off the excess pastry. You could use this excess to cut out leaves or flowers to decorate the pie with. It is not a necessary step.
1 disc puff pastry
Egg wash: In a small bowl, mix the egg yolk and the milk. Brush the pastry with this mixture. Place the leaves or flowers on top of the pie and brush them with egg as well.
1 egg yolk + 2 tablespoons milk
Bake: Make a small slit in the form of an X in the middle of the pie and some simple slits two or three times around the edges of the pastry. Bake for about 20 minutes until golden brown.

If using leftover chicken, skip the chicken cooking part. Remove the skin and the bones from the cooked chicken, and chop the meat. Defrost the peas. Mix chicken and peas with the white sauce.
Pastry: Frozen puff pastry can be used instead. Defrost and roll according to the packet's instructions.