Earlier this week I got a hankerin’ for my mom’s recipe for chicken pot pie. It was a favorite when I was a kid, and signifies what I think of when I think of a warm, comforting winter meal. Mom got the recipe out of the newspaper when they lived in Oklahoma in 1973, and it’s the one she and my sisters still use.
This was my first attempt.
Once Mom transcribed the recipe to me over the phone, I immediately put Chef to the work of tweaking the instructions. We added wine and peas (”You can’t have pot pie without peas.”), decided on proper chicken broth instead of using only the water the chicken was boiled in, argued over whether to add potatoes (too much starch, I say), and debated whether or not to keep the frozen veggies or add fresh (laziness won out). We also opted for some good, hard cheddar grated directly over the top instead of using prefab cheese food product. Finally, at the suggestion of my mom, we cut the original biscuit recipe altogether and went with the recipe on the back of a Clabber Girl Baking Powder can, outlined below.
This was a more expensive venture than I thought, and since I won’t handle raw meat and making a (pseudo-gravy-like) roux intimidates the hell out of me, Chef did all that. Chef was also really bothered at the idea of boiling chicken, remarking all the while that it “just doesn’t feel right.”
I really wish we’d gotten a picture of this when it was fresh out of the oven. It was delicious.
Ingredients
1 boneless chicken breast
2 boneless chicken thighs
1/4 cup butter
1 medium onion chopped
1/4 cup flour
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup milk
1/2 cup white wine
juice from 1/2 fresh lemon
2 teaspoons fresh tarragon, chopped
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
1 cup celery, sliced
1 cup carrots, thinly sliced
9 oz. pkg. green beans
1 1/2 cups frozen peas
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup to 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
Prepare the chicken:
Boil 1 chicken breast and 2 thighs in water until done. Dice and set aside.
Prepare the filling:
In saucepan, saute carrots, celery, peas and onion in butter until tender. Once tender, deglaze* the pan with white wine. Add flour and let cook until flour smells nutty. Add chicken broth, milk and lemon juice.
Cook whole mixture until thickened, then add cubed chicken. Stir in tarragon and thyme. Salt and pepper to taste.
If mixture gets too thick, add more chicken stock or white wine.
Remove from heat, stir in green beans, and pour evenly into casserole dish. Should be slightly runny so the biscuits do not soak up all the moisture.
Prepare the biscuits:
2 cups white flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup vegetable shortening
3/4 cups milk
1/2 tsp. salt
Stir together flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in shortening with fork until mixture resembles course cornmeal. Add milk and blend with a fork until dough pulls away from the side of the bowl (do not overwork or your biscuits will be flat). Knead lightly about 30 seconds and roll onto floured surface until 3/4 inch thick. Cut dough into circles with a biscuit cutter (I use a drinking glass), dipping cutter into flour between cups.
Place biscuits on top of casserole mixture evenly until they completely cover the top. Sprinkle shredded cheese on top of biscuits and bake in 400 degree oven for 18-22 minutes until biscuits are done and filling is bubbly. Remove from oven and let set for 5-10 minutes until filling sets. Serve, swoon, go back for seconds, and drop off into a comfort food coma.
_____________________
* Hit the pan with the wine and scrape up all the good bits like you do when you’re making gravy.
Recent Comments