This creamy Hairy Bikers Chicken And Mushroom Pie is made with tender chunks of chicken and earthy chestnut mushrooms, all brought together in a rich, velvety sauce made with chicken stock and double cream, and topped with a golden all-butter puff pastry lid. This recipe creates a deeply savoury, rich, and satisfying pie with a flaky, buttery pastry topping. Perfect for a comforting family dinner when you’re craving a taste of home, this is the ultimate comfort food classic and serves 6 people.
Hairy Bikers Chicken And Mushroom Pie Ingredients
For the Creamy Filling:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 25g (2 tbsp) unsalted butter
- 750g skinless, boneless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into bite-sized chunks
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 250g (9 oz) chestnut or cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 50g (1/3 cup) plain flour
- 400ml (1 2/3 cups) chicken stock
- 150ml (2/3 cup) double cream (heavy cream)
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme or a few sprigs of fresh thyme
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the Pastry Topping:
- 1 x 320g sheet of ready-rolled all-butter puff pastry
- 1 medium free-range egg, beaten
How To Make Hairy Bikers Chicken And Mushroom Pie
- Brown the chicken: Heat the oil and butter in a large, heavy-bottomed pan or casserole dish over a medium-high heat. Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper, then add them to the pan in batches. Cook until golden brown on all sides, then remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- Sauté the vegetables: Lower the heat, add the chopped onion to the same pan, and cook gently for 5-7 minutes until softened. Add the sliced mushrooms and cook for another 5 minutes, until they have released their liquid and are starting to brown. Add the crushed garlic and cook for one more minute.
- Make the sauce: Sprinkle the plain flour over the vegetables and stir well to create a paste (this is a
roux). Cook for one minute, then gradually pour in the chicken stock, stirring constantly with a whisk or wooden spoon to prevent lumps. - Combine and simmer: Return the browned chicken to the pan. Add the double cream and the thyme. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 20 minutes, or until the chicken is tender and the sauce has thickened beautifully. Stir in the fresh parsley and season to taste.
- Cool the filling completely: This is a crucial step. Transfer the finished filling to your pie dish (a round or oval dish about 1.5 litres in capacity is ideal) and leave it to cool completely.
- Assemble the pie: Preheat your oven to 200°C (180°C Fan / 400°F). Unroll the sheet of puff pastry and lay it over the top of the pie dish with the cooled filling. Use a sharp knife to trim the pastry around the rim of the dish.
- Bake until golden: Press the edges of the pastry down with a fork to seal it. Make a couple of small slits in the centre of the lid to allow steam to escape. Brush the entire pastry top with the beaten egg. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the pastry is puffed up, deep golden brown, and the filling is bubbling hot.
Recipe tips
- Cool the filling completely: This is the most important tip for a successful puff pastry pie. If you place pastry onto a hot or even warm filling, the butter in the pastry layers will melt before it gets into the oven. This results in a flat, soggy lid instead of a light, flaky, and puffed-up one.
- Use chicken thighs for more flavour: While chicken breasts work well, chicken thighs have a little more fat and flavour, which makes them perfect for a pie filling. They stay incredibly tender and juicy, even after being simmered in the sauce.
- Don’t overcrowd the pan: When browning your chicken, do it in a couple of batches if necessary. This ensures the chicken pieces have space to sear properly and get a lovely golden colour, which adds a huge amount of flavour to the finished dish.
- An egg wash is key: For that classic, shiny, deep golden-brown pie crust, you can’t skip the egg wash. Brushing the pastry with beaten egg before baking gives it a wonderful colour and professional finish.
What To Serve Chicken And Mushroom Pie
This classic and hearty pie is wonderful served with some simple steamed green vegetables, which provide a fresh contrast to the rich, creamy filling. Tenderstem broccoli, buttered green beans, or sweet garden peas are all perfect choices. For a truly satisfying comfort food meal, serve each slice with a generous portion of creamy mashed potatoes or some chunky, fluffy chips.
How To Store Chicken And Mushroom Pie Leftovers
Refrigerate: Once cooled, cover any leftover pie with foil or transfer it to an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. To reheat, place it in an oven preheated to 180°C (160°C Fan) for about 20 minutes, until the pastry is crisp and the filling is piping hot all the way through.
Freeze: This pie is ideal for freezing. It is best to freeze it before the final bake. Assemble the pie with the cooled filling and pastry lid (but don’t egg wash it yet). Wrap the whole dish well in a double layer of cling film and a layer of foil. It can be frozen for up to 3 months. You can bake it from frozen; just egg wash the top and add about 20-25 minutes to the original cooking time.
Hairy Bikers Chicken And Mushroom Pie Recipe Nutrition Facts
Serving Size: 1/6th of pie
- Calories: 650 kcal
- Total Fat: 42g
- Saturated Fat: 20g
- Cholesterol: 150mg
- Sodium: 680mg
- Total Carbohydrate: 35g
- Dietary Fiber: 3g
- Sugars: 5g
- Protein: 32g
Frequently Asked Questions
- Why did my puff pastry lid go soggy on the bottom? A soggy bottom on a puff pastry lid is almost always caused by the filling being too warm when the pastry was put on top. The steam rises from the filling and melts the delicate butter layers in the pastry before it has a chance to cook and puff up in the hot oven. Your filling must be completely cold.
- Can I use shortcrust pastry instead of puff pastry? Yes, absolutely. If you prefer a more traditional, crumbly pastry, you can use a sheet of ready-made all-butter shortcrust pastry in exactly the same way.
- Can I make the filling ahead of time? Yes, making the filling a day in advance is a fantastic idea. It not only saves you time but also guarantees the filling will be perfectly chilled when you are ready to assemble the pie. Just let it cool completely, then store it in an airtight container in the fridge.
- What kind of mushrooms are best for this pie? Chestnut mushrooms (also known as cremini mushrooms) are a great choice as they have a deeper, earthier flavour than standard white button mushrooms. This adds more depth and richness to the creamy sauce.
Try More Recipes:
- Hairy Bikers Cheese Potato Pie Recipe
- Hairy Bikers American Meatloaf Recipe
- Hairy Bikers Veggie Wellington Recipe
Hairy Bikers Chicken And Mushroom Pie Recipe
Description
A classic and comforting Chicken and Mushroom Pie recipe inspired by the Hairy Bikers. It features tender chicken and earthy mushrooms in a rich, velvety cream sauce, all topped with a golden, flaky all-butter puff pastry lid. True British comfort food.
Ingredients
For the Topping:
Instructions
- Brown chicken: Heat oil and butter. Brown the seasoned chicken pieces in batches. Remove and set aside.
- Sauté veg: In the same pan, cook onion until soft. Add mushrooms and cook until browned. Add garlic.
- Make sauce: Stir in flour, cook for 1 min. Gradually whisk in stock, then stir in cream and thyme.
- Simmer: Return chicken to the pan. Simmer gently for 20 mins until chicken is cooked and sauce is thick. Stir in parsley.
- Cool filling: Transfer filling to a pie dish and let it cool completely.
- Assemble: Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C Fan). Lay pastry over the cooled filling, trim, and seal the edges.
- Bake: Brush with beaten egg, make slits in the top, and bake for 25-30 minutes until golden and puffed.
