Chicken Pie - The Perfect mix of Culinary Art and Culture

Hello Folks!!!

Last evening was simply beautiful, with the day fresh from the gentle drizzle and sweet-smelling air loitering into my room, swishing through my hair playfully, creating a sort of music in my ears. It was like beautiful magic, wondrous to behold. It surely was the best time to do some reading and so I settled down with a cup of hot tea and “Whitethorn Woods” by Maeve Binchy.

It felt as though it was forever and a day- like how Shakespeare calls it- since I felt the smooth pages of a ‘real’ book, smelt and ran my fingers across the letters as my eyes hopped joyfully from one line to the next. It was as though I was there with the characters, helping them with their busy lives, basking in their joys and languishing in their sorrows. A calm and gentle lady of not more than 52, Ms Hannah Harty offered to bring some steak and kidney pie, and almost instantaneously my head went pop, quickly drawing me into a land far from where I am, and a sudden homesickness clobbered me.

 This December marks a decade since we moved from the country of my childhood.  The place I learnt to walk, my first school, my first friends, our safaris through the bushy thorns and wide yellowish-green landscape, the tall giraffes looking down curiously at me and swift deer speeding through the African savanna. Botswana – the land that always has a unique place in my heart.

Every break hour at school, my little friends, with neatly braided hair, decorated with rainbow-coloured beads would quickly tidy their desks and get their 5 Pulas to buy some hot pie. I soon adopted this 10 am ritual with my friends. All of us would stand in straight lines in front of the tuck shop to get our most awaited snack- piping hot pies wrapped in covers that resembled butter paper and with the logo of that wonderful company – ‘Pie City’.  I can never forget that name!

I always ate the little button design on the middle of the pie first and then would continue to take small bites from the sides. It was so much fun, that it makes me laugh thinking of those little joys. I would always wish that the break time wouldn’t finish so fast, so that I can take all the time in the world to savour every mouthful and finish building my dreams of being a food critic for pies.

Since we all love to take the easy way and since life is too short for rolling out dough, I would suggest that you can buy puff pastry sheets from your nearby store and then try this easy Indian pie recipe -

RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

1.Puff Pastry sheets

2.Boneless Chicken – 1 cup (diced)

3.Onion – 1 large (chopped)

4.Egg – 1 (whisked)

5.Water – ¼ cup (to cook the filling)

6.Olive Oil – 2 tbsp (to cook the filling)

7.Curry powder – 1 tbsp

8.Salt – 1 tsp

9.Chilli powder – 1 tsp

INSTRUCTIONS

For the Filling

1.Preheat oven at 180°C for a few minutes

2.In a non-stick pan, heat some oil, add the onions and saute till golden brown.

3.Next, add the chicken, curry powder, salt and chilli powder and saute. Cover it with a lid and leave it to simmer on low heat.

4.After 2 minutes, give it a gentle mix and add water. Cover with lid again and let it cook. Stir periodically.

5.Remove the lid and stir the chicken. Take it off the stove and shred using a fork.

6.Leave the mixture to cool.

For the Chicken Pie

1.Take the thawed puff pastry sheet and cut them into squares,

2.Add 1 ½ tbsp filling in the centre and cover with another sheet of puff pastry. Press and seal all the sides.

3.Crimp all the edges using a fork and brush with whisked egg to get the golden-crispy look. Do this for the remaining chicken pies.

4.Arrange them on a baking tin and bake at 200°C for 10 minutes but keep an eye on them since the time varies depending on the size of your pastries and the filling. You may bake them until you see it puff up and just start to brown.