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roast chicken bacon & mushroom pies
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Roast Chicken, Bacon & Mushroom Pies

Individual roast chicken pies, filled with a roasted garlic sauce, smoked bacon, mushrooms & plenty of fresh herbs. The ultimate comfort food!
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Chilling Time2 hours
Total Time3 hours 30 minutes
Course: Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine: British, English
Servings: 6 Pies
Author: Ben Racey

Equipment

  • Pie Dishes (See Notes)
  • Roasting Tin (With Rack)
  • Digital Food Probe
  • Large Saucepan
  • Mixing Bowl
  • Rolling Pin
  • Baking Tray

Ingredients

Roast Chicken

  • 1½ kg Whole Chicken
  • 2 Bulbs Of Garlic (Left Whole)
  • 1 Lemon (Sliced)
  • 10 Sprigs Fresh Rosemary
  • 10 Sprigs Fresh Thyme
  • 2 tbsp Vegetable Oil

Pie Filling

  • 1 tbsp Vegetable Oil
  • 250 g Smoked Streaky Bacon (Cut Into 1cm Lardons)
  • 250 g Chestnut Mushrooms (Sliced)
  • 100 g Unsalted Butter
  • 100 g Plain Flour
  • 800 ml Chicken Stock (Warm - See Notes)
  • 300 g Creme Fraiche
  • 2 tsp Wholegrain Mustard
  • 20 g Bunch Of Tarragon (Leaves Picked Off)
  • 1 tsp Finely Chopped Rosemary
  • 1 tsp Finely Chopped Thyme

Hot Water Crust Pastry

  • 450 Plain Flour
  • ½ tsp Table Salt
  • 1 Large Eggs Beaten
  • 75 g Unsalted Butter
  • 75 g Lard
  • 190 g Water

To Assemble

  • 320 g Puff Pastry See Notes
  • 1 Egg
  • 1 tsp Whole Milk

Instructions

Roast Chicken

  • Preheat an oven to 180°c/160°c fan (356°f/320°f).
  • Place the chicken onto a rack set inside a roasting tin. Place the bulbs of garlic in the tray, underneath the chicken.
  • Next, stuff the chicken's cavity with the lemon slices & herbs then coat the skin with the vegetable oil. Season well with salt & pepper then roast in the preheated oven until the internal temperature reaches 73°c/163°f. This will take between 1-1½ hours.
    Chicken is fully cooked once it reaches 75°c/167°f. The internal temperature will reach this as the meat rests.
  • Once cooked, let the chicken rest whilst you make the filling. We'll be using the roasted garlic bulbs for the sauce.

Pie Filling

  • Set a large saucepan over a medium-high heat then add in the veg oil & leave to heat up for a minute or so.
  • Once the oil is hot, add the bacon lardons into the pan & fry until crisp, stirring frequently. Then once cooked, use a slotted spoon to transfer the bacon to a bowl, leaving the fat in the pan.
  • Next, add the sliced mushrooms into the bacon fat & cook until golden, again stirring frequently. Once cooked, transfer the mushrooms to the bowl with the bacon then set to one side.
  • Lower the heat to medium-low then add in the butter & cook until melted, stirring regularly. Once melted, stir in the flour then cook out for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
  • Next, pour in a third of the warm stock then whisk until smooth. Cook out until thick, whisking/stirring regularly. This will only take 2-3 minutes.
  • Once thick, pour half of the remaining stock into the sauce then continue cooking until it has thickened up again, whisking regularly.
  • Add in the remaining stock then reduce the heat to low. Continue cooking, stirring/whisking regularly until the sauce has thickened back up for a final time. This step will take around 5 minutes. The sauce should be the consistency of a thick bechamel/cheese sauce (think mac & cheese!).
  • Once the sauce is cooked, take the pan off the heat & whisk in the creme fraiche.
  • Squeeze the roasted garlic out of the skins then add into the sauce before giving it a quick blitz with a stick blender to make smooth. Then stir in the mustard.
  • Next, use your hands to pull the chicken off the bones & into chunks. I like to keep the chunks fairly large.
    Food safe gloves come in handy here! Make sure to get as much meat off the bones as possible. The carcass can be used to make stock or soup.
  • Add the chicken into the sauce along with the bacon, mushrooms & chopped herbs then season with sea salt & freshly cracked black pepper and gently mix to combine. Give the sauce a taste to check the seasoning then add in more salt & pepper as needed.
  • Transfer the pie filling to a shallow dish, leave to cool slightly then chill until completely cold. Cover the surface with a piece of clingfilm before refrigerating, to prevent a skin forming on top.
    The filling can be kept in the fridge for 2-3 days before being used.

Hot Water Crust Pastry

  • Add the flour & salt into a large mixing bowl then whisk to combine. Set this to one side. Add the egg into a separate small mixing bowl then beat lightly.
  • Next, add the butter, lard & water into a saucepan then set over a medium heat. Cook, stirring regularly until the fats have melted then bring to the boil.
  • As soon as the water & fats are boiling, pour them into the flour, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon as you do.
  • Once the fats have been mixed in, add in the beaten egg then continue mixing for a couple of minutes, until a smooth dough forms then cover the bowl & leave to rest for 20 minutes.
    The pastry will still be warm when you knead it. A pair of food safe gloves comes in handy here! The pastry should still be slightly warm when we roll it out.

Assembly

  • A quick note: This recipe makes enough pastry for 6 individual pies or 1 large one, which you'll need half the filling for. I like to freeze the other half for another day. Feel free to make double the amount of pastry if you'd prefer & use all of the filling!
  • Grease your pie dishes with butter then set aside.
  • Transfer the hot water crust pastry to a lightly floured surface then divide into 6 portions.
  • Take a portion of pastry & roll out into a 4mm thick circle. Line a pie dish with the pastry then repeat with the remaining portions.
    Make sure to leave a cm or two of pastry overhanging each pie dish.
  • Divide half of the chilled pie filling between each pie. The filling should sit slightly above the top of the tins/dishes.
    The rest of the filling can be saved for another batch of pies. Either in the fridge for up to 2 days or in the freezer for several months.
  • Next, cut circles out of the puff pastry that are large enough to completely cover the top of each pie. You can do this with a circular cutter or by cutting round a plate/bowl.
  • Brush a small amount of cold water around the edge of each pie then top each with the discs of puff pastry, pressing down lightly on the edges to seal & to thin the pastries out slightly.
  • Crimp around the edge of each pie with a fork then use a small knife (or a round cutter) to trim the pastry level with the edge of the tins/dishes.
    If you dip your fork in flour before crimping, it won't stick to the pastry!
  • Cut a small steam hole in the top of each pie then chill in the fridge for at least an hour.

Baking

  • Preheat an oven to 210°c/190°c fan (410°f/374°f). Place a baking tray in the oven at the same time.
  • In the meantime, make an egg wash by whisking the egg & milk together then brush a light layer over the top of each pie. Return them to the fridge, to chill whilst your oven heats up (for 20 minutes or so).
  • Brush another light layer of egg wash onto each pie then place the pie tins onto the hot baking tray in the oven & bake for 35-40 minutes, until the pastry is a deep, golden brown and the filling is piping hot.
    A digital food probe inserted into the filling should read at least 75°c/167°f. If the pies start to brown too much, cover them loosely with foil.
  • One baked, let the pies sit for 20 minutes then carefully lift them out of the tins. Serve immediately or leave to cool then store in the fridge.

Notes

1. To Cook In An Aga – To roast the chicken, follow my aga roast chicken recipe! Use the boiling plate to fry the bacon & mushrooms then move over to the simmering plate to make the sauce. Bake the pies in the roasting oven, on a baking tray placed on the floor.
2. Roast Chicken – You’ll need a medium chicken for roasting, weighing around 1.5 kg. Alternatively, you could roast 1kg of chicken thighs instead. Your whole chicken should be untrussed & have the giblets removed (if there are any).
3. Chicken Stock - For the sauce, I used a stock cube dissolved in boiling water but feel free to use homemade chicken stock if you'd prefer. Either way, make sure to warm it up before adding into the sauce as this speed things up! 
4. Puff Pastry – We’re topping these pies with puff pastry (like a chicken pot pie!). To make 6 individual pies, you’ll need 320 grams of puff pastry (1 Jus Rol puff pastry sheet). If you’d like to make your own pastry, take a look at our seriously flaky rough puff pastry!
5. Storage & Reheating – Once made, the pie filling is best used within 2-3 days & should be stored in the fridge. Alternatively it can be stored in the freezer for several months. The baked pies are best eaten warm but will keep for a day or two in the fridge. To reheat, bake the pies at 180°c/356°f until the filling is piping hot. You might need to cover the pies with foil if the pastry starts to brown too much.
6. Pie Tins – I used a deep, 6 hole muffin tin for my pies (I’ve linked this in the post above) but a regular muffin tin will work (you’ll get more pies!) or individual pie tins. You could also make a large, sharing pie instead.
7. Large Pie - If you'd like to make 1 large pie instead of 6 individual ones, I'd recommend using a 20cm springform cake tin (you'll need the same amount of pastry).
To cook, bake the pie for 20 minutes at 220°c/428°f then turn the oven down to 170°c/338°f and cook for another 45 minutes - 1 hour until the pastry is crisp & golden and the filling is piping hot. Make sure to let a large pie sit in the tin for at least 40 minutes before taking out, to avoid breaking the crust (don't ask me how I know this!).