Chicken Pot Pie - Or Hotdish Or Casserole?

I know what a pot pie is, but I'm not very sure about hotdish.  I'm pretty sure it's like a casserole, made with whatever you have hanging around in the freezer and/or pantry.  It's a Midwest USA dish, where I guess fresh produce isn't always available in the depths of winter?  Or maybe they just like the convenience of it.  This recipe was inspired by one for Chicken Pot Tot Hotdish in Molly Yeh's book Molly on the Range. 

Lovely IMK'er friend Mae from Mae's Food Blog sent me a link which tells us all about hotdish.  Check out the comments on my previous post (for potato friands) for the link.  The article even cites Molly Yeh as the expert on hotdish.  The funny thing is she is a transplant from Chicago and New York - Molly Yeh I mean.  And what a woman: a musician, cook, blogger, author, you name it.  And Mae is pretty damn fine too:=).    

ready for its potato topping

Recipe adapted by Sherry's Pickings:


Serves 6:


ingredients:


800g. chicken breast, diced

3 tbs butter

1 red onion, finely chopped

2 carrots, diced into bite-sized pieces

1 large stick of celery, finely chopped

a pinch of salt

5 level tbs plain flour - (I used an American spoon here btw)

3 cups (750 mLs) milk - I used normal and soy milk

1 cup (250 mLs) chicken stock OR use 1 cup of the chicken poaching water with 2 tsp of chicken stock powder

2 tsp grain mustard

black pepper, to taste

1/2 tsp dried herb(s) of your choice

2-3 tsp parsley paste or 2 tbs fresh, chopped parsley

1 cup (150g.) frozen peas, thawed in boiling water

either lots of frozen Potato Gems/Tater Tots to cover the dish perfectly OR use my potato friands that I posted previously - you know which one I prefer


Method:


Place the diced chicken in a medium saucepan and pour boiling water over.  Bring back to the boil and let it simmer gently for a couple of minutes till it turns opaque

Strain through a colander (but KEEP the water if you want to use that as your cup of stock), and put the chicken aside

Melt the butter in a large skillet on medium-high heat, and tip in the chopped veg. - onion, carrot, celery

Add the salt and cook away on a low heat for about 10 mins., stirring now and then till the veg. is getting tender

Sprinkle the flour evenly over the veg. and stir in

Cook out the flour for a few minutes

Now add half the milk and stir till it starts to thicken

Then add the other half of the milk and keep stirring

In goes the stock - and keep stirring 

Add the mustard, pepper and herbs

Stir in the peas and chicken

Check the seasoning

Pour the smooth and creamy chicken mixture into a large oval or rectangular baking dish, deep enough to hold the potatoes too

Cover it with the friands (or Gems/Tots)

Bake for about 25 mins. at 200C/400F till golden and bubbling



Notes:


Either buy chicken breasts, and poach them, then dice OR buy diced breasts like I did.  Yep cheeky but so easy and quick:=)

My enamel roasting dish is a 30 cm. (12 in) one - FYI

gather some ingredients 

(I did use grain mustard not mustard powder, shown here.)

fry your beautifully chopped veg. in butter

Get hubby to chop the carrots, like I did:=)  Mr P. is sooo useful. 

stir in the flour

see, getting thicker

smooth and creamy

here I am slicing my friands in half, lengthwise  

and covering the pot pie with them

and now to eat

my red potato and green pea doodle