Homemade chicken and bacon pie with a creamy crème fraîche, chive & thyme sauce all wrapped in a golden brown shortcrust pastry case.
Like most homemade pies this dish takes a while to cook, but the filling and pastry can be made a couple of days in advance.
Individual Chicken Pies
I adore pie, there is nothing quite like a whole individual pie with a comforting filling to make me feel “special”!
My latest offering is a glorious chicken and bacon pie with a creamy crème fraîche filling flavoured with thyme and chives.
It comes wrapped in the same short-crust pastry, that I use in so many of my individual pie recipes.
It has been featured in everything from my steak and stilton pies to my cheese and onion pasties and my glorious fidget pies to my minced beef and onion pies.
Like so many pies, this dish is a labour of love, but you can do all of the preparation well in advance.
The filling can be made and stored in the fridge for a couple of days, and the pastry is fine in the fridge for 4-5 days.
Then all you have to do is bring everything together and chuck it in the oven!
Frequently Asked Questions
I have pastry left over, is that normal?
Yes, in order to roll the pastry out you need to make more than is required when you make a full pastry case.
Fear not though, you can use the leftover pastry to make a couple of sausage rolls so there is no waste!
Do I have to use crème fraîche?
No, but it is the most stable type of dairy product for a recipe like this.
I understand that it is difficult to find in the US, but you could substitute in full-fat sour cream or even use a bechamel-based white sauce. I have a recipe for parsley sauce that would work wonderfully in this recipe.
Can I use low-fat crème fraîche?
I would avoid using low or no-fat dairy in this recipe because it is inherently less stable and it is much more likely to split. The dish would still be edible, but it would be texturally disappointing.
Is it ok to use store-bought pastry?
Yes, of course, take whatever shortcuts you like!
Can I make these in advance?
Yes, these pies can be made and chilled or frozen both before and after cooking them.
If I am freezing them I prefer to freeze them before cooking. I usually buy disposable foil pie tins if I am doing this. Cook them at 200°C or 400°F for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat and cook for another 60 minutes.
If I am reheating them then I cook them in the pie tins that I mention and pop them out when they are cool. They can be reheated in an oven 180°C or 350°F for 15-20 minutes.
Serving Suggestions
I’ve served my individual chicken and bacon pies with some simple herby buttered potatoes and peas in these pictures.
But if you wanted to be really indulgent you could swap out the tatties for a mash.
Mashed potatoes are the obvious choice, but I think that swede and carrot mash or celeriac mash would be a better choice for this recipe.
If you wanted something different on the greens front, then my air fryer garlic asparagus is a nice idea. Or you could roast some tenderstem broccoli in the oven whilst you are cooking the pies.
Finally, it would be remiss of me not to mention chips, pie and chips are all that and then some. I have recipes for both air fryer chips and classic chip shop style chips!
Equipment Used
I only mention brands of equipment if I think that they make a material difference to a recipe. But, if you have any questions feel free to ask them in the comments section below the recipe.
- Food processor. You can also make the pastry in a mixing bowl.
- Cling film.
- Rolling pin.
- Stovetop.
- Oven.
- 30cm or 12″ frying pan or skillet.
- Weighing scales and or a combination of a measuring jug, cups and spoons.
- Chopping board.
- Kitchen knife.
- Two 250ml pie dishes. I use oval dishes that are 15cm x 11cm x 3cm (6″ x 4½” x 1¼”).
- Stirring and serving spoons.
- Small mixing bowl.
- Pastry brush.
Individual Creamy Chicken and Bacon Pie Recipe
These delicious homemade chicken and bacon pies feature a wonderful homemade shortcrust pastry and a creamy filling made from crème fraîche, garlic, thyme and chives.
Ingredients
For the Shortcrust Pastry:
- 200g (1½-1⅔ Cups) Plain Flour
- 50g (3 Tbsp + 1 Tsp) Lard
- 50g (3 Tbsp + 1 Tsp) Butter
- Pinch Salt
- 1 Tsp Malt Vinegar
- Water as required (3-4 Tbsp)
- 1 Egg (to egg wash the pie)
For the Pie Filling:
- 175g (6oz) Bacon Lardons
- 1 Tbsp Cooking Oil
- 1 (35g) Banana shallot
- 2 Cloves Garlic
- 250g (9oz) Chicken Thighs
- 125ml (½ Cup) Crème Fraîche
- 125ml (½ Cup) Chicken Stock
- 2 Sprigs Fresh Thyme
- Pinch Salt
- 10g (3-4 Tbsp) Fresh Chives
Instructions
- Cut the butter and lard into a 1cm (½") dice and place it in a food processor.
- Add the flour and salt, then pulse until you get a "breadcrumb" texture.
- Add the vinegar and pour in the water whilst you pulse the dough until a ball forms. Wrap in foil and then chill for at least 1 hour.
- Heat a 30cm or 12" frying pan over a medium heat and add the cooking oil and when it is hot toss in the bacon lardons and cook for 7-8 minutes until it is golden and starting to crisp up. Stir this every few minutes
- Whilst the bacon is cooking cut the shallot in half, peel it and then dice it as finely as you can.
- Peel the garlic and dice it as finely as you can.
- Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces.
- Add the shallots and cook for a 2-3 minutes or until they become translucent, stirring occasionally.
- Add the chicken and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Throw in the garlic and cook for a minute.
- Pick the leaves form the sprigs of thyme.
- Pour in the chicken stock, add the crème fraîche, thyme leaves and season with salt, give it a stir and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Snip the chives, remove the pan from the heat and stir the chives through the pie filling and allow the filling to cool for 15 minutes whilst you prepare the pie.
- Roll out the pastry until it is 3-4mm (⅛") thick, cut it in half then cut a piece off large enough to form the lid of each pie.
- Grease and flour two small pie dishes, I use oval pie dishes that hold around 250ml (1 cup) of liquid that are 15cm x 11cm x 3cm (6" x 4½" x 1¼").
- Line each pie tin with pastry leaving a generous overhang, and add half of the pie filling and add a little sauce.
- Beat the egg in a bowl and brush the edge of the pie, add a piece of rolled-out pastry for the lid. Then crimp the edges of the pie and cut off the overhang
- Brush the top of the pie with more beaten egg and make a small hole in the centre, sprinkle with a little flaky salt.
- Pop the pies in a preheated oven with a heavy tray in it, cook the pies at 180°C or 350°F for 40-45 minutes.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
2Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1520Total Fat: 107gSaturated Fat: 47gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 53gCholesterol: 394mgSodium: 2411mgCarbohydrates: 68gFiber: 4gSugar: 26gProtein: 72g
Calorific details are provided by a third-party application and are to be used as indicative figures only.