After the #margaritaparty I had a reasonable amount of Chicken Salad left over. It really is quite delicious and I wanted to find a way to use it. So I grabbed pastry and eggs and made a Chicken and Egg pie, a twist on the traditional bacon and egg pie, which I call the Which Came First Pie.
To make it, I used the ring moulds I have from my catering days but you could make them in a dish if you wanted. I cut out pastry circles using a saucer and used them to line the greased rings. It takes a few minutes to make sure that the pastry doesn’t get stretched and broken by the contents of the pie during cooking. Once you are happy with the case, then spoon in the chicken mixture.
Once this is sorted, I recommend making a dent in the middle of the chicken so that the egg yolk settles in the middle of your pie. Crack the aforementioned egg onto the filling, then cover with your pastry lid- cut using one of the spare rings. Press down gently round the edge of the egg- this will cause the white to spread, which moistens the underside of the pastry lid and helps seal it to the case.
Press the edges of the case and lid together, pulling them up to create a ‘crown’ effect. Carefully put a couple of holes in the lid of the pastry to let the air escape whilst cooking: the egg expands after all. Brush with egg wash, then bake at 160C until golden. It’s utterly delicious. And perfect for summer picnics.
Go on! You know you want to tell me what you think!