Chicken Pot Pie vs. Shephard's Pie

Welcome to another episode of Battle of the Bites! Is Shephard’s Pie or Chicken Pot Pie the ultimate comfort food? The two “pies” might sound like they have a lot in common, but really, well, let’s go over it in the video. Let the Battle begin! 🤘🏼 Adam

Print

Chicken Pot Pie vs. Shepherd's Pie | Battle of the Bites

IngredientsUSMetric

Chicken Pot Pie

• 2 Pie Crusts
• 1 whole Chicken, 4 cups of meat separated
• 2 Tbsp Chicken Fat (from cooked chicken)
• 4 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
• 1 medium Onion, diced
• 3 Celery Stalks, diced
• 3 small Carrots, diced
• 2 tsp Kosher Salt
• 1 tsp Black Pepper
• 3 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup AP Flour
• 2.5 cups Chicken Stock
• 1/2 cup Heavy Cream
• 2/3 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
• 1 1/2 cup Frozen Peas
• 1/3 cup Parsley, chopped
• 2 tsp Fresh Thyme
• 1 Egg, beaten

Shepherd's Pie

• 1.5 pounds Ground Lamb or Beef
• 2 medium Carrots, diced
• 1 large Onion, diced
• 3 ribs Celery, diced
• 1/2 Fennel Bulb, sliced thin
• 3 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp Tomato Paste
• 1 Tbsp AP Flour
• 1 Tbsp Fresh Thyme
• 1 tsp Fresh Rosemary
• 1/2 cup White Wine
• 4 cups Lamb or Beef Stock
• 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 Tbsp Brown Sugar
• Black Pepper, to taste
• Fresh Parsley, chopped for garnish
• 2.5 pounds, or 5-6 large Yukon Gold Potatoes
• 1 stick Unsalted Butter, melted
• 1/2 cup Heavy Cream
• 2 Egg Yolks
• Kosher Salt, to taste

Savory Pie Crust "pâte brisée"

• 250g Bread Flour
• 205g Unsalted Butter
• 3g Kosher Salt
• 70-85g Ice Water

InstructionsFahrenheitCelsius

Chicken Pot Pie

1. Roll out one of the pie doughs to 12 inches and layer it in a 10 inch cast iron pan. Use a fork to poke holes in the bottom of the crust. Cover the whole pan and dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.
2. Place the chicken in a large pot, cover with water and add a pinch of salt. Simmer the chicken covered on medium until cooked through, about 35-45 minutes.
3. Skim the fat off the top of the water, then transfer the chicken to a glass bowl to chill until cool to the touch. Shred the meat off of the bones and set 4 cups aside, save the extra meat and bones for something else.
4. Over medium heat, melt the butter and reserved chicken fat in a large skillet. Add the onions, carrots, celery and garlic, then season with salt and pepper. Sweat the vegetables until the onions become translucent, roughly 5 minutes.
5. Sprinkle the flour into the mix, then stir until it has coated all of the vegetables. Add the reserved chicken, parmesan cheese, chicken stock and cream. Simmer for 2 minutes until a viscous gravy-like consistency is achieved. Taste the mixture and adjust seasoning. Stir in the frozen peas, thyme and parsley, then remove from the heat and let cool for 10 minutes.
6. Remove the cast-iron pie crust from the fridge and pour in the slightly cooled chicken filling. Add the mixture. Roll out the second pie crust to a 12 inch diameter and cover the mixture. Use a fork or your fingers to crimp and seal the edges of the pie closed, then slice a few steam vent holes in the center of the pie. Brush the top layer of crust with some of the beaten egg, sprinkle on a pinch of crunchy salt, then bake on the bottom rack of the oven at 425F for 35-40 minutes. Let cool for a minimum of 20 minutes before slicing.

Shepherd's Pie

1. Preheat the oven to 400F (204c).
2. Bring a pot of water to a boil, then drop in the potatoes. Boil for 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.
3. Drain the potatoes and mash them or pass them through a ricer until all of the lumps are gone. Drizzle in the butter, stirring until it’s gone. Do the same with the cream.
4. Form the ground meat into patties, season with salt and sear until browned in a dutch oven. Once browned, remove the patties from the pan and drain the excess fat leaving a tablespoon in. Set the patties aside.
5. Add the onions, fennel, celery, carrots and garlic to the pot, season with salt and sweat for 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste, flour, thyme, rosemary, then cook another minute more. Deglaze with the white wine, scraping any stuck-on bits off of the bottom of the pot, then simmer until reduced by half. Reintroduce the meat to the mixture and break it up with your cooking utensil. Pour in the stock, Worcestershire, brown sugar and black pepper. Bring to a boil and reduce the liquid down until the meat has absorbed all of it, leaving a viscous, meat sauce-like filling. Add more stock if the mixture looks a little dry. Transfer the filling to an appropriately sized casserole or pie dish.
6. Stir the egg yolks into the now slightly cooled mashed potatoes, then spoon it into a piping bag or plastic bag with the tip cut off. Pipe the mashed potatoes on top of the pie filling until completely covered.
7. Bake the pie in the oven set to 400F (204c) and bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly. Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.

Savory Pie Crust "pâte brisée"

1. Chill down the bowl of a stand mixer and paddle attachment in the freezer for at least 30 minutes, or up to overnight. 2-3 hours is a good time to shoot for, but it can be done in 30 minutes.
2. Remove the bowl from the freezer and add the flour, salt and butter. Mix it together, then run the machine on a slow speed until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Stream in the cold water and run the machine just until the mixture comes together into a shaggy dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly dusted work surface, wrap in plastic and let the whole thing rest in the fridge for AT LEAST 2 hours, or overnight if you can.
3. After resting dough is now ready to be rolled out. If wrapped and stored tightly, the dough can be made up to 2 days in advance, or frozen for up to 2 months if it's wrapped tightly in plastic and stored in a plastic bag. If freezing, simply let the dough thaw the day before you want to use it.

Adam's Notes

• The amount of water needed for the pie crust varies by the humidity/dryness of your environment. In the winter, you'll need to use a bit more water.
• Set the oven racks to the 2 lowest placements. Pour some water in a sheet tray, lay it on the lower of the two racks, then place the pie on the second higher rack. The sheet tray will help catch any butter drippings that come off the pie and could otherwise drop onto the base of your oven, burn and smoke out your crib. No bueno. Take precaution.
• In a perfect world, you would let the chicken filling cool to room-ish temperature, but for the sake of time I set the cooling time on the low side (10 minutes). You don’t need to wait 45 minutes to fill the pie. Work quickly when adding the semi-cooled mixture. The hot mixture will quickly melt the butter weaved into the short crust and make it goopy. It’s okay if this happens, but get that pie crimped, the vent holes cut and the whole shebang into the oven as quickly as possible for best results.