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Butter Chicken Pie on Curry French Lentils
Overnight-marinated chicken thighs in a blended, strained butter chicken sauce, baked in individual pies under a puff pastry lid and served over curried French lentils.
By Jeremy Potvin
Prep 30 min · Cook 2 hr · Serves 6
Watch the Method
Chicken marinade
- 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 900 g / 2 lb)
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp ginger powder
- 1 tbsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- Kosher salt
- Olive oil, for the marinade and for searing
Butter chicken sauce
- 1 onion, diced
- 5 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 500 g canned tomatoes (about one 540 mL / 19 oz can)
- 50 g raw cashews
- 1 L (4 cups) chicken stock
- 2 tbsp garam masala
- 2 tbsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp malt vinegar
- Kosher salt
- 5 tbsp butter
- 5 tbsp 35% cream
- 1 1/2 tbsp kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
Curry French lentils
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 carrots, diced
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 2 tbsp curry powder
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 1 1/2 cups (300 g) French lentils (lentilles du Puy), rinsed
- 4 1/2 cups (1.1 L) chicken stock
- Kosher salt
Pie assembly
- Pie dough for six 5-inch (12 cm) bottom crusts (one batch of the savoury pie crust below, or about 600 g store-bought)
- 1 package (450 g / 1 lb) puff pastry, thawed, for the lids
- 1 egg, beaten, for the egg wash
Equipment
- Large sauté pan or Dutch oven (chicken and sauce)
- Medium saucepan (lentils)
- Hand blender
- Fine-mesh sieve, rubber spatula, and a large bowl
- Six 5-inch (12 cm) individual pie plates
- Rolling pin
- Pastry brush
- Kitchen shears (for cutting the chicken)
- Food processor (for the pie crust)
- Small paring knife
Method
Step 1: Marinate the chicken (the night before)
- Season the chicken thighs all over with kosher salt.
- Toss with the garlic powder, ginger powder, Kashmiri chilli powder, and enough olive oil to coat.
- Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Step 2: Sear the chicken
- Heat a film of olive oil in the large sauté pan over medium-high heat.
- Sear the marinated thighs until well coloured and about 80 percent cooked through. Remove and set aside.
Step 3: Build the sauce
- In the same pan, sauté the onion and garlic until softened.
- Add the tomatoes and cashews. Cook, stirring, until the tomatoes have broken down and the mixture has reduced.
- Stir in the garam masala, Kashmiri chilli powder, a good pinch of salt, the vinegar, and the sugar. Hold the kasoori methi for the end.
- Pour in the stock and simmer until reduced and slightly thickened.
Step 4: Blend, strain, and finish
- Remove from the heat and blend smooth with the hand blender.
- Pass the sauce through the sieve into the large bowl, pressing it through with the rubber spatula. Do not skip this step; it is what gives the sauce its texture.
- Return the sauce to the pan. Stir in the cream, butter, and kasoori methi. Taste for salt.
- Cut the chicken into small pieces with kitchen shears and fold into the sauce. Simmer gently for about 20 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and cool to room temperature before assembling; a hot filling will soften the pastry.
Step 5: Curry French lentils
- Melt the butter in the medium saucepan over medium heat. Sauté the onion, carrots, and celery until softened.
- Stir in the curry powder and cumin and cook briefly to bloom.
- Add the lentils and stock. Simmer until the lentils are tender and the liquid is absorbed, 25 to 30 minutes. Season with salt.
Step 6: Assemble and bake
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
- Roll out the pie dough and line the six pie plates (see the pie crust below).
- Divide the cooled butter chicken among the plates.
- Cut puff pastry lids slightly larger than the plates, lay them over the filling, and crimp the edges with a fork. Brush with the egg wash.
- Bake for about 30 minutes, until the pastry is deep golden.
Step 7: Serve
- Spoon the curry lentils onto each plate and set a pie on top.
THE PIE CRUST
Perfect Savoury Pie Crust
It's always pie season, so keep this one handy.
One batch lines six 5-inch plates · Re-roll the scraps
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 5 tbsp cold butter
- 5 tbsp lard
- 8 tbsp (1/2 cup) water
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar or malt vinegar
Step 1: Make the dough
- In the food processor, combine the flour, salt, and baking powder. Pulse a few times to combine.
- Add the cold butter and lard. Pulse until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Add the water and vinegar in short pulses until the dough just comes together.
- Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface and finish bringing it together with clean, wet hands. Form into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Step 2: Line the pie plates
- Take the dough out of the fridge and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes if it is too firm to roll.
- Roll the dough out into a large round.
- Set a 5-inch pie plate face down on the dough and cut around it with the paring knife, leaving 1 1/2 inches (4 cm) of overhang all the way around. Repeat for all six plates, re-rolling the scraps as needed.
- Press each disc into its plate and set aside. Fill, top with puff pastry, crimp, and egg wash as in Step 6 above.
Cooking for your health?
Dairy free, low sodium, low carb, high protein: Keep The Recipe rewrites this pie for your profile and shows you what changed.
Keep The Recipe
Your Recipes · Your Health
Dairy free, low sodium, low carb, high protein: Keep The Recipe rewrites this pie for your profile and shows you what changed.