Chicken, sausage and bacon puff pie

Details

• Cuisine: British
• Recipe Type: Pie
• Difficulty: Easy
• Preparation Time: 20 mins
• Cooking Time: 85 mins
• Serves: 4

Step-by-step

GET AHEAD You can do this on the day, if you prefer. Slice the bacon and place in a large shallow casserole pan on a medium heat. Chop the chicken and sausages into 3cm chunks, and add to the pan. Cook until lightly golden, stirring regularly, while you trim and wash the leeks, peel the potatoes, chop it all into 3cm chunks, then stir in with a good splash of water. Cook for 10 minutes, or until the leeks have softened, stirring occasionally, scraping up any sticky bits, and adding an extra splash of water, if needed. Stir in the mustard and flour, followed by the stock, then the milk. Bring to the boil, simmer for 15 minutes on a low heat, stirring regularly, then season to perfection, tasting and tweaking. Carefully pour everything through a colander to separate the filling from the sauce. Pour the sauce into a blender, add the watercress and blitz until smooth. Spoon the filling into a 20cm pie dish with 100ml of sauce. Let everything cool, then cover and refrigerate overnight.

TO SERVE Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Brush the rim of the pie dish with olive oil. Cut the pastry into 2cm-thick strips, using a crinkly pasta cutter if you’ve got one, then arrange over the dish – I like a messy lattice. Eggwash all the pastry, then bake the pie for 45 minutes, or until the pastry is golden and the filling is piping hot. Gently heat up the watercress sauce to serve on the side.

VEGGIE LOVE: Peel 500g of root veg of your choice, chop into 2–3cm chunks and cook for 20 minutes with the leeks, potatoes, 3 tablespoons of olive oil and the leaves from ½ a bunch of thyme (10g). Use organic veg stock with the milk, top up with 125ml of sauce on assembly, then finish in the same way.

Together by Jamie Oliver is published by Penguin Random House © Jamie Oliver Enterprises Limited (2021 Together). Photography: David Loftus.