This Easy Chicken and Leek pie is a family favourite, and total comfort food. Tender chunks of chicken and softened leeks in a creamy sauce, all topped with cheesy mashed potato. Great for batch cooking and kids love it!
This comforting potato topped pie couldn't be easier to make. Once you have browned the chicken and leeks, you just need to mix in the cheesy cause and then top with plenty of mashed potato before putting it in the oven to crisp up. It's easy to adapt by adding other vegetables, and you could even make it vegetarian.
If you're looking for more recipes that use leeks, try our Leek and Potato Soup, Buttered Leeks or quick and easy Creamy Leek Pasta.
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Ingredients needed
- Chicken breast - chunks of lean chicken breast are what make up the majority of the base of this dish. You could swap chicken breast for skinless and boneless chicken thighs. This would make the dish a little more juicy, but not as lean.
- Leeks - we used leek instead of onions, as they add much more flavour. Chicken and leeks are a delicious combination too. You could use finely sliced onions or even diced shallots.
- Garlic - you could leave this out, or even add more if you really love garlic.
- Creme fraiche - this is where the creaminess of the sauce comes from. No need to use heavy cream or to make a roux. Creme fraiche is a really easy way to make a creamy sauce.
- Cheddar - adding cheese to the creme fraiche really bumps up the creaminess. We used a mature cheddar, as the stronger the cheese, the less you need to use. You could swap cheddar for mozzarella, or any cheese that melts well.
- Dijon mustard - an easy way to add a lot of flavour. You could swap dijon for English mustard or even wholegrain.
- Mashed potato - this is the topping for the pie. We used our Easy Best Ever Mashed Potato recipe. You can use your favourite mashed potato recipe, or even swap is for mashed sweet potato.
How to make chicken and leek pie - Step by step
One: Heat the oil in a large pan and then add the chicken. Cook for 3 minutes. Add the leek and garlic and cook for a further 5 minutes, stirring regularly.
Two: Whilst the chicken and leek is cooking, make the mashed potato.
Three: Take the chicken off the heat and add the creme fraiche, two thirds of the cheese, mustard and season. Mix well.
Four: Put the chicken and leek mixture in to a baking dish.
Five: Top with mashed potato and the rest of the cheese.
Six: Bake in a preheated oven at 190°C/375°F/Gas 5 for 20 minutes.
Why should you try it?
- Easy comfort food
- Ready in under an hour
- Freezes well
- Easy to adapt
- Can be veggie packed
Other vegetables to add
This chicken and leek pie is really versatile. We kept it simple by just adding some leeks (and a little garlic of course), but there are so many options when it comes to vegetables. You could give it a green boost with some spinach, kale or broccoli. You could swap some of the chicken for different types of mushrooms, as they have a nice meaty texture.
Chunkier vegetables like courgette and peppers work well, but try to avoid root veg like carrots and parsnips as they will take longer to cook compared to quick cooking veg like leeks.
Creamy sauce
The creamy sauce really is the star of the show here, as it really compliments the chicken and leeks, and it couldn't be easier. You could always make a cheese sauce with a roux base, or you could use our easy option.
Our chicken and leek pie creamy sauce is made simple with some reduced fat creme fraiche, a little mustard, a generous amount of cheese (which could always be reduced if you wanted to) and then seasoned. How simple is that!
Potato topping
When you think of a pie, you either think of a crispy pastry topped one, or a creamy potato topped one. We went the creamy and cheesy mashed potato route for this pie, but there is no reason why you couldn't use pastry for this chicken and leek pie if you have a little more time to spend.
Either use a short crust and make a pastry base and then topping, or go for the quicker option and use a puff pastry or filo for just the topping. That will get it it nice and crispy and will keep the calories down as there won't be a pastry base.
What to serve with it
You can never have too many veggies in your life, right? Well, why not serve this chicken and leek pie with a big pile of greens. Some steamed tenderstem broccoli or cabbage would work if you want to keep things simple.
Looking for something a little more exciting for the side? Why not try our Roasted Lemon Asparagus, Baked Carrot Fries, Slow Cooker Red Cabbage, or Honey and Mustard Roasted Parsnips.
Storage
Store: You can keep it in the fridge for 1-2 days, as long as it is stored in an air tight container.
Freeze: If you want to freeze it, wait until it has completely cooled down and then portion it out in to freezable containers. You can keep it in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Defrost: Defrost in the fridge overnight.
Reheat: When you want to eat it, make sure it has fully defrosted and then you can heat it up in the microwave or in the oven. You could heat it quickly in a pan on the hob, but that wouldn't make it as presentable.
FAQs
To make this pie suitable for slimming world followers, you could make the creamy sauce by using milk, chicken stock, cornflour and some laughing cow cheese triangles melted together.
Yes, you can make a variation of this in the slow cooker. Put the chopped chicken and leek in the slow cooker and then add 200ml of stock. Cook on high for 4 hours and the add some cornflour to thicken up (make a slurry first) and then stir in the creme fraiche and mustard. Top with mashed potato.
Extra tips
- You could use a traditional cheese sauce if you wanted.
- Feel free to swap the mashed potato topping for a short crust pastry or even puff or filo.
- Give the dish a green boost with some spinach, kale or broccoli.
- Reduce the calories by using less cheese in the sauce.
- You could swap half the chicken for mushrooms to cut down on the meat. If you do this, try using different mushrooms to change up the texture. Chestnut and shiitake work well.
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Recipe
Easy Chicken and Leek Pie
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 300 g chicken breasts cut in to small chunks
- 2 leeks sliced
- 2 garlic cloves crushed
- 250 ml creme fraiche
- 80 g cheddar grated (for the filling)
- 40 g cheddar grated (for the topping)
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 4 portion Mashed Potatoes
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pan and then add the chicken. Cook for 3 minutes. Add the leek and garlic and cook for a further 5 minutes, stirring regularly.1 tablespoon olive oil, 300 g chicken breasts, 2 leeks, 2 garlic cloves
- Whilst the chicken and leek is cooking, make the mashed potato.4 portion Mashed Potatoes
- Take the chicken off the heat and add the creme fraiche, two thirds of the cheese, mustard and season. Mix well.250 ml creme fraiche, 80 g cheddar, 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- Put the chicken and leek mixture in to a baking dish.
- Top with mashed potato and the rest of the cheese.40 g cheddar
- Bake in a preheated oven at 190°C/375°F/Gas 5 for 20 minutes.
Notes
- You could use a traditional cheese sauce if you wanted.
- Feel free to swap the mashed potato topping for a short crust pastry or even puff or filo.
- Give the dish a green boost with some spinach, kale or broccoli.
- Reduce the calories by using less cheese in the sauce.
- You could swap half the chicken for mushrooms to cut down on the meat. If you do this, try using different mushrooms to change up the texture. Chestnut and shiitake work well.
J
Nice and easy for sure. I've used slow cooker for even less work!
Julie McLean
Made this, this evening tasted devine.
But the wonderful creamy, cheesy sauce separated in the oven ....
Dannii
Sorry to hear that (although I am glad it still tasted good). Sauce splitting can happen when it is cooked for too long at a too high heat. Our cooking instructions for time and temperature are based on our oven, so this can vary depending on your oven. If you are making it again, then try cooking it in a cooler oven for less time (but making sure the chicken is cooked through).
Gill C
Absolutely delicious for such a simple recipe. Most definitely will be a go to dish in future. Yum
veenaazmanov
Sounds delicious and looks yum. Have to check on this yummy recipe. I love it.
jack
This pie is so simple to make, I love it! Tastes great too!