Heavenly Chicken Shepherd’s Pie. How good does this look? Chicken is on sale! What can we make with chicken tonight, I asked myself? Why not make a shepherd’s pie using chicken instead of beef? I love shortcuts. When I spotted a product I have used before on sale, I picked that up as well. That product is Simply Mashed Potatoes. So this chicken Shepherd’s Pie dinner was a snap to put together.
I put the potatoes in the microwave (in a bowl) with some butter. Mix it all up and add in some cream until I get the consistency I want. It truly is a time saver, and they are pretty darn good.
The package of chicken cutlets contained 3 cutlets, so the Chicken Shepherd’s Pie recipe is for 3 people. You can ramp this up and get more cutlets because there is plenty of gravy for more, and add in more of the frozen corn or whatever vegetable you choose.
If you don’t find thin cutlets on sale, but whole boneless skinless breasts are, and you have more mouths to feed, get the breasts instead for this Chicken Shepherd’s Pie recipe. You can use a sharp knife and slice the breast from end to end to the thickness you want for cutlets. Whatever chicken is left over, freeze it. Just make sure you wrap in plastic then in foil or use a sealer bag unit if you have one. Try not to freeze any protein over 3 weeks if possible, even chicken. You’ll find the quality of the meat changes the longer it is frozen. Beef especially.
Heavenly Chicken Shepherd’s Pie
Ingredients
- 3 pieces chicken cutlets - mince once cooked
28 ounces potatoes - mashed
2 cups chicken stock (chicken broth or chicken bouillon) - warmed
⅓ cup milk - or cream
½ cup all purpose flour (plain flour Australia and UK)
½ stick butter- 3 tablespoons butter - melted for drizzling
1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ bag corn - or baby peas or a combination thereof
¼ teaspoon dried sage- ⅛ teaspoon poultry seasoning
¼ teaspoon salt - for the roux
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper - for the roux
¼ teaspoon garlic - to taste, chicken seasoning
¼ teaspoon onion powder - to taste, chicken seasoning- ⅛ teaspoon salt - to taste, chicken seasoning
- ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper - to taste, chicken seasoning
¼ teaspoon paprika - optional for on top of the potatoes
¼ teaspoon dried chives - optional for on top of the potatoes
Instructions
- Cook some potatoes and mash them as you normally do, or take a shortcut and use Simply Potatoes Mashed Potatoes if you can find them on sale as I did.
- In a sauce pot, melt the butter. Add the flour to make the roux. Keep whisking and stirring for a few minutes to cook out the raw flour taste.
- Slowly add in warm broth and keep whisking until you have a smooth consistency. Bring to a boil, so you will know how thick the gravy is.
- Season with salt and pepper, sage and poultry seasoning. Mix well.
- Add in the half and half or cream and whisk to incorporate. The gravy part is done, and you can set it aside.
- In a skillet over medium-high heat, add the olive oil. Season the chicken on both sides with salt, pepper, granulated garlic and onion powder to taste. Saute the chicken on both sides quickly over medium or medium-high heat for a couple of minutes until light golden brown but not cooked all the way through. Remove to a waiting plate. After 5 minutes of resting, chop and mince the chicken.
- In an oven-proof casserole dish, layer the dish this way: gravy, chicken, gravy, corn, and mashed potatoes. Also, do a thinner layer of potatoes.
- Preheat your oven to 375°F. Place the casserole dish on a sheet pan lined with foil because that gravy is going to ooze over.
- Sprinkle some dried chives and paprika on top for a little color and flavor, and drizzle the melted butter over the potatoes to help with the browning of the top.
- It will take around 25-30 minutes to bake.
