- 1 medium chicken
- 1 onion, peeled
- 6 cloves
- 1 carrot, peeled
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 chicken stock cube
- 6–8 peppercorns
- 450g/1lb plain flour
- ½ tsp salt or to taste
- 120g/4½ oz butter, cold
- 120g/4½ oz vegetable shortening, cold
- 1 free-range egg, beaten, for glazing
- 250ml/9fl oz whole milk
- 55g/2oz butter
- 55g/2oz plain flour
- Rinse the chicken in cold water and place it in a large pan.
- Stud the onion with cloves and add it to the pan with the carrot, bay leaves, stock cube and peppercorns.
- Cover with cold water and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the chicken is cooked. This will take about 45 minutes–1¼ hours, depending on the size of the chicken.
- Meanwhile, make the pastry. Sift the flour and salt together into a large mixing bowl. Dice the cold butter and vegetable shortening and rub them into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Mix in just enough cold water to form a stiff dough. Turn this out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently to form a smooth ball of dough. Wrap in clingfilm or place in a plastic bag and chill for at least 30 minutes.
- When the chicken is cooked, take the pan off the heat. Remove the chicken and place it on a plate. Put the pan back on the heat and reduce the cooking liquid to about 250ml/9fl oz. Strain the reduced liquid into a jug and leave to cool, then skim off the fat and discard it.
- When the chicken is cool enough to handle, cut the meat into chunks and discard the skin and bones.
- For the sauce, remove the cloves from the onion and place in a food processor with the reserved stock. Blend until smooth, then add the milk and set aside.
- Melt the butter in a pan and stir in the flour. Gradually add the stock and milk, then bring to the boil, stirring continuously. Reduce the heat and simmer for 4-5 minutes to cook out the taste of the flour.
- Season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then fold the meat gently into the sauce. Set the mixture aside to cool.
- Preheat the oven to 220C/425F/Gas 7. Roll out two-thirds of the pastry and use it to line a 20-25cm/8-10in pie plate and add the cooled chicken mix.
- Roll out the remaining pastry to make a lid for the pie, brush the edge with beaten egg and pinch the edges together to seal.
- Decorate the top of the pie with leaves made from pastry trimmings and brush all over with beaten egg. Make a hole in the top of the pie to allow the steam to escape, then bake in the preheated oven for about 45 minutes, or until the pastry is golden-brown.