Taiwanese-American Chicken Pot Pie

Preparation

Prep vegetables

Preheat an oven to 425°F. Let frozen puff pastry sit on the counter to defrost. Peel and cut carrots into 1-inch diagonal slices. Peel and chop onions into medium to large chunks. Cut potato into medium chunks (around 1/2 inch pieces). Chop 4 scallions while setting aside the other 2 scallions for later use. Set aside into individual bowls until ready to cook.

Prep chicken

In a cast-iron skillet, heat olive oil on medium heat. Liberally season chicken with kosher salt on both sides, then place onto the skillet skin side down. Without touching it, let the chicken cook for 6-8 minutes until the fat has rendered out of the skin and the chicken easily slides around in the pan. The skin should be golden brown like the chicken has been in a tanning salon for way too long. Flip the chicken and cook for another 6 minutes. Once cooked, remove chicken from the pan and set aside.

Make filling

In the same skillet with all the rendered chicken fat, place thinly sliced garlic, onions, and chopped scallions along with 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt. Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes until the onions are semi-transluscent. Add carrots, potato, and grated ginger and cook for another 5 minutes until the vegetables have somewhat softened.

Sprinkle in the flour and continously mix, cooking the flour for 2-3 minutes until its cooked through and incorporated into the vegetables. In a large measuring glass or bowl, mix together chicken broth, rice wine, soy sauce, light brown sugar, and rice vinegar. Pour in the broth mixture into the skillet a little at a time while stirring until it's fully incorporated into the vegetables. The flour and broth should mix together to form a gravy consistency. Cook for another couple minutes until simmering to finish the filling, then remove from heat. This is a good time to taste it and see if it needs any additional seasoning such as salt or acid.

Pull the meat off the bones from the cooked chicken thighs, then add back into the skillet along with any drippings. Chop the remaining 2 scallions, then add back into the skillet as well. Give the filling one last mix and it's ready for puff pastry!

Cook pot pie

On a lightly floured surface, take puff pastry and flatten with a rolling pin until it's large enough to cover the entire surface area of the skillet with some extra overhang on the sides. Cut slits in the center of the puff pastry, then gently cover the entire skillet. Press the extra overhang dough into the sides of the skillet to seal. Beat an egg and brush the entire surface with egg wash, then sprinkle the top with kosher salt and ground pepper. Place the skillet into the oven and cook for 40 minutes until the crust is golden brown. Once cooked, remove from the oven and serve warm with some extra scallions on top.