Homemade Greek chicken pie (Kotopita)

Homemade Greek chicken pie (Kotopita) was a frequent crowd pleaser at my grandomother’s household on Sundays. This delicious rustic chicken pie with phyllo pastry is an even more frequent attender in my weekend dinners as it is my son-in-law’s favourite pie!

How do I make this homemade Greek chicken pie?

This delicous chicken pie (kotopita) is easy to make and now you will be able to bake it to perfection. Start this pie by boiling half the chicken. Remember that bone-in-chicken takes longer to boil than boneless chicken and chicken pieces.

Pour  1 liter water, just enough to cover the chicken. Add a small onion and a carrot to the pan and season with salt. The onion and the carrot will give the chicken a delicious taste. When the chicken is ready, remove the bones and skin and cut it into small pieces. Strain the delicious homemade chicken broth aside as you will require it later.

Pour some oil in a pan and sauttee the diced onion and garlic with seasoning (salt, black pepper and nutmeg) for a couple of minutes. Add the chicken pieces to the pan for approximately 5 minutes.  Place the onion-garlic-chicken mix in a bowl and add grated hard cheese, single cream and melted butter. Place this chicken mix to a bowl and add  cream , melted butter and hard cheese.

Grease a tin and lay two phyllo pastry sheets on the bottom of the pan side by side. Lay so with bits of the phyllo pastry sheet overhanging from the tin. Set aside a phyllo pastry sheet for the top layer of the pie. Pour a couple of tablespoons worth of the chicken filling to the bottom phyllo pastry sheets.

Place a phyllo pastry sheet on top and add some of the chicken filling. Do so until you have run out of chicken filling. Cover the pie with the last phyllo patry sheet and brush with egg wash. Pierce the pie sparsely and lay diced butter on the top phyllo sheet.

Bake in the middle shelf of the over at 180C or 356F for 45 minutes.

What is the secret to this homemade Greek chicken pie (kotopita) recipe?

There is more than one secret to this homemade rustic Greek chicken pie (Kotopita)!

1. The first and foremost is the chicken. Boiled bone-in chicken has a richer, meatier taste.
2. Secondly, adding parts of the homemade chicken broth to the pie will make it super tasty! Yes you heard right! Pour two laddles’ worth of the homemade chicken broth over a hot baked pie and enjoy.
3. Thirdly, placing small amounts of butter on the top phyllo pastry sheets will create a superbly crunchy pie.

Can I make this chicken pie (kotopita) with chicken thighs or breast?

This rustic Greek chicken pie can be made with all parts of chicken. I use half a chicken (bone-in) thus combining all parts and cuts of chicken. Chicken thighs are juicy with rather soft meat whislt chicken breast is little bit firmer. I prefer combing all parts of chicken, ie thighs, breast, wings and thus I use half a chicken.  Naturally you an still bake a perfectly delciious pie with just chicken thighs and breast cuts.

If you love homemade Greek pies, then look no furter:

• Zucchini and Feta cheese pie (Kolokithopita)
• Spinach leek and Feta pie
• Greek Feta cheese pie (Tiropita) with phyllo
• Mini tiropitakia (Greek baked Feta cheese triangles) 
• Milinoudia (Greek mini pan fried Feta cheese pies)
• Greek ground meat phyllo pie (Kimadopita)
• Greek sweet pumpkin pie with phyllo pastry

Homemade Greek chicken pie (Kotopita)

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Rating: 4.0/5

( 2 voted )

Serves: 6-8 Prep Time: 40-50 minutes Cooking Time: 45 minutes 45 minutes

Ingredients

Chicken pie

• 1 L water
• 1 packet phyllo pastry
• 1/2 chicken (app 800g)
• 200gr single cream
• 150gr hard cheese (Kefalotyri)
• 40-50gr butter (filling)+20gr on top phyllo pastry sheet
• 2 onions ( one small and one large)
• 1 carrot
•  1 clove of garlic
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Egg wash:

• 1 egg
• water

Instructions

• Pour 1 liter of water in a pot along with half the bone-in chicken, one carrot, one small onion and one teaspoon of salt. Boil until the chicken is tender, ie approximately 40-50 minutes.
• Remove the boiled chicken and strain the liquid/broth. Cut the chicken in small pieces and set it aside.
• In a pan, pour oil and sautee the diced onion and garlic. When the onions turn soft, lower the heat and add the chicken pieces along with half a teaspoon of salt, black pepper and a quarter of teaspoon nutmeg.
• Lightly fry the chicken pieces for approximately 5 minutes. Place the onion-garlic-chicken mix in a bowl and add grated hard cheese, single cream and melted butter.
• In a greased tin, lay two phyllo pastry sheets with parts of the phyllo sheets overhanging.  Set aside one phyllo pastry sheet to cover the pie with at the end.
• Place 2-3 tablespoons worth of the chicken pie (Kotopita) filling and cover with a ruffled phyllo pastry sheet. Alternate chicken filling with phyllo pastry sheets. When the chicken filling is finished, bring in the overhanging bits of cover of phyllo pastry and cover the pie filling.  Lay the last phyllo sheet and tuck in the corners.
• Brush the pie with egg wash, pierce the pie in several places and place 20gr diced butter over the egg wash.
• Bake the Kotopita pie at 180C or 356F for 45 minutes.
• Pour 2 ladles worth of chicken broth to a hot rustic chicken pie (kotopita) and leave for 15 minutes.
• Enjoy hot or cold.