These Mini Chicken Pies (Chicken Hand Pies) with flaky and buttery puff pastry and a creamy, cheesy chicken filling with concentrated flavor are such a breeze to make, and they are so scrumptious! Almost like mini chicken pot pies, but even more cheesy!
These mini chicken pies are one of our favorite starter recipes for party entertaining, and they are perfect for game day snacking too.
I’m not a sports person. That’s not in my DNA. BUT, there’s one thing that I DO LOVE about game day! And that would be the snacks. And of course the drinks and all the awesome entertainment that comes with it too.
I’ve got a handful of favorite game day and game night snacks that I often fall back on – like these easy sausage rolls, pork sausage rolls, jalapeno popper bites, pigs in a blanket, fish empanada, smoked salmon dip, yogurt curry dip etc.
And these puff pastry chicken pies are another favorite addition. Creamy, cheesy chicken pie filling made with sour cream, cheese, leeks and herbs, all encased in a beautifully flaky homemade puff pastry!
And put away that dipping sauce, because these chicken hand pies are so flavorful, you don’t need anything else. And with a snack this scrumptious, you’ll need a good drink to go with it too.
I usually like to pair these buttery puff pastry pies with a simple, refreshing apple lemonade (or a color changing lemonade for a more spectacular effect!), made with homemade lemon syrup. Or of course, my cocktail of choice – a spicy margarita!
Recipe highlights
- While this recipe is made from scratch, you can also use store-bought puff pastry to make these hand pies.
- SO GOOD with flaky, buttery pastry and creamy chicken filling!
- You can also make these creamy chicken pies with shortcrust pastry or pie crust to make mini creamy chicken empanadas (like these fish empanadas).
- SO much flavor, because you’re building layers of flavor in the chicken filling! And it’s so creamy and cheesy. What’s not to love?
- The filling can also be made with rotisserie chicken to make it even easier and faster.
- Super versatile! You can ABSOLUTELY add some veggies to the filling, even leftover roasted veggies and other flavors (to make mini chicken pot pies).
- These mini pies are perfect as appetizers, but you can also make them larger so that they can be served as a main meal too.
- Perfect portable snack AND you don’t have to use muffin pans to shape them – so they’re much easier to assemble.
Ingredients you’ll need
- Puff pastry – The pastry for the pie. You can use pie crust or empanada crust or shortcrust pastry as well. But these options won’t be as flaky as puff pastry.
- Egg – To use as an egg wash for the pies.
- Chicken filling
- Chicken breast
- Onion
- Leeks – You can substitute the leeks with celery
- Cheese – I use a mixture of monterey jack and pepper jack
- Sour cream – Yogurt can be used as well
- Milk or chicken stock
- Butter and flour – To make a roux to thicken the filling
- Salt and pepper
- Paprika
- Chives
This filling is a creamy cheese filling. There are different ways you can adapt the recipe to make it more nutritious. I love adding leafy greens like chopped spinach. You can also add finely chopped carrots or peas or corn.
To hide the veggies, blend steamed veggies to make a puree and add up to 1 cup instead of the sour cream and milk.
How to make mini puff pastry chicken pies
Step 1 (OPTIONAL step) – Make your own puff pastry
For this recipe, I did make my own homemade puff pastry. This does make the pies more labor intensive, but homemade puff pastry objectively tastes SO MUCH BETTER than store-bought!
But I have used store-bought puff pastry to make these before, and in a pinch, they work perfectly well for these mini chicken pies as well.
If you’re up for a challenge, you can make your own rough puff pastry. Make the puff pastry over 1 – 2 days BEFORE you need to make the chicken pies. Alternatively, you can also make my super flaky pie crust recipe to make these mini pies too. They will still be flaky, and taste amazing, PLUS it’s easier to make than puff pastry.
Step 2 – Prepare all the ingredients
If you’re using chicken breast, then you must cut up the meat into smaller cubes. If you’re using rotisserie chicken or leftover roast chicken, make sure the chicken is also cut into smaller pieces. The mini pies must have smaller pieces of chicken, but larger pies can use shredded chicken.
Slice the leeks (or celery) and wash and pat dry. Cut the onions into a small dice-size as well.
Step 3 (OPTIONAL step) – Sear the chicken
This is a completely optional step. Heat a little oil in a large non-stick pan on high heat. When the pan is hot, place the chicken and spread it out. Do not overcrowd the pan. Work in batches if necessary.
Let the chicken cook on one side only for about 1 – 2 minutes until the chicken caramelizes on that side. Set aside and repeat with all the chicken (image 1).
Step 4 – Sauté the aromatics and make the roux
In a large pot, heat the butter on medium heat. When the butter is melted, add the onions and the leeks.
Sauté until the onions and leeks soften and the onions start to get a little bit of color (image 2).
To the aromatics, add the flour, paprika, and a pinch of salt (image 3). Whisk to mix in the flour and make sure there are no lumps. Cook for about 2 minutes to cook out the raw flour flavor.
Step 5 – Make the hand pie filling
Once the roux is cooked (image 4), add the chicken (raw, partially cooked, OR rotisserie chicken), sour cream, milk or chicken stock (image 5). Let the mixture cook until the chicken is cooked through.
Once the chicken is cooked, add the cheese (images 6 – 7). Add a little extra water or stock only if needed, but this filling is meant to be thick so that it doesn’t flow out of the mini pies.
Taste and add salt and pepper to season. Remember that the cheese can be salty, so you may not need to add salt at the end.
Allow the chicken filling to completely cool down before using it to make mini chicken hand pies. To make it cool down faster, spread the filling on a baking sheet. The larger the surface area, the faster the filling will cool down.
Step 6 – Roll out and cut the puff pastry
Roll out the puff pastry to about 4 – 5 mm (3/16 inch) thin. Make sure the pastry doesn’t shrink as you try to roll it out. If the pastry sheet is shrinking or springing back, then cover the pastry and let it rest in the fridge for about 30 minutes before trying again.
If you’re using storebought puff pastry sheets, this won’t be an issue. But still make sure the pastry sheet is rolled out to the right thickness.
Once the pastry sheet is rolled out, lift it and put it back down to release the pastry from the work station surface and to make sure it doesn’t shrink. Otherwise, the pastry cut outs will shrink when you cut them out.
Cut out circles that are about 3 – 3.5 inches large (image 8). If you have edges, you can still cut out halves and stick two halves together using water, to make a large circle as well. Make sure that you use up as much of the pastry dough as possible (see below).
Place the cut out circles on a covered tray until you have rolled out and cut all the pastry.
Step 7 – Fill the pastry and make mini pies
Take 1 puff pastry circle and place a generous amount of filling in the center (image 9). Dip your finger in a little room temperature water and apply a thin layer of moisture along the edge of the pastry circle (image 10).
Take a second pastry circle and place it on top of this. Slightly stretch the pastry to encase the filling and seal the pastry edges together (image 11). You can also gently pick up the pie and press down with your fingers to seal the two crusts, all along the edge.
Finally crimp the edge with a fork and set aside (image 12). Repeat with all the cut out pastry (image 13).
Step 8 – Bake
After you’ve made all the mini pies, keep them covered in the fridge until you’re ready to bake them. See storage instructions below for more options for storing the unbaked pies.
Preheat oven to 375 F. Line a baking tray with non-stick foil or parchment paper. Place the mini pies on the baking tray, with about 1 – 1.5 inches between each pie (image 14). Brush each of the pies with an egg wash to create a nice golden brown shiny crust once baked (image 15). This step is optional, and has no affect on the taste of the pies. Make sure that you cut 2 – 3 vents on top of each pie, to allow excess air and moisture to escape from inside the pie as it cooks (image 16).
Bake for about 20 – 25 minutes, until the pies are a beautiful golden brown. The pies will puff up A LOT – especially if you use homemade puff pastry (image 17). But the pastry will shrink and deflate as it cools down.
Transfer the baked mini creamy chicken pies onto a wire rack and repeat the process until you have baked all the mini chicken pies.
Step 9 – Serve
Serve the pies while they are a little warm, or at room temperature. They are so flavorful and delicious that you don’t need ANY other accompaniments!
Other pie shapes you can make instead of round mini pies
Half circle / half moon shaped
You also have the option of cutting out slightly larger rounds and making empanada style mini chicken hand pies. Place the filling in the middle and apply water along 1 half of the circle. Fold over the circle in half and press to seal the seams to create a half circle hand pie. Crimp the edge to seal the pie.
Square mini pies
To minimize pastry wastage, cut the pastry into equal-sized squares or rectangles. This way you can create pop tart sized mini chicken pies too!
Triangle pies
Cut out slightly larger squares and fold them over to create triangle pies, like I do for my French onion hand pies.
My best tips for success!
- Plan ahead! These are simple to make, but if you’re making your own puff pastry, give yourself time to get that ready first! The biggest hurdle is the time the dough needs to rest in between folding and rolling, so that the dough is easy to roll out without any spring back.
- The filling is really easy to make and can be adjusted to your taste! If it’s too thick, add a little liquid. If too thin, cook it down longer OR add a little bit of cornstarch dissolved in water.
- If your pies are mini-sized, make sure the chicken is cut into small pieces. More chicken will fit inside the pie if it’s small enough, but still large enough for you to see chunks of chicken.
- If using store-bought puff pastry, let the dough thaw in the fridge overnight. Frozen pastry is harder to work with.
- Don’t forget to vent the pies when baking! The venting will allow excess moisture and air to escape, preventing the pies from bursting open during baking.
- To make the recipe even easier, you can use rotisserie chicken instead.
Storage tips
You can store these mini chicken and puff pastry pies after baking, or before baking as well.
Unbaked pies
Place the pies in a single layer, on a lined baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap. Then they can be stored in the fridge for about 1 day. Make sure the pastry is under a plastic wrap, as they can dry out in the fridge, otherwise.
You can also freeze them for about 1 – 2 months! Just make sure that the pies are frozen in a single layer without making contact with each other. One the pies are frozen solid, they can be stored in an airtight container or freezer-friendly bag.
These pies can also be baked from frozen! Just bake them for a few minutes longer. The time will depend on how large the mini pies are.
Baked pies
Once the pies are baked, leftovers can also be stored in the fridge or freezer.
They will last in the fridge for about 3 – 4 days and must be kept in an airtight container.
Make sure the pies are frozen in single layers, or with parchment paper in between layers to prevent the pies from sticking together. An airtight container with minimum air exposure is preferred as well.
You can easily reheat them in the oven as well. The pies will become nice and crisp again. Reheat the pies in a 250 F oven for about 20 minutes if the pies were in the fridge. Heat for longer if reheating from frozen.
The reheat time can also vary depending on the size of the pies. Smaller ones take a shorter time and bigger / thicker pies will take longer.
Recipe variations
Mini chicken pot pies
These pies can be made as individual pies as well. Spoon the filling into small ramekins, and top it with a circle of puff pastry for mini, individual portioned chicken pies!
To make it taste more like classic pot pie, add diced carrots, peas, and other veggies you like!
Chicken mushroom pies
Chicken mushroom pies are my absolute favorite chicken pie flavor! Sauté loads of finely chopped mushroom until the mushroom starts to caramelize along with the onion. Replace the cheese with milk. You can also add some thyme, which will really make the flavor pop!
Other variations and substitutions
- You can easily add other herbs (like thyme, rosemary, or even basil) and spices to suit your taste as well!
- If you like spicy food, add some chili to the filling mixture.
- Swap out the leeks with fennel or celeriac.
Frequently asked questions
Can I make these hand pies with pie crust or shortcrust pastry?
Yes, you can. The crust will not be as flaky, but you absolutely can.
Can I make these mini chicken pies into one big pie?
Yes! Just place the filling in a large dish, and cover with a sheet of puff pastry. Bake until golden brown.
Can I make these in a muffin pan?
Yes! But you will need to line the muffin pans with shortcrust pastry. Puff pastry will puff up too much in the oven as it bakes, and push out the filling. Only the top can be puff pastry for a flaky topping, if you like.
Recipe
Creamy, Cheesy Mini Chicken Pies (Chicken Hand Pies)
US based cup, teaspoon, tablespoon measurements. Weight measurements are recommended for accurate results whenever available.
Common Measurement ConversionsIngredients:
Creamy chicken and cheese filling
- 1 medium onion diced small
- 1 medium leek chopped and rinsed well (substitute with 2 celery sticks if needed)
- 3 tbsp butter
- 2.5 tbsp flour
- ½ tsp paprika
- Generous pinch of sea salt
- 680 g chicken breast cut into ½ inch / 1 cm pieces. (about 2 – 3 chicken breasts)
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup milk or chicken stock
- 226 g monterey jack cheese shredded (you can use a mix of monterey jack and pepper jack as well)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 3 tbsp chopped chives
For the pies
- 1.4 kg puff pastry 3 lbs (or 6 sheets)
- 2 small eggs beaten lightly with 1 tbsp of water egg wash
Instructions:
Creamy chicken and cheese filling
- Cut the chicken breast into small cubes (about 1 cm / 1/2 inch). Chop and prepare the rest of the ingredients.680 g chicken breast
- OPTIONAL step – Heat a large non-stick pan over medium high heat with 1 – 2 tbsp of vegetable oil. Place the chicken in the heated pan, and sprinkle a little salt on top. Cook for about 30 – 60 seconds to let it caramelize on one side only, without letting the chicken cook all the way through. This is just to add a little extra flavor. Work in batches to avoid overcrowding the pan. Set the chicken aside until needed.
- In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. When it's hot, add the chopped onions and leeks, and sauté until the onions become translucent and start to color.1 medium onion, 3 tbsp butter, 1 medium leek
- Sprinkle in the flour, paprika, and salt, and mix well and make sure there are no flour lumps. Cook the flour for about 2 – 4 minutes.2.5 tbsp flour, ½ tsp paprika, Generous pinch of sea salt
- Add the chicken, sour cream, and milk. Mix well and cook until the chicken is cooked through (about 15 – 20 minutes on my stove).680 g chicken breast, ½ cup sour cream, ¼ cup milk
- Add the shredded cheese and chives. Mix and simmer on low heat for a further 5 minutes if needed. Taste and season with salt and pepper to taste.226 g monterey jack cheese, Salt and pepper to taste, 3 tbsp chopped chives
- Allow the filling to cool down completely before using.
Making the mini chicken pies
- Preheat the oven to 375°F / 200°C. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Lightly dust your work surface with some flour. Roll out the puff pastry to about 3/16 inch / 4 – 5 mm thickness. If you're using puff pastry sheets, roll out the sheet as evenly as possible to about the same thickness.1.4 kg puff pastry
- Ensure that the pastry sheet is not springing back, or shrinking when rolled out. If it's shrinking, then wrap the sheet and let it rest in the fridge for about 30 – 60 minutes. This will rest the gluten and make the pastry crust more relaxed.
- Using a 3 – 3.5 inch circle cutter, cut as many circles as you can. You can also cut halves and stick them together with water to make full circles. You should be able to get about 40 circles.
- Place a heaping spoonful of filling in the middle, and brush the edge of the circle with water. Place the second pastry circle on top and press down along the edge with your fingers to seal. Next, crimp the edge using a fork. Repeat with all the pastry circles.
- Set aside the prepared pies on a parchment paper-lined baking tray, until all the pies have been made (or work in batches if that's convenient).
Baking the pies
- Place the mini pies on the parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Evenly space the pies with about 1 – 1.5 inches between the pies.
- Whisk the egg and water together to make the egg wash. Brush the tops of the mini pies liberally with the egg wash, and make two slits on top for venting (see pictures in the post for reference, if needed).2 small eggs beaten lightly with 1 tbsp of water
- Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 – 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and puffed up.
- Remove from the oven and carefully transfer the baked mini pies onto a wire rack to cool. Repeat with all the pies.
- Serve warm.
Nutrition Information:
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
Leave a Reply