Curried Chicken Pot Pie

This is also another post from my previous blog.

After watching one of my favorite shows on the Food Network called "Good Eats", I decided to make one of Alton Brown's recipes. The recipe was for a curry chicken pot pie. You can find the recipe at http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_21192,00.html. I think it was pretty delicious. It had the consistency of a creamy chicken pot pie which I love, with the unique flavor of curry. The recipe was pretty easy to prepare also. It takes a lot of pots, pans, and baking dishes though. So I wouldn't recommend making this on a weekday night.

I used a Tyson's pre-cooked roasted whole chicken for the chicken requirement. The pre-roasted chicken gave the pot pie a sweet flavor with the smokey heat of the curry. Yes I know, this means you need to know how to break down a whole chicken. Don't worry newbies, It's not that hard. Once you get the hang of it, it only takes a few minutes. Make sure that you try to cut the chicken into even chunks. This way it will cook evenly. A mandatory requirement for breaking down a chicken is a VERY sharp chef's knife or a carving knife. If you don't have a sharp knife, you won't be able to cut through the chicken's joints and bones.

If you don't have a good knife, I suggest you get one. A good chef's knife is always good to have in the kitchen. I use a Wüsthof. I paid over $100 for it, and it is worth every penny. This is the model of knife that I use (Grand Prix II Cook's Knife). I like it because it is extremely sharp, keeps a good edge, and made of good stainless steel. It also has a rounded handle for comfort. When you buy a knife that you are going to use a lot, you want it to be comfortable as well as effective. If you buy an expensive knife you want it to be perfect for you and last a long time.Here are few tips to owning an expensive knife, or any knife.

• Don't put your knives in the dishwasher. The dishwasher cuts life off of your knife.


• Sharpen your knives annually. Use a professional to sharpen your knives. Don't do it yourself! You can seriously damage your knife permanently.


• Don't use those stupid machines either.


• Use a honing steel every time you use your knife. Using the honing steel helps "reset" the blade's edge. What's a honing steel? Click Here

Anyway, back to the recipe. I used frozen Peppridge Farm puffed pastry. I worked pretty well, it didn't rise or "puff" quite as much as I would have liked to see, but it works in a pinch. I might try to make my own dough the next time. I wish I had one of those nice standup mixers.

Here are some of the things I would change in the recipe:
Add more curry
Make more of the cream sauce.
More chicken.