At the beginning of 2016 when bloggers everywhere were sharing their New Year resolutions, I shared my list of 5 things I wanted to do more and less of during 2016. One item on my list was “free range”.
Animal welfare is important to me and I eat free range whenever I can. As of this year, I only buy free range pork, chicken and eggs. The good thing is, eating free range has become increasingly affordable and accessible as more consumers demand it. Full disclaimer, I relax this when eating out and would never even mention it if someone were awesome enough to cook for me. There’s a difference between showing integrity and being a dick.
I hope free range becomes the norm in our lifetime and maybe one day we don’t have to worry about it at all. Until then, it’s good to keep track of accessible free range products. Freedom Farms is one of NZ’s most trusted free range brands and their streaky bacon (YUM!) is always on my shopping list. When I heard they launched a chicken range including whole chicken, boneless skinless chicken breast and boneless skinless chicken thigh, I was 100 percent on board.
I love pies
Today I’m sharing a hand pie recipe I made few times with variations, one of those made up recipes using whatever I have on hand. Hand pies are individual pies (sweet or savoury) often crescent-shaped but can also be round or square. Made from a piece of pastry with a dollop of filling on top, these are folded in half to form a pasty. I’ve made these square to make the most of store-bought pastry sheets. If you prefer rolling your own pastry, feel free to make circle or half circle pies.
This recipe uses chicken and leek but I’ve also made this with chicken and mushroom. Just sub the leek for 6 sliced mushrooms if you prefer. Both are delicious. These tidy parcels of yum can be served warm with a side of greens (asparagus, peas or salad), or at room temp in a lunch box or picnic. It’s not quite picnic weather yet but we’ve had a couple of intense sunny days in-between horrid rain, so I’m feeling hopeful that picnic season is not far away.
Enjoy!
Easy Chicken Hand Pies
Makes 4 pies
Ingredients
- 2 sheets frozen puff pastry
- 2 tablespoon oil
- 1 pack of free range chicken breast (350-400grams)
- 1 leek (or 6 sliced mushrooms)
- 3 tablespoon plain flour
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon dried tarragon
- Salt and pepper
- 1 free range egg, beaten
- Optional: sesame seeds
Preparation
- Lay out puff pastry in a single layer to thaw.
- Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
- Slice each chicken breast in half lengthways and then cut each strip into 1cm thick pieces.
- If using leek, trim the green top from the leek, cut the remaining white stalk in half lengthways and wash thoroughly as dirt can get trapped between layers. Thinly slice leek and set aside.
- Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large frying pan. Once hot, add chicken and leek (or mushrooms) and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add 3 tablespoons flour, stir to combine and cook for 3 minutes. Add 1/2 cup milk and 1 tablespoon dried tarragon. Stir until combined, salt and pepper to your taste and then turn off heat. Allow to cool for 10 minutes or refrigerate until required.
- Once pastry is thawed, cut each sheet in half so you have 4 long rectangles. Place on a baking paper lined baking sheet, spoon a quarter of the filling onto one half of each piece of pastry, flatten gently, careful to keep the edges clear.
Lightly brush the top edges with beaten egg, fold over so the corners match up neatly and crimp all edges closed using the tines of a fork. Poke 3 sets of steam holes on the tops of the pies, brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds. - Bake for 15-20 minutes at 180°C (350°F) until golden.
- Serve warm with greens or cool on a rack and pack into a basket for a picnic. Do not cool in a closed container as the pastry will go soft. A large lunchbox with a tea towel draped over works well too.
Thanks to Freedom Farms, I have a hamper to giveaway valued at $180. The hamper includes products from the Freedom Farms range including a whole chicken, chicken breasts, chicken thighs, pork roast, bacon, champagne ham, eggs, and chorizo sausages.
To enter, simply comment below with the name of your favourite free range chicken dish. Too easy! THIS COMPETITION IS CLOSED.
Terms and conditions
- One entry per person.
- Open to NZ only.
- It is the responsibility of the winner to redeem their prize.
- Prize consists of a Freedom Farms hamper valued at $180NZ distributed via Ruby’s List. Cannot be exchanged for cash.
- Competition begins 10 October 2016. Entries close Thursday 20 October 2016 and winner will be drawn Friday 21 October 2016, contacted by email and announced here and on Facebook.
- In the event that the winner is not contactable within 48 hours, Bunny Eats Design reserves the right to redraw a winner.
This post is not sponsored. Opinions and recipe are my own. However, the good folks at Freedom Farms have supplied the chicken and prize for this post and giveaway.
Bunny Eats Design 
Picnic season is just over here. But I’ll put that into my recipe book for next year’s picnics 🙂
Sounds delicious and versatile and easy enough that even I can’t mess it up 😉
I agree about freerange products and also try to use them. It’s getting very easy with eggs, freerange are everywhere. My favourite freerange chicken recipe is Moroccan chicken, which is a whole chicken marinated in Moroccan spices then boiled in a cup of water for 45 mins then roasted in a hot oven for another 30 minutes. This chicken is extremely moist but with a crispy skin. The recipe is on my blog.
We have a dish we call “Nigella chicken” because it has evolved (like seriously evolved) from a recipe of Nigella Lawson’s. It’s basically free-range chicken thighs and chorizo, potatoes and red onions baked in the oven. Simple but very tasty and super-easy to make.
Chicken Chasseur. 🙂
I absolute adore a homemade thai green chicken curry with spring vegetables and rice noodles! I like using the free range chicken thighs as I feel they have more flavour!
Delicious looking pies. I only eat meat that is from a humane farm, free range, grazing happy animals. I have not decided yet whether to become a vegetarian so for now buying from a humane producer is the way to go. Lovely giveaway.
I like giving it a japanese twist with free range Katsu chicken curry. Great on a cold spring day 🙂
Nothing beats a free range roast chook, thyme, lemon, butter- boom 🐥🐥🐥
They look delicious!
Pulled/Shredded – Mexican style. With plenty of chipotle, silantro and salsa verde in a corn tortilla.
I really look forward to our free range Sunday roasts… with all the trimmings!
Oooooh, funny you should put up a recipe for chicken pie just now as I’m making one for a friend this week and needed inspiration!! Score! Thanks Genie! My favourite chicken recipe is a simple, nourishing favourite I used to make for myself every monday night throughout my twenties after a, no doubt, boozy weekend.
Olive oil mash with a chilled balsamic beetroot salad, steamed brocollini or asparagus ( whatever’s in season) and a grilled chicken breast fillet on top. An deeply nourishing, delicious & satisfying meal. Oh dear. I’m on a 5 day fast this week….now I’m hungry.
My favourite chicken dish is called Chicken Situation. It is one a created myself.
Creamy chicken, mushroom and broccoli, With flavours of tarragon, lemon and a tiny bit of blue cheese, can be eaten with rice, pasta or in a pie!
I only ever use Free range chicken! What a fabulous prize up for grabs!
Chicken is so versatile, there are too many options! I have been enjoying making chicken cassoulet during winter. Melt in your mouth tender.
Yum yum yum!!! Chicken, mushrooms AND pastry??!!! Heaven! I loooooove pies so I’m definitely going to try this. They look delicious and make a little bit of chicken go a long way (and are perfectly portion controlled for the piggy in me). A lot of pie recipes seem really complicated, but even I could manage this one. I love a roast chicken too, so this would be a great way to use up the leftovers. So, short answer: Chicken Pie 🙂
What a fantastic prize xx
Cold roast chicken sandwiches with super fresh bread and plenty of butter!
Hands down, a well brined roasted chicken with roast veges and mash&gravy.
Love making chicken quesadillas! A bit labour intensive with all the different components, but so worth it.
Burritos! Chicken burritos was one of the first meals my partner made me and we have them pretty regularly, I even made my own batch of kimchi to spice things up. I am a recovering vegetarian so eating free-range is important to me after 8 years of being vegetarian.
My Favourite Chicken Dish is Chicken Curry (Hot&Spicy) I cook Green Thai Curry and Indian Chicken Curry with Spices served with Rice and Yoghurt!
I love to make a tasty chicken pie too and always use free-range. Mine is filo pastry with creme fraiche, wholegrain mustard, taragon, red peppers and avocado. Delish!!!!!
Im quite partial to a yummy free range roast chook……however I mainly only eat chicken so I have lots of faves when it comes to chicken meals!!!
Free range chicken breasts, baked with a little salt, pepper and Cajun spice, served with a medley of fresh in season veges. Simple real flavours that are so good for you.
Green curry chicken always a go to 😊
Smoked Chicken fettuccine with full cream and veges
Caesar Salad with some crispy chicken bits 😀
I do a gorgeous Chicken Marbella with red wine, prunes, fat dried figs, chicken thighs, passage, herbs and stock. Render long and slow in the le Creuset and serve over brown rice or polenta. It’s marvellous with new season asparagus, and with chunks of a soft ciabatta for the purposes of sauce-mopping.
Homemade KFC!!!!
Ohhh definitely my favourite chicken fettuccine! I’d have to make that with all this delicious free range chicken !😄😄 yum yum yes please!
Free range roast chicken is my fav meal.
Definitely Korean fried chicken or jerk spiced chicken!
Thai red chicken curry with free range chicken thighs
Free range Sunday chicken roast.
OMG these pies look DELICIOUS! I love a classic roast chicken with lemon, but my teenager is a massive fan of chicken carbonara so I’m teaching him how to make it from scratch – using free range chicken of course!
My favourite free-range chicken dish is my French Roast chicken (roasted with butter, basil, lemons and chicken stock) served with a tapenade I make with black olives, capers, free-range bacon, onion, garlic, red capiscum, fresh thyme and parsley. YUM!
I love to make free range butter chicken from the thigh cut! So moist and packed with flavor!
I love pies too ☺️ My fave free range dish is chicken thighs baked in butter soy and honey, with mashed potatoes and veges. Super boring but the kids love it and I’m a fan too.
Chicken fettuccine with a creamy white wine sauce Nom
I love making risotto. Chicken mushies asparagus loads of Parmesan and herbs. Delish!!! Making me hungry now 😋
I love making a Japanese-inspired panko-crumbed chicken dinner, served with steamed green veggies and rice – it’s simple, delicious and always a winner (winner, chicken dinner)!
Our family fave is ‘Japanese Chicken Nuggets’ (Karaage actually) with apple slaw and rice.
Marinated freedom farm boneless chicken thighs on the BBQ 🍗
I use a apricot chutney, whole grain mustard, lemon juice and mayonnaise marinade. Makes a hell of a mess on the BBQ but it’s melt in the mouth!
Chicken pad Thai is my favourite free range chicken recipe to cook at the moment but these pies look delicious and also like less dishes and way cuter than a whole pie!
Chicken free range of course. Cranberry and Brie Pizza.
I love to coat my free range chicken in cornflakes and bake them+ dip in spicy honey mayo dip!!
Totally agree and love the recipe! Last week I made chicken, butternut and caramelised onion quesadillas using Freedom Farms Chicken thighs…. it was so tasty!
I much prefer and but where possible free range meat and eggs. I’m stoked to see that Freedom Farms have expanded their range. I already love their products so I’m excited I have more choice. My fave chicken recipe is Chicken Cauliflower bake, I also add Freedom Farms free range bacon in there too!
Free range chicken Divan. Cook a chicken breast until golden but slightly undercooked. Do not over cook as it will continue cooking in the oven. Cut a broccoli into florets. Dice the chicken ~1-2inch pieces. Throw broccoli and chicken into an oven dish. Mix one pot of mushroom pasta bake, 1/4cup mayo, a dash of lemon juice, your choise of herbs and spice;, pour over the brocco&chick. Mix to cover. Sprinkle grated cheese and croûtons on top. Pop in the oven at 180C for 30 minutes or until cheese on top has browned to your liking. Serve on top of flat egg noodles /lasagna
Hard to pick just one….chicken teriyaki, panko and Parmesan crusted chicken, oyakodon, creamy chicken fettuccine, honey and soy marinated chicken drumsticks for the kids…..mmmm!
You know I told myself I was gonna reduce my carb intake at the beginning of this year but dammit Sweetie Cookie Brownie Face, I’m making this!!
It’s worth it Sweetie Cookie Face.
Panko crumbed free range chicken breast with sliced raw veggies and cooked brown rice yum 🙂
Butter chicken – always a winner 🙂
Reblogged this on femidadaadedina.
Chicken and Leek Pie. It’s comfort food like no other
I love a classic chicken rice risotto
I’d like free range chicken confit (you know just like duck but with chicken 😎)
I love a classic roast chicken and veg especially on some of the rainy days we have been having in Auckland recently!
Your blog is so beautiful. I can see the passion and hardwork behind what you do. Thank you for making this blog a happy place for all of us.
My favourite chicken dish would be creamy chicken and mushroom with fettuccine. I don’t have an actual recipe as I have tendency to just throw things in 😁
My favourite chicken dish is Roasted Chicken followed closely by Creamy Chicken Fettucinne with Mushrooms and Leeks
Roast chicken dinner is my all time favourite way to have chicken. Good old fashioned stuffing and veggies with lashings of gravy, comfort on a plate.
My new favourite dish is Chicken hand pies!
Free range buttermilk drumsticks or thighs……fantastic for picnics/lunches, kids love them, or you can do them posh with seasonal veggies and potato dauphinoise 🙂
Roast Chicken with stuffing, roast veggies gravy and bread sauce. Yum
Great pie recipe! My fav is free range chick thighs with a creamy mushroom and garlic sauce and veges on the side.
Definitely going to be trying this pie recipe.
My favorite thing to make my kids with free range chicken would be homemade gluten-free popcorn chicken baked not fried.
Your chicken hand pies look absolutely delicious. My favorite free range dish would have to be good old kiwi roast chicken with all the trimmings
Cold Chicken, mushroom and streaky bacon salad with quinoa . mixed with home made garlic and mustard mayo ,avocado and fried pumpkin seeds , Dayyyyyyummm
Mmmm free range always tastes so good! I love a good chicken, pea and mint risotto
Chicken with burrito seasoning and coconut green beans 😀
Free Range Chicken and bacon Salad with a free range poached egg ontop with all the greens and dont forget the cheese! YUM!!!!
I’ll be honest – we don’t buy free range chicken as much as we’d like, because we simply can’t afford it. I really wish that we could. But free range or not, I love a really simple, basic roast chicken. There was a place in Auckland CBD about 20 years ago that served an organic, free-range chicken, just butterflied and roasted, with some simple herbs and spices. We went there every year for our anniversary, til I left Auckland.
Me and my family always love a traditional Sunday roast chicken stuffed with sage and onion and bread crumbs, also roast kumara and potatoes with fresh seasonal steam vegetables and a smashing gravy from the pan juices.
We try to do free-range as much as possible too, something I’m passing onto my daughter, who at five years old is almost vegetarian by nature. I’m always honest about where our meals come from, so free-range makes sense. Our favourite free-range chicken dish is “Chicken with gravy” she tells me, my husband pipes up with “roast chicken of course!”. Mine is sticky honey soy drumsticks.
I’m not such a whizz in the chicken, so something simple like Honey Soy skewers or something is probably my go-to.
Yummy I’m going to try your yummy recipe. My favourite free range chicken dish is Chelsea Winters Roasted chicken breast with creamy garlic & herb sauce recipe, its yummy 🙂
Id have to go with the classic Roast Chicken oh yummy with Roasted vege and home made gravy mmmm….
I love roast free range chicken with roast veges
wow these pies look A..MAZ…ING!! We only use free range meat in our house as not only does it taste a million times better, but the idea that the animal had a better life then the caged,tied and abused animals that comes at the cost of cheaper meat. My go to chicken meal is a hearty chicken quiche- so easy all year round as it can be paired with winter veg or a light salad in summer!
Jungle curry with happy free range chicken thighs 🙂 (happy until they got their heads chopped off anyway ;))
morrocan honey chicken we love it
Beautiful photos! This recipe has made my tummy grumble! Thank you for sharing!
Thai green curry using free-range chicken breast and thighs
Chicken pot pies. YUM! Not disimilar to your hand pie. :)))
We love to make and eat Chicken Fajitas. We always use freerange chicken and as much fresh produce from our garden. Yummy!!
My favourite free range chicken dish is always an oven roasted chicken! It’s simple, but a whole chicken is a treat and this makes it so versatile for meals the next day too.
Hassleback chicken breasts filled with mushroom, bacon and cream cheese. 18 minutes in the oven…. Moist, filling and packed with protein.
I love making Gong Bao Ji Ding. Delicious moist chicken pieces, crunchy peanuts, Sichuan pepper and super hot chili. Hao chi (yum)!
I have a too many favourite chicken (always free-range) meals, but I tried a new recipe last week and I think it tops my list. It was Yucatan-Style Chicken Tacos with Mango Habanero Salsa. The marinade on the chicken was so dark and spicy, it hurt to breath when I was cooking it in the griddle. I served it with the Mango Salsa and The Lucky Taco’s Spicy Avo cream to cut through the spice – delicious.
One of my fave meals is coronation chicken, a hit with everybody (even the picky ones) ❤️
My favourite chicken dish is Chicken & Tarragon pie. The chicken being cooked in a delicious creamy sauce with French tarragon with a superb flaky pastry topping served with potato wedges and green vegetables. 🙂
My favourite is (free range) baked chicken enchiladas. For the kids, it’s probably chicken pie. This recipe looks great! Definitely going to try it soon!
nothing beats a good old roast chicken, cooked in the slow cooker, so yum!
Yum, your pies look delicious! We love so many chicken recipes, roast chicken & chicken wraps would be the most requested though by the family 🙂
We love chicken in our place. Our favourite would be simple old chicken burgers. Free range chicken is so much better tasting!
My favorite would be poach chicken in slightly salted water for about an hour (until cooked) and serve with lots of grated ginger, finely chopped spring onion, oil and salt. The broth can be used to cook your greens. this would make a simple and delicious meal.
Nothing beats a traditional roast chicken (free range of course)!!
I love kang pao chicken made with chicken thighs – yum! And I’d love to win this giveaway. We only buy free-range for pork, chicken and eggs, but that means we don’t eat much of them as they’re pretty pricey!
Fave free range chicken dish is whole roasted garlic Rosemary lemon chicken . So easy and delicious. Butterfly the chicken and smother with a mixture of crushed garlic, Rosemary and juice fr one lemon. Place on a layer of sliced agria potatoes. Brush the chicken with melted butter and a sprinkle of flour. Season all and bake until done . Crispy skin chicken.. very tender and flavoursome and a gorgeous crunchy layer of roasted potatoes.. meal in a try . Serve with a simple salad … soooo good
A roast chicken dinner, always a winner!
Freedom farms free range whole chicken marinated in Indian Tandoori marinade and baked in the oven with lots of garlic
Must eat😚
It has to be a good old Sunday roast 👌
It’s hard to choose my favourite dish using free range chicken, but one of them is definitely a Middle Eastern-inspired roast chook with a marinade of spices, chilli and plain yoghurt both under and on top of the skin. Accompanied with roasted eggplant, capsicum and red onion – so yum!
It’s hard to choose my favourite dish using free range chicken, but one of them is definitely a Middle Eastern-inspired roast chook with a marinade of spices, chilli and plain yoghurt both under and on top of the skin. Accompanied with roasted eggplant, capsicum and red onion – so yum!
Chicken cooked sinfully in butter and lemon juice on top of rocket pesto pasta with either broad beans or new season blanched asparagus, sprinkled with pine nuts and Parmesan….. perfect for spring mmmm
Chicken pot pie
Your pies look delicious! I look forward to trying the recipe 🙂 I love a creamy chicken, bacon and mushroom with loads of spinach thrown in! I only ever buy free range bacon, chicken and eggs and love freedom farms products.
In our house we are pesto addicts. We love our pesto chicken pasta dish which is chicken, asparagus, mushrooms and cherry tomatoes cooked in pesto and mascerpone for an extra creamy sauce. Goes well with any pasta but we tend to go with fettuccine 😀
My favourite dish so far is a Chicken Peanut Satay Pie – So delicious and addictive! If I win, I’ll share the recipe 🙂
It has to be butter chicken, I looove it!!!!!!!
Homemade chicken pizza’s so delicious
” There’s a difference between showing integrity and being a dick.” Good philosophy. I just try to be a bit better every year. Great recipe too.
Sherrie mushroom chicken
I love chicken, mushroom and bacon fettuccine. Your recipe sounds lovely. Will have to give it a go
Has to be classic roast chicken!! But those pies look amazing!
Homemade Butter Chicken
I love a good free range chicken and happy pig bacon carbonara with zoodles
Free range chicken is my favourite meat to cook with… and I still think the traditional roast, with all the trimmings, is the best!
Chicken pie and then chicken soup to use up the everybit of the chicken possible, best way to eat meat (with a least waste as possible). Free range food just taste better, though it could be my conscience feeling better now that I only buy free range… 🙂
Got to be a classic roast chocken dinner with all the trimmings, sitting round the table with family and friends 😦 and then boil the bones up afterwards to make delicious chicken, veg and barley soup.
Love this post! We only buy free range too – it’s also so much tastier than the alternative plus not pumped full of fluids to make it appear bigger/ juicer so you really aren’t paying much more if you take that into account. Our fave dish to cook with free range chicken at home is probably a really sticky five spice Chinese style chicken thighs and serve that on top of a soba noodle salad with blanched beans, carrot ribbons and a tahini Soy dressing. Delicious!
Greek Roast Chicken
Take a Freedom Farms free range chicken and stuff it with leek, ginger, garlic, lemon and rosemary. The stuffing is just to flavour the bird. Roast with potatoes, kumara and pumpkin. Make a gravy from the pan juices and serve the roast with steamed broccoli or other seasonal greens.
How delish!
roast chicken with free range nothing like it
Out fav family free range chicken dish is a slow cooked Singapore chicken curry – we add bamboo shoots and seeet potato to bulk it out a bit
My favourite chicken dish is a decadent chicken, leek, button mushroom and Camembert pie. We, too, always use free range chicken, eggs and pork, ‘cos if you choose to eat animal products “there’s no need to be a dick about it” and not consider the welfare of the animals concerned (lol, love your comment above!).
free range chicken katsu!! with rice, japanese mayo, soy sauce and japanese cole slaw
We love stuffed chicken with feta and spinach and grated cheese inside then wrapped in bacon so good ❤
Would definitely be Roasted with Baby Minted Potatoes and a rocket salad with Avocado, Mango Cherry tomatoes and feta! Delish
Love honey mustard pulled chicken thighs in wrap with fresh raw veggies! Thanks for the greta recipes.
I love to make a gluten free mini chicken pie thing. I use a sliced chicken breast and dice it a bit and coat it with a range of spices and herbs that don’t have garlic or onion and then put it in a little pastry i sprinkle some cheese on top and then to a criss cross pattern with more flat pastry and cook it. It’s delicious especially with Kumara chips 🙂
Butterflied free-range roast chicken with peri-peri marinade. Yum.
Whole chicken roasted in a Clay Baker. Yummo – beautifully juicy and tender with a lovey crispy skin – perfect
Free range chicken , chorizo and pumpkin risotto, with lemon and shaved parmesan, sprinkle over sliced spring onions and torn basil leaves.
I love using free range chicken breast in my rainbow pad thai recipe. Red/purple onion, red and yellow capsicum, green spring onion, orange carrot.
Your pies look delicious! Chicken is literally my favourite food. I love spicy korean fried chicken, honey soy glazed chicken nibbles, cajun baked chicken breast, japanese curry with chicken cubes, shredded chicken in a papaya and mango salad! I could go on and on! YUM.
My favourite dish is free range chicken drumsticks slow cooked with lentils, mustard, parsley, stock etc then finished with cream, a sprinkle of Parmesan and crusty bread to soak up all the liquor! So gooooooood!
I love love love a family favourite fish which has broccoli, chicken, Creme fresh, mustard and pastry! Yummm
Yum! I’m indecisive so I’ll say either a classic roast chicken OR soy, garlic & honey chicken OR a delish chicken & vege soup with lots of garlic and ginger.
Thanks for the like on my post, these look yum! I make chicken & vegetable ramekin pies which my family enjoys so these are another way to enjoy them! It will be great when free range/ organic is the norm for all products. Peace and blessings 🙂
Tasty, simple, and free range! Sounds good to me I will for sure be trying this recipe 😃