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Kotopita
Kotópita: Epirus chicken pie with leeks, peppers, cheese and crisp filo
Epirus is Greece's pie country, and kotopita is the one served at Sunday lunch and family celebrations in Ioannina, cut into deep golden squares. Chicken is poached until tender, shredded and folded into a filling of soft leeks, peppers, eggs and two cheeses, then baked between layers of buttered filo. A salad is all you need alongside. Common mistake: adding the eggs to hot filling, which scrambles them — cool it first. Chef's tip: cook the poaching stock down by half and stir a few spoons into the filling; it keeps the chicken moist without making the pastry wet.
- Total time
- 140 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
For the filling
For the pastry
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Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Put 2 ⅝ lb chicken thighs, bone in and 2 bay leaves in a pot, cover with cold water, add a pinch of salt and bring to the boil. Skim, then simmer gently until the meat is falling from the bone and reaches 165°F.
40 minStep 2: Lift out the chicken to cool. Boil 300 ml of the stock until reduced to about 150 ml. Shred the meat, discarding skin and bones.
10 minStep 3: Warm 3 tbsp olive oil in a pan over a medium heat and cook 2 leeks, 1 onion and 1 red pepper until soft and dry.
12 minStep 4: Mix the vegetables with the chicken and the reduced stock and cool for 15 minutes. Beat in 3 eggs, 7 oz feta, 3 ½ oz graviera or gruyère, ½ cup milk, ¼ tsp ground nutmeg and ½ tsp black pepper.
15 minStep 5: Heat the oven to 350°F (325°F fan). Brush a 25 × 35 cm tin with 4 oz butter. Layer in half the 16 oz filo pastry, brushing each sheet and leaving the edges overhanging.
Step 6: Spread in the filling, fold over the edges and cover with the rest of the filo, brushing each sheet. Score the top into squares.
Step 7: Bake for 45–50 minutes, until deep golden and crisp and the filling is hot right through.
50 minStep 8: Rest 15 minutes before cutting. Leftovers keep 3 days in the fridge; reheat in a hot oven until piping hot.
15 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 520 kcal
- Protein
- 34 g
- Carbs
- 30 g
- Fat
- 29 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does kotopita take?
- About 140 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 100 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of bay leaves?
- Leave it out, or a pinch of dried thyme (it's a background flavour).
- What can I use instead of leeks?
- 1 onion per leek.
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