Greek Chicken Pie (Kotopita)

You can can make this kotopita with store-bought phyllo but wouldn't you agree that it's an amazing feeling when you make your own doughs? 😋

The ingredients you need for the dough are:

600gr AP Flour

45gr Olive Oil

15gr White Vinegar

Pinch of Salt

200gr Lukewarm Water mixed with 110gr Bone Broth (Which means 300-310gr liquid)

Lots of Cornstarch for the spreading of the phyllos

110-160ml olive oil which will be applied between the phyllos

For the filling:

A whole chicken or if you are not sure you can get rid of the bones later: 3 Chicken Thigh fillets and 2 Chicken Breast fillets

4 Spring Onions

2 Red Pepper

Bechamel made with:

40gr Butter

30 gr Flour

200gr Milk

Salt&Pepper

Method

For the Bone Broth:

Let the Chicken Bones boil in salted water for at least 1 hour and optimally 4 hours. (I always let them 4 hours)

Mix together until you have a rough dough that it’s not sticky (~5 minutes)

Let the dough rest for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile prepare your filling:

Cook your chicken fillets in a non-stick pan with just a little olive oil at medium-high temperature (10 minutes each side)

Then sautee spring onions and red pepper.

Prepare your bechamel by melting your butter. Add the flour to the melted butter while stirring and when a paste is formed add your milk while stirring. Add the salt&pepper and stir until your bechamel is ready and creamy.

Cut the fillets in pieces and add them, and your veggies inside the bechamel. Mix until all the ingredients are incorporated.

Time to prepare our phyllos!

If you want to bake the pita today, preheat your oven using the fan mode at 160-180C depending on your oven (most ovens need to be set at 160 when on fan mode or the pita will get burned, but my oven needs to be set at 180C)

Divide into 10 pieces and shape them into balls. You can make your pita using all 10 dough balls with 5 phyllos around the filling, but I use 4 phyllos and I make something else with the other 2. I will share how I use the other 2 phyllos pretty soon ^^

Dust your surface with cornstarch

Using a rolling pin, roll the first 4 dough balls into circles dusting with cornstarch before rolling each one.

Then dust heavily your surface with cornstarch again and the top side of first dough circle. Dust heavily the one side of the second dough circle too and spread it to go everywhere. Place the dusted side of the second dough on the first dough and dust the other side of the second dough too. Do the same with the other dough circles too.

Then with your rolling pin, start rolling the pile of your 4 dough circles until they become so thin you can see through them (if you stop listening to the sound of the cornstarch between the doughs, dust them again so that they don’t stick). Don’t roll forcefully or the doughs will stick! You should do it gently.

After they become thin enough, separate them (if they are stuck, don’t worry, it’s ok if they get ripped but separate them carefully so that they don’t rip a lot).

Spread olive oil to a 26-30cm pan and place the first phyllo on it. Your phyllos should be long enough to stick out of the pan (we will use the dough that is sticking out of the pan to seal the pita)

Sprinkle lots of olive oil on top of the first phyllo and then add the second on top of it.

Sprinkle lots of olive oil on top of the second phyllo too, and add the third one.

Again sprinkle the third phyllo with olive oil and add the fourth phyllo.

Time to add the filling on top of the fourth phyllo!

Spread it evenly on your pita.

Cover well with a towel and set aside until you prepare your other 4 phyllos.

We prepare them the same way as before:

Roll them into circles, cornstarch your surface, heavily dust each one and place on top of each other. Roll into thin phyllos and separate.

Again add the 1st phyllo on top of the filling and sprinkle with lots of olive oil.

2nd phyllo, olive oil, 3rd phyllo, olive oil, 4rth phyllo, olive oil!

Now seal your pita, rolling the dough that is sticking out of the pan, inside the pan.

Sprinkle some olive oil on the “sealings” too.

Score the Pita into 8 slices (We want a deep scoring, that reaches the filling but not further. We don’t want to slice the bottom phyllo which holds the juices of the Pita inside! ^^)

Optimally, cover with plastic wrap and aluminum foil and refrigerate for at least an hour (I refrigerate it for 8-12 hours). It will be way crunchier this way!

But of course you can bake it right away!

When ready to bake, transfer into the preheated oven and bake for 1-1.5 hours or until the top of the pita is a really deep golden color (the color shouldn’t be pale or else the phyllos will become hard and chewy after hours)

Let it cool in the pan (you want the bottom to keep cooking a little bit longer after removing the Pita from the oven).

Cut and enjoy!