Kurnik (chicken And Rice Pie)

Total Time: 5 hrs Preparation Time: 1 hr Cook Time: 4 hrs

Ingredients

• 12 tablespoons butter, chilled and cut into 1/4 inch pieces
• 4 tablespoons vegetable shortening, chilled
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 7 -10 tablespoons ice water
• 2 medium onions, peeled
• 1 stalk celery, with leaves
• 1 garlic clove, peeled
• 6 whole black peppercorns
• 2 whole cloves
• 1 large bay leaf
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 (4 lb) stewing fowl, quartered
• chicken giblets, coarsely chopped
• 8 tablespoons butter
• 1 lb fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice, strained if fresh
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup unconverted long-grain white rice
• 3 cups onions, thinly sliced
• 5 hard-boiled eggs, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh dill leaves, finely cut
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 egg yolk, dissolved in
• 2 tablespoons cream

Recipe

• 1 pie crust:.
• 2 in a large, chilled bowl, combine the butter, shortening, flour and salt.
• 3 working quickly, rub the flour and shortening together using your fingertips until it looks like flakes of coarse meal.
• 4 pour 7 tbsp of ice water over the mixture all at once, toss together lightly and gather the dough into a ball.
• 5 if it crumbles add up to 3 more tbsp of ice water by drops until the dough sticks to itself.
• 6 dust the dough lightly with flour and wrap in wax paper.
• 7 refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or until firm.
• 8 chicken stock:.
• 9 in a heavy 6-8 quart casserole dish, combine the onions, celery, garlic, peppercorns, cloves, bay leaf, salt, chicken and giblets, and pour in enough water to cover the chicken by about an inch.
• 10 bring to a boil over high heat, skimming off all of the foam and scum as it rises to the surface.
• 11 then reduce to low heat and simmer partially covered for 1 1/2 hours, or until the chicken is tender, but not falling apart.
• 12 transfer the chicken to a large platter, and strain the stock through a fine sieve into a bowl, pressing down hard with a spoon on the herbs and vegetables before discarding them.
• 13 set the stock aside.
• 14 filling:.
• 15 with a small, sharp knife, remove the skin from the chicken and cut the meat away from the bones, cutting the meat into 1" pieces and return them to the casserole dish.
• 16 in a 10-12" skillet, melt 4 tbsp of butter over high heat, and add the mushrooms.
• 17 reduce to medium heat and cook 3-5 minutes, or until the mushrooms are soft.
• 18 transfer them to the casserole dish with a slotted spoon.
• 19 add the parsley, lemon juice, nutmeg, cream and 1/2 cup of the chicken stock.
• 20 stir thoroughly, taste for seasoning, and set aside.
• 21 in a saucepan, combine the rice with 2 cups of the chicken stock, and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally.
• 22 then cover the pan, lower the heat, and simmer for 15-18 minutes, or until the rice has absorbed all of the liquid.
• 23 set aside, away from heat.
• 24 in a large skillet, melt the remaining 4 tbsp butter over high heat, and add the onions.
• 25 lower the heat, and cook until the onions are soft and golden.
• 26 stir the onions into the rice, and toss until they are well mixed.
• 27 in a separate bowl, combine the eggs with the dill.
• 28 preheat the oven to 400°f.
• 29 with a pastry brush and the 2 tbsp of softened butter, lightly coat the bottom and sides of a 2" deep 9x12" baking dish.
• 30 spread 1/3 of the rice mixture on the bottom of the dish and cover with 1/2 of the chicken mixture.
• 31 top the chicken with 1/2 the egg mixture and repeat the layers, ending with the last of the rice.
• 32 on a lightly floured surface, roll the dough in to 1/8" thick rectangle (about 10x14").
• 33 drape the dough over the rolling pin, lift it up and unfold it slackly over the pan.
• 34 firmly press the edges of the crust against the sides of the dish, pinching the edges to seal them.
• 35 with a small, sharp knife, cut out a 1" circle from the middle of the dough.
• 36 brush the crust with the cream and yolk mixture and bake in the middle of the oven for 15 minutes.
• 37 reduce the temperature to 350°f and bake for another 30-40 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.
• 38 serve immediately.