Chicken, Mushroom & Cheddar Monster Pie

Preheat the oven 180°C/356°F.

Get your pastry ready. Grab a bowl. Add the plain flour, lard, butter and a pinch of salt.

Mix everything together until you have a breadcrumb-like consistency. Add 80g of grated cheddar. Mix that in and add a beaten egg.

Mould the pastry together into a ball, cover with cling film and chill in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Get your filling on. Dice up your thigh meat and add to a wide pan. Brown it off and then remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.

De-glaze your pan with some water and add a finely chopped onion. Once the onion is soft, add your mushrooms. Cook for 5 minutes.

Reintroduce the chicken. Stir everything together and add a large handful of chives. Add 3 tbsp of flour and mix it in. Pour in 1 pint of milk. Stir everything together and add a large handful of grated cheddar. Bubble down until the filling is very thick. Add more flour if necessary.

Season filling with salt and pepper and then remove from the heat.

Back to the pastry. Take it out of the fridge and let it warm for 5 minutes. Halve it. Roll out 1 of the halves on a floured surface. If cracks appear, just squidge them together.

Line a baking dish with half the pastry. Cover with baking paper and weigh down with rice or dry beans. Blind bake for 15 minutes.

Remove dish from the oven, discard the baking paper and the rice/beans. Add the pie filling. Lay the second half of pastry on top. Brush with egg yolk and sprinkle with salt.

Cut a slice in the middle and place in the oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve the pie up and tuck in!