Follow Nigel Barden's recipe for Turkey Curry Pie

Chef Nigel Barden shares a delicious recipe every week on Simon Mayo's Drivetime Show, and has made a suitably festive dish that is perfect for using up turkey leftovers from Christmas dinner. If turkey isn't to your liking you can substitute it for chicken, lamb or beef.

Follow the recipe below to make a delicious Turkey Curry, which you can enjoy with rice and naan bread, or you can continue following the recipe to make the dish into a hearty Turkey Curry Pie. Feel free to customise your pie toppings, adding on grated cheese or spices such as ground cumin, or chopped herbs.

How to make Turkey Curry Pie

Nigel chose this fantastic recipe to help you make the most of what you have in the kitchen between Christmas and New Year. The recipe comes from the cookbook River Cottage Love your Leftovers (Bloomsbury) by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

The recipe also includes instructions for how to make your own curry paste, shortcrust pastry and chicken stock, but you can also use shop bought.

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients for Turkey Curry Pie

2 tablespoons rapeseed or sunflower oil 2 onions, diced

3 garlic cloves, halved and sliced

2–3 tablespoons home-made curry paste (see recipe below), or a favourite ready-made curry paste

Up to 400g roast carrots or parsnips (or use fresh ones), in chunky pieces

400ml tin coconut milk

200–300ml chicken stock (see recipe below, or from a stock cube is fine), or gravy

1 bay leaf (optional)

400–500g roast turkey, white and/or dark meat, torn into large chunks

Juice of ½ lime

Generous handful of coriander and/or mint, tough stalks removed and roughly chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Toasted cashews or flaked almonds, to finish (optional)

How to cook the Turkey Curry

Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based casserole over a medium-high heat. Add the onions with a pinch of salt and sauté quite vigorously, until they are softened and golden. Add the garlic and fry for a further minute.

Reduce the heat a bit, add the curry paste and stir for a minute, then toss in the vegetables and stir until they’re well coated in the fragrant, onion curry mix.

Pour in the coconut milk and stock or gravy and stir well to combine with the spicy veg. Add the bay leaf, if using. If your pan is very large, you may need to add a bit more stock or water to cover, but don’t make it too soupy. You want the final mixture to be quite rich and thick.

Simmer for 10 minutes. If you’re using fresh rather than roast roots, simmer for an extra 5–10 minutes at this stage.

Now add the turkey and cook until thoroughly heated through, about 5–10 minutes. Stir in the lime juice and about half of the coriander and/ or mint.

Scatter over the remaining coriander and/or mint, and the toasted nuts, if using. Serve with basmati rice, naan or flatbreads and your favourite chutneys if you're stopping there, or continue reading to make it into a pie.

How to make the pie

In a large bowl or food processor, mix together 250g plain flour and a pinch of salt.

Add 125g chilled butter, cut into cubes, and rub in (or blitz in the processor, being careful not to overwork) until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Work in 1 egg yolk mixed with 2 tablespoons cold milk or iced water to bind the pastry, adding a little extra liquid (up to another tablespoon) if needed.

Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, knead very gently to bring the dough together, wrap in cling film and rest in the fridge for about 30 minutes before rolling out.

Spoon the filling into a pie dish (a pie funnel or an upturned egg cup in the middle of the dish will help stop the pastry becoming soggy). Brush the rim of the dish with water. Roll out your pastry (home-made shortcrust or bought puff ) to make a lid to cover the pie generously. Lay the pastry over the top of the pie dish and press the edges onto the rim. Trim off the excess pastry and brush the top with beaten egg or milk. Bake in a preheated oven at 190°C/ Fan 170°C/Gas 5 for about 30–40 minutes until the filling is bubbling and the top is golden.

Homemade Curry Paste

In a small food processor, blitz 4 finely chopped shallots, 6-8 halved garlic cloves, 2 roughly chopped thumbs of ginger, 4-6 green chilies (membrane and seeds removed for less heat, if preferred), 2 teaspoons each of ground cumin and ground coriander and 1 teaspoon ground turmeric with just enough water to make a smooth paste. Either store in a jar in the fridge or freeze until needed.

Homemade Chicken Stock

The rewards of making your own stock are great. A rich, flavoursome stock can turn the simplest of leftovers into supper in a matter of seconds. This also works with game birds and other types of poultry.

Break any bits of carcass into smallish bits. Add them to a large pan with the giblets if you have them, and any bits of skin and jellied juices left over from a roast. Add a couple of chopped carrots, a couple of celery stalks and an onion or some leek tops. Toss in a couple of bay leaves and a few peppercorns, then pour in enough water to cover everything.

Cook at a bare simmer for at least 3 hours, skimming off any scum from time to time. Strain, cool and refrigerate or freeze. If you’re low on freezer space, after straining, you can simmer the stock to reduce the amount of liquid, until it’s quite concentrated, before cooling and freezing. Remember to dilute it with boiling water before using.

Give this tasty dish a go and share your photos with us on social media! You can find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, and tag us @greatesthitsuk in your photos

Nigel has plenty of other recipes for you to try, find out more about Kitchen Greatest Hits here or take a look through the amazing recipes below.

See more of Nigel Barden's delicious recipes from Greatest Kitchen Hits:

Read more:

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How to listen to Greatest Hits Radio:

Listen to Greatest Hits Radio on the free Rayo app, online or on your DAB digital radio. You can also listen on your smart speaker by saying “Play Greatest Hits Radio”.

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