Kurnik is an original Russian pie considered a symbol of national cuisine. This pastry is made from unleavened dough with lots of tasty, juicy meat filling. By the way, the peculiarity of the kurnik is also the fact that it is always closed from above.
A bit of goodies information
The traditional Russian delicacy was served on the table during the time of Ivan the Terrible. Then this fragrant pastry symbolized abundance and wealth, being an indispensable attribute of any noble celebration. A cake was prepared in the form of a kind of cone, at the top of which there was always a hole for steam to escape.
Initially, the chicken was stuffed with chicken only, due to which, by the way, it acquired such an unusual name. True, over time, the classic Russian pie recipe has been constantly changing; more and more new ingredients have been added to it. For example, in addition to meat, the chicken tree can also be stuffed with mushrooms, onions, potatoes or cheese - this will certainly not damage its taste. Unchanged component of the traditional henhouse is only pancakes, which make the pie structure layered.
Features
Classic pastries are prepared with the addition of cereals, but potatoes are more beloved by domestic citizens. In addition, it is much more nutritious and in composition with meat gives a delicate and pleasant taste. You can make a pie with fillet, but for the sake of economy, you can use other parts of the bird.
Nutritious, tasty and unusually fragrant pastries, flavored with a large number of juicy fillings, have been very popular for hundreds of years, especially among males. But at the same time, the recipe for a chicken coop with potatoes remains simple in any design, and the cooking process itself does not take much effort. Despite the fears of modern hostesses, it’s not difficult to bake a delicious pie with your own hands.
Cooking secrets
Closed baking is domed. The classic recipe for a chicken coop with potatoes and chicken involves the use of unleavened dough, which perfectly retains the pattern even after baking. But today this tasty treat is prepared on different bases: butter and puff. And of course, you need to know some rules for preparing a chicken coop with potatoes and chicken.
- To make the cake beautiful and neat, the filling should be laid out evenly. It is very important to leave a little space at the edges so that the products do not fall out of the baking dish.
- In order for the cake to get an appetizing crust during baking, its top should be lubricated with sunflower oil or a beaten egg in advance.
- Under no circumstances should the dough for the chicken coop be too tight, but it should not be too sticky either. And in order to achieve the necessary consistency, pour flour in small portions, and not all at once.
- A prerequisite for this baking is layering, which is achieved through the use of pancakes. Each "floor" of the filling should be accompanied by thin cakes - as a result, the cake will be very lush and unusual.
- In addition to butter and puff pastry, a henhouse with potatoes and chicken can be prepared from a pancake base.
- The readiness of the cake can be checked by lifting its corner. If the dough does not bend, then the dish can be removed from the oven.
Step-by-step recipe for chicken with potatoes
This is a treat for those who want to pamper their family with a real, mouth-watering, fragrant cake. For the sake of reducing cooking time, many housewives buy a ready-made base. But a really tasty and attractive chicken coop with potatoes and chicken will turn out only if you yourself knead the dough and bake it. Believe me, these efforts are worth such a result.
The lean base made on kefir makes it possible for the cake not to stale for a long time. In addition, this treat is easily absorbed by the body and has a low calorie content.
So, to prepare a chicken coop with potatoes according to a step-by-step recipe, you will need:
- 250 ml of kefir;
- approximately 0.5 kg of flour;
- 0.5 teaspoon of salt;
- the same amount of soda;
- 200 g butter or margarine;
- 0.5 kg of chicken;
- 4 large potatoes;
- 3 onion heads;
- salt, pepper and other spices at your discretion.
Keep in mind that the amount of flour can vary significantly from the recipe.
Cooking method
This chicken and potato chicken photo recipe will help you knead the pie dough really quickly and easily.
Step 1. Pour warm kefir, preferably at room temperature, into a large, deep container. Add soda to it and stir so that it starts to ferment.
Step 2. If you have not laid out the butter beforehand, then lightly soften it in a water bath. In this form, send it to kefir and mix the mass until a homogeneous, smooth consistency.
At the end, add flour to the dough: it should be as much as the dough takes. In other words, you need to pour it in small portions until the mass stops sticking to your hands. Wrap the cooked dough with a film and leave it warm for 2 hours.
Step 3. Now it’s the turn of the filling for the future kurnik. Wash and peel prepared vegetables. Cut onion, potato and chicken into small pieces.
Assembly of a kurnik
Step 4. After the specified time, proceed to the formation of the cake. Divide the dough into two parts, one of which will be slightly larger than the second. Here it will need to be rolled out first of all in the form of a baking sheet or the dishes used for baking.
Step 5. Carefully transfer the resulting layer to the prepared container and form even sides. By the way, do not forget to grease the dishes with a piece of butter.
Step 6. Inside the finished blank, lay out the filling in layers, slightly salt and pepper it. In addition to the prepared ingredients, put a few pieces of oil there. If you wish, you can send finely chopped greens here.
Step 7. Roll out the rest of the dough and cover it with the base, carefully pinching the edges. And in order for the cake to bake well, in its top one needs to make one large or several small holes for steam to escape.
Step 8. Decorate the henhouse with the remaining pieces of dough, making any figures or ornament. This, of course, is optional, but with a beautiful design the cake will look much more elegant and attractive.
Step 9. Place the baking tray with the pie in the oven preheated to 200 degrees. It takes 40 minutes to bake a chicken with potatoes.
After the specified time, remove the cake and grease its top with vegetable oil or a beaten egg. After that, return it to the oven for a couple of minutes.
As a result, you will get an unusually aromatic treat with an attractive golden crust and a surprisingly juicy filling.
Recipe with a photo of a lazy chicken house with chicken and potatoes
If you have very little free time left and still want to please your family with fragrant home-baked pastries, use the simplified method of making Russian pie. For him you will need:
- 100 g butter or margarine;
- 2 cups of flour;
- half the amount of milk;
- a teaspoon of salt;
- as much soda;
- 6 medium sized potatoes;
- 0.5 kg of chicken;
- large onion head;
- salt and various spices.
Try to get all the ingredients out of the refrigerator in advance so that they have the same temperature at the time of preparation.
Course of action
Step 1. Melt the margarine so that it becomes soft, but not liquid. Then add the sifted flour to it and mix thoroughly. Send warm milk, salt and soda here. Stir all ingredients until smooth. While you are preparing the filling for the pie, cover the dough with a towel or polyethylene.
Step 2. Dice the pulp, onion and potato. Salt and pepper the filling, thoroughly mixing all the ingredients.
Step 3. As a baking dish, it is best to arm yourself with an ordinary frying pan. Lubricate it with a small amount of oil and pour half of the cooked dough into it. So it is evenly distributed on the surface.
The final stage
Now put on top the cooked filling and level it. Pour in the second half of the dough and put in the oven. Bake a lazy chicken hen should be at 180 degrees for an hour.
As you can see, this recipe does not need to roll out the dough, pinch its edges, form an entire structure. Everything comes out by itself, and the finished kurnik turns out to be no less appetizing and tasty.
By the way, if you wish, you can supplement the recipe with all kinds of vegetables and mushrooms. So your pastries will become even more fragrant, juicy and tasty. And to decorate the kurnik is not necessary at all - its crisp and without any design looks very attractive.