This is a traditional recipe from Northern Greece for the first day of the New Year. Often an old coin or lucky charm, wrapped in foil, is hidden inside the filling of the filo pie, and the person who finds it will have a very lucky year ahead!
New Year’s Day Greek Chicken Filo Pie (Kotopita)
New Year's Day Greek Filo Chicken Pie (Kotopita)
Author: Marilena Leavitt
Recipe type: Main Course
Cuisine: Greek
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. skinless, boneless chicken breasts & thighs (or 1 sm.-3lb. chicken)
- 4 med. sweet onions, roughly chopped
- ¼ cup olive oil
- --- --- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 TBSP. semolina flour
- 4 TBSP. each of fresh dill and fresh parsley, minced
- 4 lrg. eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 cup light cream
- 1 lbs. filo pastry sheets, thawed, at room temperature
- -- ----- olive oil for brushing the filo sheets
Instructions
- Place the chicken pieces, onions, olive oil and seasoning in a heavy Dutch oven. Cover and simmer over medium-low heat for about 40 minutes. (Do not add any water, as the chicken and the onions will release their own liquid and will braise nicely.)
- Remove the chicken, let it cool slightly, and then shred it (or chop it up) into small pieces. Set aside in a bowl. Meanwhile, continue to cook the onions for another 30 minutes. When tender, mash them with a fork and add to the chicken. At this point, taste and adjust the seasoning. Let the mixture cool completely.
- Sprinkle the semolina over the mixture and blend well. Add the parsley, fresh dill, eggs, and cream. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 375 °F.
- Start layering a 15”x10”x2” glass or ceramic pan with filo sheets: First, brush some oil on all sides of the pan, then proceed to line with 10 filo sheets, brushing olive oil on each one of them. Without oiling the 10th filo layer, pour the mixture over the stacked filo and arrange equally in the pan. Top with the remaining sheets, brushing each one of them with olive oil. Fold the overhanging filo, back over the top of the chicken pie. With a sharp knife, carefully mark the top few filo sheets in square shapes, so the filo does not crumble when it is cut through.
- Sprinkle some water over the pie and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until filo is lightly golden. Let it cool for 15 minutes before cutting and serving.
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