Joe Wicks Chicken Pie Recipe – Filo Pastry | Lean in 15

There’s something about a chicken pie that feels like a hug on a plate, but the pastry often comes with a calorie price tag you’d rather not pay. Joe Wicks’ version swaps the buttery shortcrust for crisp filo pastry, cutting fat without skimping on comfort. Whether you’ve got his Lean in 15 book or just want a lighter weeknight dinner, this recipe delivers a proper pie feel in under an hour.

Total time: 1 hour ·
Servings: 4 ·
Pastry type: Filo ·
Difficulty: Medium

The key facts below pull together everything you need to know at a glance — from the creator and cooking method to the specific quantities that make this recipe work.

What is Joe Wicks’ chicken pie recipe?

Joe Wicks’ chicken pie is a filo-topped bake from his Lean in 15 cookbook series. It features a creamy chicken, leek, and mushroom filling enclosed under layers of crisp filo pastry rather than the traditional shortcrust or puff. The recipe was featured on ITV’s This Morning and published on The Body Coach website (Joe Wicks’ official brand).

Key ingredients

• 4 × 250g chicken breast fillets, cut into bite-sized pieces (ITV This Morning)
• 1 large leek, washed and chopped into 2cm pieces (ITV This Morning)
• 200g mushrooms, roughly chopped (GoodtoKnow)
• 2 large knobs of butter (GoodtoKnow)
• 250ml chicken stock (GoodtoKnow)
• 1 tbsp cornflour (ITV This Morning)
• 100ml double cream (GoodtoKnow)
• 2 large handfuls baby spinach (ITV This Morning)
• Approx. 6 sheets filo pastry (GoodtoKnow)

Nutritional highlights

Per serving, the pie comes in at around 450 calories with 35g protein, 18g fat, and 30g carbohydrates. The switch to filo pastry slashes the fat content compared with a traditional butter-based shortcrust or puff pastry pie, which can push past 600 calories and 40g of fat per serving (GoodtoKnow).

What this means: The recipe trades buttery richness for a crackling finish that still holds a creamy filling — a smart compromise for anyone wanting pie without the pastry hangover.

How to make Joe Wicks chicken and leek pie with filo pastry?

The method comes straight from the original Lean in 15 book and has been replicated across several UK lifestyle sites. Below is the full process, broken into three stages.

Preparing the filling

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C (fan 170°C, gas mark 5) (GoodtoKnow).
2. Melt 2 large knobs of butter in a large frying pan over a medium heat.
3. Add the chopped leek and mushrooms; fry for 2–3 minutes until they start to soften (GoodtoKnow).
4. Add the chicken pieces and cook for 5–6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is no longer pink.
5. Sprinkle in 1 tbsp cornflour and stir to coat the ingredients, cooking for another minute (ITV This Morning).
6. Pour in 250ml chicken stock and 100ml double cream; bring to a gentle simmer (GoodtoKnow).
7. Stir in 2 large handfuls of baby spinach and cook until just wilted (ITV This Morning).
8. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then pour the filling into a pie dish (approximately 28cm × 15cm) (ITV This Morning).

Layering the filo pastry

1. Take approximately 6 sheets of filo pastry. Lightly brush each sheet with melted butter or spray with low-calorie cooking oil (GoodtoKnow).
2. Lay the sheets on top of the filling, scrunching them slightly to create a ruffled, textured topping.
3. Place the dish on a baking tray to catch any drips during baking.

Baking instructions

1. Bake in the preheated oven for 18–20 minutes, or until the pastry is golden and crisp (GoodtoKnow).
2. Remove from the oven and let it rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Why this matters: The cornflour step is the difference between a soupy filling and one that holds together under the pastry. It’s a small move that makes the recipe work reliably.

Can you freeze Joe Wicks chicken pie?

Yes, the pie freezes well, which makes it a strong candidate for batch cooking. The key is deciding whether to freeze it before or after baking.

Freezing instructions

• To freeze unbaked: Assemble the pie completely but stop before baking. Wrap the dish tightly in cling film and then a layer of foil.
• To freeze baked: Bake the pie as directed, let it cool completely, then wrap and freeze.
• In either case, the pie keeps for up to 3 months in the freezer.

Thawing and reheating

• For unbaked pie: Bake from frozen at 160°C (fan) for 30 minutes, then increase to 180°C for a further 10–15 minutes until golden and piping hot.
• For baked pie: Thaw in the fridge overnight, then reheat in a 180°C oven for 15–20 minutes.
• Microwave reheating will turn the filo pastry soggy — the oven is essential for maintaining crispness.

The catch: Freezing unbaked is the better move for texture, but it requires longer oven time. For busy weeknights, having a fully baked pie in the freezer that just needs reheating is more practical — even if the pastry sacrifices a little crunch.

What variations of Joe Wicks chicken pie exist?

Joe Wicks has published several spins on his chicken pie, all built around the same filo pastry base. Each tweaks the filling for a different flavour profile.

Chicken and leek

The original base recipe uses chicken, leek, mushroom, and spinach in a creamy sauce. It’s the version most commonly found on The Body Coach and ITV This Morning.

Chicken and chorizo

This variation adds roughly 100g of sliced Spanish chorizo to the filling. The chorizo releases its paprika-infused oil during cooking, which changes the sauce colour and adds a smoky, spicy depth. The method remains identical — chorizo goes in with the chicken at the frying stage (GoodtoKnow).

Chicken, leek, and mushroom

Some online versions drop the spinach and double down on mushrooms for a more earthy, umami-heavy filling. The quantities stay similar, with 250–300g of mixed mushrooms replacing the spinach volume (GoodtoKnow).

The pattern: Wicks designed a base formula — creamy chicken filling + filo top — that can be adapted without breaking the recipe logic. Each variation preserves the structural advantages of filo while shifting the flavour profile.

Is Joe Wicks chicken pie healthy?

Yes, relative to a traditional chicken and leek pie made with shortcrust or puff pastry. The table below shows how the two compare.

The filo version comes in at roughly 450 calories per serving, while a standard shortcrust chicken pie can exceed 600 calories and 35g of fat — largely from the pastry itself.

Calorie and nutrient breakdown

Each serving of Joe Wicks’ pie provides around 35g of protein — roughly 70% of the UK government’s daily reference intake for an average adult — alongside 30g of carbohydrates and 18g of fat (GoodtoKnow). The fat content is largely from the double cream and butter used in the filling rather than the pastry.

Comparison to traditional chicken pie

A standard chicken and leek pie made with all-butter shortcrust pastry typically contains 600–700 calories per serving, with 35–40g of fat and 25–30g of protein. The difference stems almost entirely from the pastry: shortcrust is roughly 50% butter by weight, while filo pastry contains minimal fat (GoodtoKnow).

“Comforting, filling and ready in an hour.”

— Joe Wicks, speaking on ITV’s This Morning

“The filo pastry makes all the difference — you get the crunch without the heavy feeling afterwards.”

— Home cook review on GoodtoKnow

The implication: Joe Wicks’ chicken pie isn’t “healthy” in the salad sense — it’s a proper pie with cream and butter. But it’s healthier than the standard alternative, and the filo swap is the single biggest driver of that difference.

The data on the exact calorie count varies by source: GoodtoKnow lists roughly 450 calories per serving, while some community recipe sites estimate closer to 500 calories depending on the cream and butter quantities used. Either way, it sits well below a traditional pie.

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