Kotopita (Greek Chicken Pie)

Kotopita is the chicken lover’s answer to spanakopita. Layers of buttered phyllo dough wrap around a filling of hand-torn chicken strips in a rich bechamel-style sauce spiked with nutmeg, thyme, and grated mizithra cheese.

The sauce starts as a classic roux: butter and flour cooked together, then warm broth whisked in until it thickens. Letting it cool before adding the beaten eggs is a must. Hot sauce scrambles the eggs instantly, and you’ll end up with lumpy filling instead of something smooth and custard-like.

Tearing the chicken by hand rather than chopping gives you irregular, tender strips that hold onto the sauce better than neat cubes. You want pieces big enough to find with your fork but small enough that every bite has filling throughout.

Score the top three phyllo sheets before baking. This lets steam escape and keeps the top crisp instead of soggy, plus it creates natural cut lines for serving.

Pro Tips

• Brush every single phyllo sheet with melted butter. Dry sheets crack and tear, and the butter is what creates those shattery, flaky layers.
• Work quickly with phyllo and keep unused sheets under a damp towel. It dries out in minutes and becomes unusable.
• Let the pie rest 15 minutes after baking before cutting. The filling firms up and slices cleanly instead of oozing out.
• Mizithra gives the most authentic flavor, but Parmesan or Romano are solid substitutes.

Variations

• Spinach and chicken: Add a layer of sauteed spinach and crumbled feta between the chicken filling and the top phyllo for a kotopita-spanakopita hybrid.
• Herbed version: Replace the thyme with fresh mint and dill for a brighter, more summery flavor profile that’s common in some Greek island versions.