My Favorite Chicken Pot Pie
The First Chicken Pot Pie I Ever Ate
I vividly remember sitting at Marie Callender’s with my family after a funeral of some sort when I ordered chicken pot pie for the first time. I don’t remember whose funeral it was, which feels like information I should probably know, but I DO remember the pot pie.
I actually thought it sounded disgusting.
At that point in my life, pie meant fruit and sugar and whipped cream. You’re telling me we’re putting MEAT in pie? Ew. My dad convinced me to order it anyway, and I was never the same.
To this day, if I see chicken pot pie on a menu, I immediately assume the chef knows what they’re doing. And I usually order it.
Maybe it’s my English ancestral blood running through my veins. Maybe it’s because fall is my favorite season. Or maybe there is simply nothing better than a warm pile of chicken, vegetables, potatoes, and delicious gravy wrapped in carbs.
Whatever the reason, chicken pot pie has become one of my ultimate comfort foods.
My garden is still giving us some incredible produce right now, especially the potatoes, so this feels like the perfect recipe to kick off fall. You can make it with a traditional pie crust, but I’m a lil extra and almost always use puff pastry. It gets flaky and golden and buttery and is absolutely divine.
Marie Callender knew what she was doing, but after years of eating chicken pot pie every chance I get, I think I’ve made a pretty dang good version of my own.
Give it a try and let me know how it goes. And if you make it, tag me cause I genuinely want to see yours.
Why I Make Mine With Puff Pastry
I almost always make my chicken pot pie with puff pastry for one very important reason: it’s so easy.
Puff pastry looks fancy, but it’s actually pretty hard to mess up. Trust me. You don’t have to make anything from scratch, crimp a perfect edge, or possess any sort of pastry-related talent. Let it thaw, lay it over the filling, and suddenly you look like you know what you’re doing.
The two things that matter are temperature and egg wash. Make sure your oven is fully preheated and bake the puff pastry at the temperature the recipe calls for. Then brush the entire top with egg wash before it goes in.
Do those two things and you should be golden.
Literally.
You can use pie crust too! Still 10/10!
Use What You Have
Whenever I make a pie like this, I use what I have. Maybe that’s why my English ancestors loved meat pies so much. Whatever vegetables were growing in the garden or sitting around the kitchen could get thrown in, covered in pastry, and suddenly you had dinner.
That’s how I make mine too. If you don’t have something, omit it. If you have something that sounds delicious, throw it in.
Right now my garden is THRIVING. It’s the end of summer, harvest season is here, and I’m geeking out over everything I get to pull out of the garden and put straight into this pie. Potatoes, carrots, onions, herbs—whatever is ready gets invited.
Don’t overthink it. This is comfort food, not a chemistry experiment.
Abi’s Chicken Pot Pie
Make It a Fall Night
Chicken Pot Pie + Herbal Dirty Chai Tea + Nancy Meyers movie = Perfect Fall Night
Abi’s Chicken Pot Pie
Ingredients
Method
- Cook the chicken: Preheat oven to 400°F. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until browned and nearly cooked through. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
- Cook the vegetables: Add the onion, carrots, celery, and potatoes to the same pan. Cook for 7–10 minutes, until the onion is translucent and the vegetables begin to soften. Add the garlic and cook for another minute.
- Season the filling: Add the garlic powder, thyme, Jane’s Krazy Mixed-Up Salt, dry mustard, salt, and black pepper. Sprinkle the flour over everything and cook for about 1 minute, stirring constantly.
- Make it creamy: Slowly pour in the chicken broth, stirring as you go. Add the cream cheese and a dash of Worcestershire sauce. Stir until the cream cheese has melted and the sauce is smooth and creamy.
- Finish the filling: Return the chicken to the pan and stir in the frozen peas. Simmer for 5–7 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through, the potatoes are tender, and the sauce has thickened. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
- Assemble: Pour the filling into a greased baking dish. Lay the thawed puff pastry over the top and trim any significant excess, leaving enough to reach the edges of the dish. Cut a few small slits in the pastry to allow steam to escape.
- Add the egg wash: Whisk together the egg and 1 tablespoon water. Brush evenly over the puff pastry.
- Bake: Bake at 400°F for 30–35 minutes, until the filling is bubbling and the puff pastry is deeply golden and crisp.
- Rest: Let the pot pie rest for 10–15 minutes before serving.
