Easy Chicken Pot Pie Recipe with Homemade Pie Crust
This homemade chicken pot pie recipe is a great way to turn a small amount of leftover chicken into a whole new meal. If you don’t have leftover cooked chicken, you can substitute a boneless breast or a couple of boneless chicken thighs. Just dice up your chicken and add it to the onions and celery to cook before adding the broth and vegetables.
You’re never going to see big hunks of meat and veggies like that in a store pie, plus the veggies came from my garden and the chicken came from our flock.
I like to make a two crust chicken pot pie with homemade crust, but you could also use premade crust if you’re in a hurry, or make the pie with a single top crust. The boys love a nice, flaky crust, so for me it’s worth a little extra time.
I normally use lard or butter for the crust fat, but have also used schmaltz (chicken fat), which makes the crust a little trickier to work with but is delicious.
Don’t do animal fats? Shortening is fine, too. This type is non-hydrogenated and GMO free. Whichever fat you use, keep it cold. Tiny pockets of intact cold flat bits melt during baking, leaving behind that nice, light, flaky crust.
For the pot pie veggies, I mix and match what I have on hand. Exact amounts don’t matter, only that you have enough total volume to fill the pie. Precut frozen veggies work just fine if you are in a hurry. I often use fresh veggies from the garden paired with frozen peas, because peas have such a short season.
Easy Chicken Pot Pie Recipe
Makes one 10 inch pie.
Ingredients
- Pie crust, enough for top and bottom crust, or a single crust (see below)
- 1 medium/large onion, chopped
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1-2 cloves garlic, minced or run through a garlic press
- 1 cup diced chicken, cooked or raw
- 1 quart chicken broth
- 1 large potato (~2 cups chopped)
- 2 carrots (~2 cups chopped)
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 1-2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 cup peas
- 1 cup water mixed with 1/2 cup flour or 1/4 cup cornstarch (for thickening)
- 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
- Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Saute onions and garlic in butter until glossy and tender. Add chicken and cook through if needed.
Add broth, carrots and potato. Cook until tender. Add celery, parsley and peas.
Mix flour (or cornstarch) and water to form a slurry. Bring broth and vegetable mixture to gentle boil. Pour flour/water mix into broth, stirring constantly, until broth thickens into gravy.
NOTE – you may not need quite this much flour and water, depending on your broth and veggies, but this should be about right.
Pour chicken/veggie mixture into prepared crust. Make sure you cut ventilation slits in the top crust before placing it on the pie and sealing it. Crimp the edges of the pie with your fingers, making sure to catch the edge of the pie plate rim with the crust.
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Bake 45 minutes to one hour, until top is lightly browned and center of pie is bubbling. (Glass pans will take longer to cook.)
Here’s the pie just before it goes into the oven. I cover the edges with a pie crust shield and place it on a drip catcher/oven protector to make sure the crust edges don’t get burnt and spills don’t mess up the oven.) I never make a pie without these two accessories anymore.
Here’s the pie fresh out of the oven. See the nice even browning on the crust?
Easy Chicken Pot Pie
Easy chicken pot pie recipe with flaky, homemade crust, rich broth and plenty of meat and vegetables. Works great to make leftover chicken into a new meal.
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
Ingredients
- Pie crust, enough for top and bottom crust or single crust*
- 1 medium/large onion, chopped
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1–2 cloves garlic, minced or run through a garlic press
- 1 cup diced chicken, cooked or raw
- 1 quart chicken broth
- 1 large potato (2 cups chopped)
- 2 carrots (2 cups chopped)
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 1–2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 cup peas
- 1 cup water mixed with 1/2 cup flour or 1/4 cup cornstarch (for thickening)
- 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Saute onions and garlic in butter until glossy and tender. Add chicken and cook through if needed.
- Add broth, carrots and potato. Cook until tender.
- Add celery, parsley and peas.
- Mix flour and water to form a slurry. Bring broth mixture to gentle boil. Pour flour/water mix into broth, stirring constantly, until broth thickens into gravy. NOTE – you may not need quite this much flour and water, depending on your broth and veggies, but this should be about right.
- Pour chicken/veggie mixture into prepared crust. Make sure you cut ventilation slits in the top crust before placing it on the pie and sealing it. Crimp the edges of the pie with your fingers, making sure to catch the edge of the pie plate rim with the crust. Bake 45 minutes to one hour, until top is lightly browned and center of pie is bubbling. (Glass pans will take longer to cook.)
Notes
Basic Pie Crust Recipe
- 1/2 cup lard or half lard/half butter, cold
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoons cold water
Cut together flour, salt and lard/butter with two knives or a pastry blender until mixture forms peas size lumps and is evenly blended. Mix together other ingredients in small bowl, blend well. Pour liquid over flour/lard mix. Blend with fork until you can form the dough into a ball. To keep crust light and flaky, do not overwork the dough.
Roll out between sheets of waxed paper lightly dusted with flour for easier handling. Dough will keep wrapped in the refrigerator for several days or can be frozen.
Basic Pie Crust Recipe
Makes 2 crusts
1/2 cup lard or half lard/half butter (cold)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cold water
Cut together flour. salt and lard/butter with two knives or a pastry blender until mixture forms pea size lumps and is evenly blended. Pour water over flour/lard mix. Blend with fork until you can form the dough into a ball. To keep crust light and flaky, do not overwork the dough.
Roll out between sheets of waxed paper lightly dusted with flour for easier handling. Dough will keep wrapped in the refrigerator for several days or can be frozen.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do. If so, please pass it along. This is a wonderful old-fashioned comfort food meal.
You may also enjoy:
- Easy Homemade Alfredo Sauce – Great for Chicken Broccoli Alfredo
- Never Buy Bread Again
- Best Ever Cornbread Recipes – Northern and Southern Style
Originally published in 2011, updated in 2017.