Comfort Food Recipe: Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuit Topping (2024)

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Nealey Dozier

Nealey Dozier

Nealey Dozier is a former wedding planner turned chef, culinary instructor, recipe developer, and food writer. She is based in Atlanta. You can find more of her Southern adventures in eating and entertaining at www.dixiecaviar.com.

updated Jan 31, 2020

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Comfort Food Recipe: Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuit Topping (1)

Serves6

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Comfort Food Recipe: Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuit Topping (2)

I first came across “Aunt Cleo’s Chicken Pie” while digging through my fiancé’s tattered purple recipe folder, filled to the brim with handwritten index cards that his mother, Tina, had originally sent with him to college. We were only in the beginning phases of dating when I rummaged through the file, but I figured out pretty early that he was a sucker for his mom’s home cooking.

The very Southern recipe was inherited from Tina’s childhood nanny, the beloved “Aunt Cleo.” It was a dump-in-the-pot-and-stir dish if there ever was one (canned cream of soup, canned veggies, hardboiled eggs), but dang if it didn’t make my fiancé swoon.

The part about this particular chicken pot pie that made me swoon, however, wasn’t the creamy (i.e. store bought) filling, but its golden, fluffy biscuit topping. It was like the best part of a crème brûlée, that irresistible crunch you can’t wait to tap, tap, tap with a spoon. After just one bite, I knew the puff-pastry pot pie crusts of my past were for the birds.

I’ve since turned good ol’ Aunt Cleo’s original recipe on its head, leaving only the biscuit topping (and the hard boiled eggs) the same. My new-and-improved “chicken pie” bathes poached chicken and fresh vegetables in a rich, flavorful sauce. It’s pure, delicious comfort food in its best form. This chicken pot pie is perfect for a cold winter night, whether it’s for your family or all of your closest friends. I think, no, I know, Cleo would approve!

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Serves 6

Nutritional Info

Ingredients

For the filling

  • 3 tablespoons

    olive oil

  • 1

    large leek, chopped

  • 1 cup

    chopped onions, small dice

  • 1 cup

    chopped carrots, small dice

  • 1 1/2 cups

    green beans, cut into 3/4-inch pieces

  • 4 tablespoons

    butter

  • 1/2 cup

    all-purpose flour

  • 2 cups

    hot chicken stock, preferably reserved from cooked chicken

  • 1 cup

    whole milk, warmed

  • 2 teaspoons

    dry sherry

  • 1 teaspoon

    sugar

  • 3 cups

    cooked, shredded chicken (see note)

  • 3

    hard boiled eggs, peeled and sliced

  • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

For the topping

  • 1 1/2 cups

    all-purpose flour

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons

    baking powder

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons

    kosher salt

  • 1 stick

    unsalted butter, melted

  • 1 1/2 cups

    whole or 2% milk

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 425°F.

  2. For the filling, heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy pot on medium heat. Add the leeks, onions, and carrots and sauté until the vegetables are tender, about 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the green beans in a pot of salted boiling water until tender and bright green, about 5-7 minutes (see note). Drain the beans and set aside.Transfer the sautéed vegetables to the same bowl as the green beans, season with salt, and set aside.

  3. Melt the butter in the Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the flour and cook until a thick paste forms. Continue stirring for a minute or so. Add the chicken stock and milk and cook, whisking constantly until thickened, about 3-5 minutes. Stir in the sherry, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. Fold in the vegetables and cooked chicken into the cream sauce. Season generously with salt and pepper. (Seriously, don't go light on the salt here, but taste as you go.) Pour the filling into a 2- to 3-quart greased casserole dish. Arrange the boiled egg slices over the top.

  4. For the topping, stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl. Add the melted butter and milk, and whisk until combined. (Just a warning, the batter will seem fairly runny. That's okay.) Pour the batter evenly over the casserole dish.

  5. Bake the pot pie for 45 minutes, until the biscuit topping is light golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Recipe Notes

I poached 4 pounds of bone-in chicken thighs with aromatics--carrots, celery, onions--until cooked through. I shredded the chicken and used the stock for the pot pie. (I also added the remaining bones and extra chicken back to the pot with more water to make additional stock for using later.)

For extra flavor, blanch the green beans in the reserved stock from poaching the chicken instead of boiling water.

Related: Recipe: Chicken and Dumplings

(Images: Nealey Dozier)

Filed in:

autumn

Baking

Bread

Casserole

dinner

Ingredient

Comfort Food Recipe: Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuit Topping (2024)

FAQs

What is the sauce made of in chicken pot pie? ›

The sauce in chicken pot pie is typically a gravy. I use a seasoned white gravy made from scratch with flavor-building ingredients, chicken broth, and half-and-half.

How do you keep chicken pot pie from being runny? ›

A watery potpie may be the result of not cooking the filling for long enough or adding too much liquid to the filling. Another possible reason for the pie being watery is if you add watery vegetables like spinach or green beans to the filling rather than potatoes or carrots, which soak up liquid.

How do you keep the bottom crust of chicken pot pie from getting soggy? ›

How to Prevent a Soggy Bottom Pie Crust
  1. Blind Bake the Crust.
  2. Choose the Right Rack in the Oven.
  3. Brush the Bottom with Corn Syrup or Egg White.
  4. Put the Pie on a Hot Cookie Sheet.
  5. Make a Thicker Crust.
  6. Add a Layer.
  7. Consider a Metal Pie Pan.
Mar 18, 2024

What do you use to thicken chicken pot pie? ›

Unfortunately, the filling relies on flour for thickening. However, you can substitute it to make it truly gluten free a few ways. You can dissolve cornstarch in the COLD milk before pouring it into the skillet. You can use a one-for-one gluten free flour substitution, or you can use arrowroot!

What can I use instead of chicken broth in chicken pot pie? ›

Chicken Broth Substitute: Salted Butter + Water

If you don't have broth on hand and want a little more flavor than just plain water, try subbing in 1 cup of water plus 1 tablespoon of butter for every cup of chicken broth in your recipe. The butter will help create a richer flavor than just water alone.

Should I cover chicken pot pie with foil when baking? ›

Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until crust is golden brown. During last 15 to 20 minutes of baking, cover crust edge with strips of foil to prevent excessive browning. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Why don't you use a bottom crust for chicken pot pie? ›

[If you don't,] the bottom gets soggy and not crisp. Simply par-bake the crust with baking weights, such as dry beans, so that it does not puff up. Once your bottom crust is 75 percent baked, remove it from the oven, take the weights out, add your filling, and then add the top crust.

Should I bake the bottom pie crust first? ›

You do not need to pre-bake a pie crust for an apple pie or any baked fruit pie really, but we do freeze the dough to help it stay put. Pre-baking the pie crust is only required when making a custard pie OR when making a fresh fruit pie. you should probably get: Pie weights are super helpful to have for pre-baking.

What is chicken pot pie gravy made of? ›

Put chicken, broccoli and carrots into 8-9" deep dish pie plate and stir to mix up. To make gravy, saute onion and garlic in butter. Add flour, stir to mix well. Remove from heat, add chicken broth, milk, salt and pepper.

Why does my chicken pot pie get watery? ›

Watery filling

Water can be released from your pie filling while cooking in the oven. To avoid turning your pie into a sloppy mess, add flour to the filling or add some nuts to thicken it up, like in our Chicken and Leek Pie. This will help to absorb any excess water while it's cooking and will keep the pastry crispy.

What is the difference between chicken pie and chicken pot pie? ›

In the South, some folks make a distinction between chicken pie and chicken pot pie. Chicken pies, also known as “chicken and pastry,” are the savory versions of fruit pies or cobblers, made with homemade crust and no, or very few, vegetables. Chicken pot pies typically include vegetables and have a top crust only.

What is pan pan sauce? ›

Pan sauces, as the name suggests, are made in the exact same pan you've used to sauté shrimp, sear a steak, or brown some onions. After cooking your meat, fish, or vegetables, those little leftover particles stuck to your pan's bottom—called the fond—transform into a silk smooth sauce in a process called deglazing.

Why does chicken pot pie have so much saturated fat? ›

High Saturated Fat: The pastry crust in chicken pot pie is often made with butter or lard, which is high in saturated fat.

What is pie and mash sauce made of? ›

For the parsley liquor, melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat and whisk in the cornflour to make a paste. Gradually stir in the stock, bring to a simmer, then stir in the parsley and garlic and stir until thickened and smooth. Serve the hot pies with the mash, parsley liquor and jellied eels on the side.

What makes a pot pie a pot pie? ›

Today's Classics. Today's classic pot pies have a pie crust bottom and a flaky pastry top. They can be filled with just about anything, but classic fillings are made from things like chicken and beef, though some may also be made from seafood and poultry.

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