This best easy old fashioned chicken pot pie recipe with a premade store bought crust hits the spot every time. It's also quick and easy to make! The flaky crust, flavorful gravy and loads of vegetables make this one a joy to eat.
My kids love coming inside to it's homemade hearty smell. Whether it's a brisk autumn day or the heart of winter with snow falling all around, I want a meal that warms me up from head to toe.
Pair these with our Best Dinner Roll Recipe. For another nice cold weather meal try our Gumbo Recipe, Tomato Basil Soup and Quick Tuscan White Bean Soup . Try a fun variation with this Chicken Pot Pie Soup.
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What I Love About This Recipe
Other than the baking time, this homemade pot pie is quick and easy to make. I often use a store bought Pilsbury pie crust to save time and energy. With minimal prep time it's a great go to for a busy night helping kids with homework or taking them to basketball practice.
Ingredients
Below is a list of ingredients needed for this recipe. Follow our tips on each ingredient for best results.
- Carrots, Celery, Chicken and Peas - These make up the main substance in the pot pie and are the base.
- Butter - Used to cook the onions in for a great flavor and for the roux, I use salted butter, but you can use unsalted too.
- Onion and Garlic - For their incredible flavor and way that they highlight other flavors. Through testing this recipe, we found the right amount to accentuate everything else without being overwhelming.
- Flour - This makes the roux and is the thickener so that your gravy isn't too runny.
- Chicken Broth - The chicken broth adds a lot of chicken flavor and helps tie the whole thing together.
- Milk - The last ingredient in the gravy that gives it a nice full flavor so that it isn't watery.
- Salt, Pepper, Celery Seed and Parsley - We tested this recipe over and over to get the perfect amount of herbs for the best flavor.
How to Make Chicken Pot Pie
Preheat oven to 425° F. Start by chopping the carrots and celery. Boil in water for 15 minutes, then add the peas and chicken and boil one more minute. Drain. While the vegetables are boiling, finely chop the onions and make the gravy. Saute onion and minced garlic in the butter over medium heat until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth slowly, one cup at a time. It'll look weird at first, but just keep whisking and it will come together and smooth out. Add the milk and whisk until smooth. Add the salt, pepper, celery seed and parsley. Simmer until thick, anywhere from 3-8 minutes. Set aside.
To assemble: press pie crust into bottom of a pie pan. Put about half of the chicken and vegetable mixture into the bottom, then pour about half of the gravy over top. Repeat. If your pie plate is smaller, the filling will come above the top of the crust, but don't worry about it. Place the top of the pie crust on top and seal to the bottom crust all the way around. Score the top of the pie with four 2-inch long cuts for venting. Cover the edges of the crust in foil so they don't get too dark. Bake at 425° for 25 minutes then pull off foil. Then bake an additional 5-10 minutes until a deep golden brown.
Substitutions and Variations
We love switching things up when we're in the kitchen. Try any of these variations for something a little different.
- Spicy - add 1-2 pinches of red pepper flakes to accentuate the flavors and give it a small kick.
- Turkey - Make this into turkey pot pie by using turkey instead of chicken.
- Potatoes - want potatoes in your chicken pot pie? Reduce the celery and carrots by ¼ cup each and add in 1 cup chopped raw potatoes at the same time as the carrots.
- Homemade crust - Don't want to use a Pillsbury pie crust? Make your own at home and use it.
- Puff Pastry - this can also be made with puff pastry for the top of the crust. It's absolutely delicious and flaky and crisp.
- Biscuit - Make with biscuits! Instead of using a pie plate, place in an 8x8 baking dish and top with your favorite biscuits. Bake until biscuits are done all the way through.
How to Serve Chicken Pot Pie
Serve these up with our favorite Best Dinner Roll Recipe for a true comfort meal. We love having this for dinner on a cold night, they also go great with our Air Fryer Asparagus or Roasted Zucchini.
Tips & Tricks
To make individual: Make as directed in 5 4" pie tins for large servings or 8 3" pie tins for regular servings.
For an easy freezer meal, freeze assembled uncooked pie for up to 2 months. When baking, bake as directed above for an additional 30 minutes, the top completely covered in foil. I usually make a double batch when I make this meal and freeze one of the pies.
Learn From Us
I have absolutely burned the pie crust when making this pot pie before. Make sure to either tent your pie or cover the crust in foil before baking so that your crust doesn't burn!
Recipe
old fashioned chicken pot pie
Ingredients
- 1 unbaked pie crust
- 1 ½ cups carrots sliced
- ¾ cup celery chopped
- 2 cups shredded chicken
- 1 ½ cups peas frozen
- ¼ cup butter
- ½ cup onion finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic or 2 garlic cloves chopped
- ⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon flour
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ¾ cup milk
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½-1 teaspoon black pepper- this is delicious with lots of black pepper I always use 1 teaspoon. But if you don't like things peppery, stick with ½.
- ½ teaspoon celery seed
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425* F.
- Chopthe carrots and celery. Boil in water for 15 minutes, then add the peas and chicken and boil one more minute. Drain.
- While the vegetables are boiling, finely chop the onions and make the gravy. Saute onion and minced garlic in the butter over medium heat until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the flour and whisk until well mixed. Add the chicken broth slowly, one cup at a time. It'll look weird at first, but just keep whisking and it will come together and smooth out. See photos above for a great visual. Add the milk and whisk until smooth. Add the salt, pepper, celery seed and parsley. Simmer until thick, anywhere from 3-8 minutes. Set aside.
To assemble:
- Press pie crust into bottom of a pie pan. Put about half of the chicken and vegetable mixture into the bottom, then pour about half of the gravy over top. Repeat. If your pie plate is smaller, it will be a raised pie- don't worry about it. Place the top of the pie crust on top and seal to the bottom crust all the way around. Score the top of the pie with four 2-inch long cuts for venting.
- Cover the edges of the crust in foil so they don't get too dark.
- Bake at 425* for 25 minutes then pull off foil. Then bake an additional 5-10 minutes until a deep golden brown.
- Allow to cool 10-30 minutes before serving.
JCW says
This was so good, we went the extra peppery route and it was really good, great tip! Great texture, great flavor, packed full of the good stuff. I liked that the gravy was lighter than a lot of gravies. Will make again.
Briana Winegardner says
This was my first time making a pot pie. This was so yummy and relatively easy to out together. My step son (to be) even liked it. Which was surprising because of all the veggies. I almost missed adding the flour to the gravy because it was in the ingredient list but not in the directions. But even with that, I’d still give it 5 stars. Will definitely be making this again
Tawnie Kroll says
Loved how easy this was! So delicious, loved the old fashioned chicken pot pie. Thanks for the freezer tip too, I'm going to make another one to have when the craving hits again! Thank you!
Noelle Ciccone says
This Chicken Pot Pie was so delicious!!! I made it last Sunday for dinner older kids. They loved it !! Both my sons told me that I took it to the next level. FYI...for the pie crust, use butter instead of shortening. The crust is more flavorful and flaky!!