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Chicken pot pie in most American homes did not come from a freezer and did not have a bottom crust. It was a deep dish of chicken and vegetables in a thick milk gravy made from the chicken’s own broth, with one sheet of pastry over the top, cut with slits. The crust went brown and crisp, the gravy bubbled through the slits, and a big spoon broke the lid at the table.
The case against the bottom crust is short. It never cooks. Pastry needs dry heat, and the bottom of a pot pie sits under two quarts of hot gravy for forty minutes. It steams instead of baking, comes out pale, wet and heavy, and everybody pushes it to the side of the plate. One crust on top gets all the browning, and the dish is lighter to eat and quicker to make.
The other argument is the peas, and here we are firm. There are peas in ours, frozen, added at the last minute so they stay bright, the only green, sweet thing against the soft gravy. Without them the dish is beige from crust to bottom. If a husband’s mother left them out, make two pies and keep the peace.
Why this chicken pot pie works
- Chicken cooked in the broth. Simmering the chicken first flavors the broth that becomes the gravy, and the meat pulls off the bone in big pieces.
- A gravy of butter, flour, broth and milk. Cooked in that order, they give a smooth gravy that thickens again in the oven without turning to paste.
- Vegetables cooked before they go in. Carrots, potatoes and onion softened in the broth, so nothing under the crust is raw when the top is brown.
- One crust, on top, with slits. All the oven’s heat browns the single crust, and the slits let the steam out so it bakes instead of steaming.
Ingredients
Fills one deep 9-inch dish or a 9 by 13 inch dish, serving 6. The measurements are in US cups with grams in brackets.
For the chicken and vegetables
- 2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs or breasts (900g)
- 4 cups chicken broth (960ml)
- 1 teaspoon fine salt, plus more to taste
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick (200g)
- 2 medium potatoes (450g), peeled and cut in 1/2 inch cubes
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 1 cup frozen peas (140g)
For the gravy
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter (85g)
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour (63g)
- 3 cups of the hot cooking broth (720ml)
- 1 cup whole milk (240ml)
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, optional
For the crust
- 1 pie crust for a 9-inch pie, cold (a double batch, rolled into a rectangle, for a 9 by 13 dish)
- 1 tablespoon milk, for brushing
Bone-in chicken makes a better broth and better meat than boneless. Leftover roast chicken works too; see the questions below.
How to make chicken pot pie
The chicken and the broth
- Put the chicken in a wide pot with the broth and 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, then simmer gently, partly covered, for 20 to 25 minutes, until cooked through. Lift the chicken out onto a plate.
- Add the carrots, potatoes and onion to the broth and simmer 10 to 12 minutes, until the potatoes are just tender. Scoop them out into a large bowl. Measure 3 cups of the broth for the gravy and keep it hot.
- Discard the chicken skin and pull the meat off the bones in big pieces. Do not cube it. Add it to the vegetables.
The gravy and the pie
- Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat, whisk in the flour and cook 2 minutes, whisking. Pour in the hot broth a cup at a time, whisking smooth after each, then the milk. Bring to a bubble and cook, stirring, 3 to 4 minutes, until the gravy coats a spoon thickly and not one bit more; it thickens again in the oven. Season with the pepper, thyme and salt.
- Pour the gravy over the chicken and vegetables, add the frozen peas and fold together gently. Spoon the filling into a deep 9-inch dish or a 9 by 13 inch dish.
- Roll the cold crust about 1 inch larger than the dish and lay it over the filling. Tuck the overhang down inside the rim, or crimp it against the edge. Cut 5 or 6 slits in the top and brush the crust with the milk.
- Set the dish on a baking sheet and bake at 400°F for 35 to 40 minutes, until the crust is deep golden and the gravy bubbles up through the slits. Cover the edge with a strip of foil if it browns too fast.
- Let the pie rest 15 minutes; the gravy thickens as it stands. Break the crust with a big spoon and serve into shallow bowls.
Tips that make the difference
- Keep the gravy loose. Filling that is already thick going in comes out of the oven like paste.
- If you have time, cool the filling 10 minutes before laying the crust on, so the cold pastry does not start melting before the oven.
- The slits are not decoration; without them the steam soaks the crust from underneath.
- Big pieces of chicken, not cubes. Pulled meat holds the gravy; cubes eat like the frozen kind.
Variations
- Biscuit top. Drop spoonfuls of biscuit dough over the hot filling instead of pastry and bake 25 to 30 minutes until brown. The Midwestern way.
- Turkey pot pie. Use 4 cups of leftover roast turkey in place of the chicken.
- More vegetables. Add 1 cup chopped celery with the onion, or 1 cup corn with the peas.
- Individual pies. Divide the filling among six 2-cup ovenproof bowls, top each with a round of pastry and bake 25 to 30 minutes.
Storage and make-ahead
Leftover pot pie keeps, covered, in the refrigerator for 3 days. Reheat portions in a 350°F oven for 20 to 25 minutes; the microwave softens the crust.
The filling can be made a day ahead. Reheat it until warm, loosen with a splash of milk, then top with the crust and bake as written.
The baked pie freezes for 2 months, well wrapped. Thaw overnight and reheat, covered with foil, at 350°F for about 40 minutes.
Frequently asked questions
Why does this chicken pot pie have no bottom crust?
Because a bottom crust in a deep pot pie never bakes. It sits under hot gravy, steams instead of crisping, and comes out pale and soggy. A single crust on top gets all the dry heat and browns properly.
Do the peas really belong in it?
In our house, yes. They are the only bright, sweet, green thing in a dish that is otherwise soft and beige, and they go in frozen at the end so they keep their shape. Leave them out if your family votes that way, but the pie loses something.
Can I use leftover cooked chicken?
Yes. Use about 4 cups of pulled roast chicken, cook the vegetables in plain chicken broth and make the gravy from that broth. The classic way to use up a Sunday bird.
Why is my filling watery, or too thick?
Watery means the gravy was not simmered long enough, or the vegetables went in raw and gave off water. Too thick means the gravy was already stiff before the oven; it should just coat a spoon.
Cook the chicken in the broth, make the gravy from that broth, keep it loose, put the peas in, and lay one crust on top with slits in it. Then let the double-crust people bring their own pie.
Chicken Pot Pie with a Top Crust Only (No Soggy Bottom)
Old-fashioned chicken pot pie with a single crust on top: chicken, carrots, potatoes, onion and peas in a gravy of butter, flour, broth and milk, baked at 400°F for 35 to 40 minutes. Why there is no bottom crust, and the case for the peas.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs or breasts
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon fine salt, plus more to taste
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
- 2 medium potatoes (450g), peeled and cut in 1/2 inch cubes
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 cups of the hot cooking broth
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, optional
- 1 pie crust for a 9-inch pie, cold
- 1 tablespoon milk, for brushing
Instructions
- Put the chicken in a wide pot with the broth and 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, then simmer gently, partly covered, for 20 to 25 minutes, until cooked through. Lift the chicken out onto a plate.
- Add the carrots, potatoes and onion to the broth and simmer 10 to 12 minutes, until the potatoes are just tender. Scoop them out into a large bowl. Measure 3 cups of the broth for the gravy and keep it hot.
- Discard the chicken skin and pull the meat off the bones in big pieces. Do not cube it. Add it to the vegetables.
- Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat, whisk in the flour and cook 2 minutes, whisking. Pour in the hot broth a cup at a time, whisking smooth after each, then the milk. Bring to a bubble and cook, stirring, 3 to 4 minutes, until the gravy coats a spoon thickly and not one bit more; it thickens again in the oven. Season with the pepper, thyme and salt.
- Pour the gravy over the chicken and vegetables, add the frozen peas and fold together gently. Spoon the filling into a deep 9-inch dish or a 9 by 13 inch dish.
- Roll the cold crust about 1 inch larger than the dish and lay it over the filling. Tuck the overhang down inside the rim, or crimp it against the edge. Cut 5 or 6 slits in the top and brush the crust with the milk.
- Set the dish on a baking sheet and bake at 400°F for 35 to 40 minutes, until the crust is deep golden and the gravy bubbles up through the slits. Cover the edge with a strip of foil if it browns too fast.
- Let the pie rest 15 minutes; the gravy thickens as it stands. Break the crust with a big spoon and serve into shallow bowls.
