This Quick and Easy Chicken Pot Pie Is the Perfect Fall Comfort Food

Photo bySeeded at the Table

There are few foods more comforting than a warm plate of chicken pot pie. With its buttery, flaky crust, creamy filling and hearty chicken, it's a perfect dish for a cool fall evening. While this recipe is technically "from scratch," it uses rotisserie chicken and a refrigerated pie crust so you don't need to prepare the chicken and crust beforehand. The result is a delicious, cozy meal that has all the flavor of the real thing but is much less time consuming to make.

Another thing I like about this recipe is that it's so versatile. You can change up the vegetables or add your choice of herbs for a more savory pie. Try thyme, rosemary and sage for a classic taste, or use a dash of nutmeg to up the pie's warmth. If you want more of a kick, sprinkle some cayenne pepper onto the filling.

I love using rotisserie chicken for this recipe because it's quick and inexpensive, but you can use leftover chicken/turkey or prepare the diced chicken breast yourself. You can also alter your choice of dairy product depending on how creamy you want the filling to taste. I usually stick with half-and-half but milk works just fine and heavy cream will give you an ultra creamy filling (another plus is you don't need to worry about preventing the heavy cream from coming to a boil because of the high fat content).

Last but not least, if you want to make your own pie crust, it's a simple switch to make.

Chicken Pot Pie

Ingredients

2 cups chicken broth

1 cup half-and-half, milk or heavy cream

1/3 cup butter

1 cup chopped carrots

1 cup chopped celery

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup frozen peas

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

4 cups cut-up rotisserie chicken (or cut-up chicken breast)

Egg wash (1 beaten egg and 1 tablespoon of water)

1 refrigerated 9-inch pie crust

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and grease a deep-dish 9-inch pie plate.

2. Whisk together the chicken broth and half-and-half in a medium-sized bowl.

3. In a large skillet, melt the butter and add the onion, carrot, and celery. Saute over medium heat for about 10 minutes.

4. Add the flour and stir for about 1 minute. Stir in the chicken broth mixture, salt, and pepper, then cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes until the mixture thickens. Stir constantly so the mixture doesn’t come to a boil.

5. Stir in the chicken and frozen peas. Pour the filling into the pie plate.

6. Top the filling with the refrigerated pie crust and shape the edges, either by pressing down with a fork or fluting the edges.

7. Brush the top of the crust with the egg wash and cut slits in a cross pattern on the surface.

7. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown. Let the pie sit for 15 minutes and serve.

Notes

I'm not a fan of peas, so I usually go with frozen corn instead.

This also works in a large oven-proof skillet and is actually easier because you can use the same dish you use to make the filling.

You can freeze this pie for up to 3 months. It will keep in the refrigerator for 4 days.