With a creamy yet light filling made from celery and mushrooms, this cozy homemade chicken pot pie is ideal for cold nights where you need warming up! Instead of the traditional country vegetables in the filling, I make my pot pies with celery and mushrooms (a favorite ingredient recently). The mushrooms and celery provide the texture and flavor that I have been wishing I had with peas and corn for years now.
I use my all-butter pie crust for both crusts and a simple but thick bechamel sauce with vegetables and pre-cooked chicken for ease. The result is a no-fuss homemade chicken pot pie that my husband and father-in-law say is far better than the frozen chicken pot pie from Marie Callender’s.
After my father-in-law turned the wedding arch he made us into our dining room table, I thought serving him this chicken pot pie with flaky crusts would help show just some of my gratitude. And bonus, this pie looks gorgeous on the solid cherry wood! You can see more of the table and a step-by-step video on how to make homemade chicken pot pie on my YouTube channel.
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Ingredients for Chicken Pot Pie with Mushrooms
This double-crust chicken pot pie has no peas or corn! While I made the first few tests of this homemade chicken pot pie with country vegetables, I once substituted celery and mushrooms instead. And good thing—my husband and I much preferred the flavor! This makes a chicken pot pie filling that tastes like a creamy chicken noodle soup.
- Yellow onion. Essential for rich flavor, sweet or yellow onion works best.
- Celery. When cooked for just a few minutes and then baked, celery retains a pleasant crunch that adds texture to an otherwise creamy filling.
- Carrots. Sliced carrots add a little sweetness and color.
- Mushrooms. Baby bella or white button mushrooms add a delicious umami.
- Salted butter. For the best flavor, I recommend using salted butter rather than unsalted. You may substitute another oil if you have a preference.
- Garlic. Finely minced garlic adds tons of flavor. Use as little or as much as you like!
- Seasonings: Dried thyme and rosemary and salt and pepper. Most of the flavor is in the vegetables, so light seasoning from a couple dried herbs makes the filling shine.
- All-purpose flour. Plain flour helps to thicken the chicken pot pie filling. Gluten-free flour will work if you need it!
- Milk. Whole or 2% milk gives you a nice creaminess without adding too much fat, but use what you have on hand.
- Pie crusts. I recommend using my all-butter pie crust, but you can also use store-bought.
- Shredded chicken. I use rotisserie chicken for extra flavor, but any shredded or diced chicken that is already cooked will do.
- Egg. An egg wash right before baking ensures the crust turns a dark golden brown.
How to Make Homemade Chicken Pot Pie
I had never had a chicken pot pie from scratch until I made one for my husband’s and my first Christmas together, and now we can never go back. In the last three years, I’ve tested many variations of this recipe and can confidently say that this is the easiest and most delicious chicken pot pie made entirely from scratch.
If you like watching recipe steps rather than reading them, you can watch me make this homemade chicken pot pie with no peas or corn here!
Making the Chicken Pot Pie Filling
The filling for homemade chicken pie is made in two steps: Sautéing the vegetables, then making the creamy sauce.
Sautéing the Vegetables
First, prepare all the veggies. I dice the onion, chop the carrots and celery, roughly chop the mushrooms, and mince the garlic. Everything should be bite-sized or smaller; anything too big will be hard to cut through when you’re slicing the pie and serving it.
To make things easy, add all the vegetables to a large bowl. Melt butter in a large pan, then add the vegetables and sauté for about 8 minutes, until the onions start to sweat.
The vegetables will cook down considerably in this short time, but they will not have softened entirely yet. That’s a a good thing—we want a little texture!
Around this time, the onions will start to sweat. You’ll see that if you try to clear a spot in the pan, a yellow liquid will start to fill it. (If you’re wondering what it is, it’s a mixture of butter and vegetable juices.) That’s your sign to add the garlic and seasonings, because we don’t want to cook the vegetables for too much longer and lose the crispness of the celery.
Making the Sauce
To make a thick and creamy filling, stir in the flour until it coats all the vegetables. Cook for about a minute, then stir in milk. This will make a creamy sauce that isn’t super high in fat (which is always a good thing when putting something between two high-fat pie crusts).
The bechamel will be really thick here, but it will thin a little during baking. If you want an even thinner filling, you may add up to an extra quarter cup (60 ml) of milk. Any more than that will make it difficult for the bottom pie crust to crisp up.
Add the chicken and stir to coat. I use shredded rotisserie chicken because I typically have some in my freezer, but you can use any cooked chicken you like, as long as it is cut into bite-sized pieces and isn’t breaded.
Once combined, remove from heat and allow to cool while you roll out the pie crusts.
Preparing the Pie
On a lightly floured surface, roll out one pie crust at a time. To prevent the dough from sticking to your workspace, rotate the dough one quarter turn after every roll. Read more tips on rolling out pie crust here.
Transfer one pie crust into a pie dish. Guide the dough into the pie dish to make sure there are no air pockets. Then, spoon the cooled chicken pot pie mixture into the open pie crust. It’s okay if the filling is still steaming in parts.
Smooth out the filling before adding the second pie crust on top. To do this easily, I roll the pie crust onto my rolling pin and unroll it over the pie dish. That can take some getting used to, though!
Trim the edges with scissors or a knife, then crimp or flute the two crusts together. Cut a hole in the center to allow steam to escape.
Whisk together one egg and a teaspoon of water to make an egg wash, then brush it lightly over all visible parts of the crust. This helps the crust get that nice dark brown color by the end of the bake time.
Baking the Chicken Pot Pie
Bake the pie at 400°F/205°C for 35-45 minutes. I cover the whole pie about halfway through the bake time with a sheet of aluminum foil once the crust is golden brown. Covering the crust in this way allows the inside to continue heating and the bottom crust to get crispy without risking the top crust burning.
Cool for 10 minutes before cutting into slices and serving.
How to Store and Bake Leftover Chicken Pot Pie
In my many tests trying to get this recipe right, I developed a great way to store and bake leftover homemade pot pie!
First, I fold a piece of aluminum foil lengthwise twice to get a thick strip of foil. It doesn’t have to be perfect—just long enough to cover the open cavities in the pie.
Then, I fold the foil again into a V-shape and nestle it where the missing pie pieces would be to form a barrier. Use the bottom half of the foil to push any filling that may have leaked out back into the pie, then press it firmly against the body of the pie to keep it in place.
Cover the entire pie tightly with foil, then store in the fridge. When ready to reheat, pop the entire pie with both pieces of foil into the oven. Bake for the first 30 minutes as is, then remove the top cover, leaving the folded foil piece in place, and bake for another 10 minutes to crisp up. You’ll have a perfectly flaky pie that didn’t leak out while baking!
FAQs about Chicken Pot Pie
If you don’t like celery or mushrooms, you can substitute 1 cup each of peas and corn for a more traditional chicken pot pie. Wait to add the peas and corn with the chicken; they don’t need to cook with the onions.
When stored tightly covered in the fridge, this pie will last for three days.
Use a strip of foil to prevent the filling from leaking out, then cover completely with aluminum foil and bake for about 30 minutes at 400°F/205°C. Remove the top foil and bake for 10 more minutes to crisp up the crust, and you won’t be able to tell it was leftover!
Yep! I prefer the flakiness of homemade, but use what you like!
Other Recipes You May Enjoy
See all my pie recipes here, or try some other cozy meal options:
- Mush pot soup (mushroom potato soup)
- One-pot chicken and brown rice
- Creamy Cajun spinach pasta
- Hoisin turkey and brown rice bowls
Dish Cleanup: A Lil Messy
I rate my recipe cleanups on a scale of 1 to 5. 1 is only a handful of dishes, and 5 is everything including the kitchen sink.
This chicken pot pie recipe has a cleanup rating of a 3. There’s a large pan, a cutting board and knife, and a few bowls, but nothing that takes too long to clean. I recommend rinsing out the pan as soon as the pie goes in the oven for easy cleanup.
Double-Crust Chicken Pot Pie Recipe
Chicken Pot Pie without Peas
With a creamy chicken filling loaded with celery and mushrooms, this homemade double-crust chicken pot pie is a crowd-pleaser. Perfect for a cozy and delicious dinner on cold nights!
Ingredients
- 1 small yellow onion, diced (about two cups)
- 2-3 celery stalks, chopped
- 3 medium carrots, chopped
- 4 oz mushrooms (115 g), roughly chopped
- 4 Tablespoons salted butter (56 g)
- 2-4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour (35 g)
- 1 cup milk (240 ml)
- Two pie crusts, homemade or store-bought
- 8 oz shredded chicken (225 g)*
- 1 large egg
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F/205°C. Chop your veggies: Dice the onion; chop the celery, carrots, and mushrooms; and mince the garlic.
- Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat, then add onion, celery, carrots, and mushrooms. Cook for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables begin to sweat.
- Stir in garlic, seasonings, and flour, and cook for one minute before pouring in the milk and stirring together until thickened. You'll want the filling to be creamy but not runny, since the filling will be slightly thicker now than it will be when baked. If your filling looks dry, add an additional ¼-½ cup (60-120 ml) of milk until the filling looks creamy.
- Add the chicken and stir to coat, then remove the pan from heat and allow to cool while you roll out the pie crusts.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out one pie crust at a time. To prevent the dough from sticking to your workspace, rotate the dough one quarter turn after every roll. Once the dough is about 12" (30 cm) in diameter, carefully lift it into a 9" (23 cm) pie dish. Gently press out any air bubbles by running the back of your hand along the bottom and sides of the dish. If you feel a large pocket of air, reposition the crust edge closest to the pocket so that the crust lies flat in the pie pan. Roll out the second crust to about 10" (25 cm), then set aside.
- Spoon the chicken pot pie filling on top of the bottom crust. Gently place the second crust on top, then trim off any overhang. Cut a small hole in the center to allow steam to escape, then crimp or flute the edges together.
- Whisk the egg with a teaspoon of water and lightly brush all visible parts of the pie dough for a golden top.
- Bake for 35-45 minutes, covering with a sheet of foil once the top is golden brown, usually around halfway through. Once the center is hot (165°F/75°C on a thermometer), remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes, then serve and enjoy!
Notes
*You may also substitute cooked chicken or turkey cut into bite-size pieces.
Store tightly covered with foil in the original pie pan in the fridge for up to three days.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1 sliceAmount Per Serving: Calories: 364Total Fat: 22gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 76mgSodium: 419mgCarbohydrates: 30gFiber: 3gSugar: 5gProtein: 13g
The nutrition facts are estimated and may vary based on specific ingredients used.
Thanks for trying out my chicken pot pie recipe! If you liked it, please consider rating this recipe five stars so others find it, too.
I’d love to see how yours turns out: Take a photo and tag me on Instagram @floralapronblog to share with me, or use the hashtag #floralapronbakes.
I haven’t even made this yet, but I already know we are going to love it! This woman is the master of the kitchen! – Love Lyric.
Thanks, Lyric! You are so sweet 🙂