Puff Pastry Chicken Pot Pie

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There’s nothing quite like tucking into a hot bowl of Chicken Pot pie. The comforting feeling of warmth this dish brings is second to none. Perhaps this is why this classic dish is so widely popular all across the world. Every cuisine has a slightly different take on this dish, but regardless of where or when it’s being prepared – the flavor and feeling this pie brings is the same. In this recipe we’re sharing our take on the classic Puff Pastry Chicken Pot Pie, with a few unique twists along the way to make this an easy and enjoyable meal to prepare for the family

This version of a Puff Pastry Chicken Pot Pie is somewhat ‘deconstructed’ in its assembly

Don’t worry, we’re not going all haute cuisine here with our deconstruction of a famous dish. Not at all, this is still 100% a classic Chicken Pot Pie dish in look and taste. The only deconstruction we’re making is instead of cooking the Puff Pastry with the Pie, we cook it separately

In a classic Chicken Pot Pie, the filling is cooked in a large pot, then placed into a large baking pan. Puff Pastry is rolled out and then laid tightly over the top of the pie and everything is baked together in the oven

For our Puff Pastry Chicken Pot Pie, we’re only baking the Puff Pastry in the oven. The pie filling itself is finished on the stovetop. The Pastry is baked separately in the oven until crispy, golden-brown and flaky. It is then served alongside the Pie filling

This method is honestly way easier than the more traditional approach. There’s no guesswork on how done your pie filling is, as you can check it for doneness and seasoning as it’s cooking away on the stovetop. The Puff Pastry can be cooked to perfection without any risk of it being over / undercooked. You can simply bake another piece of Pastry if you’re not happy with the result, and it won’t affect the rest of the pie dish

It does make for some cool presentation options too, which we’ll talk about a little later in the recipe!

For the best result, try to cut your vegetables into the same sized pieces

This statement is much easier said than done, and we fully understand that as we write it! However, we do recommend at least trying to get all your veggies around the same size when cutting them. This will help to ensure a more even cook time for your vegetables which means you won’t have under / overcooked vegetables in the result

It also helps with the overall eating experience. The consistency of the Chicken Pot Pie is luxurious and creamy. So much so that it can just as easily be eaten with a spoon as with a fork. Each spoonful should have equal proportions of all ingredients to make for the best tasting pie. If you’ve got massive chunks of Potato or Celery in there, it will detract from that experience and make for a more difficult eating experience

This dish is all about comfort, not only in how it tastes, but the actual eating process itself. So, take a little bit more time than usual and get those veggies cut as evenly as you can. It’ll make the dish so much more enjoyable

For the best flavor we recommend using Chicken Thighs with their skin on

These are the ultimate cut of Chicken for flavor. The Chicken Thighs (or dark meat as it is sometimes referred to as) has more flavor than Breasts and is a lot more tender when cooked. Even if you accidentally overcook the Thighs they will remain relatively tender, making them the perfect cut of Chicken for this pie given we’ll be cooking the Chicken twice

We also recommend using skin-on Chicken Thighs if you can. This is not a mandatory requirement, and you can make a delicious Chicken Pot Pie without the skin. However, frying up some beautiful crispy chicken skin and adding it to the dish adds wonderful flavor and texture to the dish

You can have some fun with the plating of this Puff Pastry Chicken Pot Pie

Because we make the Puff Pastry separately there are all kinds of fun and interesting ways to present the pastry when the dish is served. You can adopt a classic approach of simply cutting out a square of Pastry approximately the same size as the serving bowls and plate it on top

You can get a little bit funky with your presentation too if you like! We tried one option where we cut the Pastry into long, triangular shards and stick them into the Pie filling. It turned out fun on the plate, giving a striking visual appeal!

Another option to consider is saving the Chicken Skin and instead of adding it to the pie filling, use that as a garnish. The Chicken skin will be wonderful and crispy, so it makes for a wonderful topping for the Pie filling. Hey, you can even replace the Puff Pastry solely with Chicken skin for those who aren’t big fans of Puff Pastry

This is the beauty of our (slightly) deconstructed Puff Pastry Chicken Pot Pie, you have so many more creative options for presentation than you would a typical Pie. So, have some fun and share with us below how you presented your pie!

Puff Pastry Chicken Pot Pie Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 lbs. Chicken Thighs (skin on)
• 2 large sheets of Puff Pastry
• 1/3 cup All Purpose Flour
• 2 medium Potatoes, peeled and finely diced
• 1 Carrot, roughly diced
• 2 Celery Stalks, roughly diced
• 4 Garlic Cloves, diced
• 3 cups of Chicken Broth (recipe here)
• ½ cup of Parsley, roughly chopped
• 1 large Onion, roughly diced
• 2 tsp. Vegetable Oil
• Salt and Pepper
  
  

Instructions

1. Season the Chicken generously with salt on all sides, about 1 tsp. or so. Place your frying pan or Cast-Iron Skillet over medium heat with 1 tsp. of Vegetable Oil. Once hot, add the Chicken to the pan, skin side down
2. Cook the Chicken for 7 minutes until the skin is crispy, turn, and cook the other side for a further 5 minutes until browned throughout. Note: The Chicken doesn’t need to be fully cooked as it can be finished off in the pie filling
3. Once cooled, slice the Chicken into small, bite-sized pieces. Retain the skin and cut that into small pieces
4. Heat the remaining Vegetable Oil in a large frying pan or Dutch oven over medium heat. Once hot, add the Onions and a pinch of Salt, and cook for 4 – 5 minutes until tender, then add the Potatoes, Carrots and Celery
5. Continue to cook the vegetables, stirring occasionally for a further 5 minutes, then add the Garlic Cloves and cook for 1 more minute until fragrant. Add the Flour and stir well into the vegetables. Cook the flour while stirring constantly for about 3 – 4 minutes
   
   

Add the Liquid and Simmer

6. Add the Chicken Broth and bring the liquid to a boil, then drop the heat to a low simmer. Continue to simmer the dish for about 20 minutes or so while stirring frequently. Once the liquid has thickened to a point it will easily coat the back of a spoon and add your Chicken Pieces. Stir it all in to combine then turn off the heat
7. Line two separate sheet pans with non-stick parchment paper or aluminum foil then place a sheet of Puff Pastry on each. Poke holes into the pastry with a sharp knife (about 20 or so), then bake in the oven pre-heated to 375F for about 10 minutes until the pastry has flaked up and turned golden-brown in color

Assembly and serving your Puff Pastry Chicken Pot Pie

8. Once your Puff Pastry is ready, re-heat the pie filling on the stovetop. Add the freshly chopped Parsley and mix through. Check for seasoning and adjust if necessary
9. Spoon individual portions of pie filling into serving bowls and serve alongside a generous piece of Puff Pastry and enjoy!
   
   

Recipe Notes

• The retained Chicken Skin can also be used as a garnish. Keep it whole and place on top of the finished Pie dish for extra flavor and texture
• This pie can be enjoyed simply as it is, or alternatively enjoy it with a side of beautiful Mashed Potatoes
  
  

That’s our recipe for a classic Puff Pastry Chicken Pot Pie that we just know you’re going to love! Give it a try and let us know in the comments below how it went. We’d love to hear from you!

If you’ve got some leftover Puff Pastry after making this lovely dish, we’ve got plenty of great recipes you can use it with. Try some of these favorite Puff Pastry dishes of ours:

• Chicken and Leek Pie
• Puff Pastry Stromboli
• Tomato and Onion Tart with Goats Cheese
• Pork Sausage Rolls
  
  

Happy Cooking!