Hellllllooooo savory comfort food on a cold and misty Seattle day. Chicken pot pie is one of those Fall/Winter time favorites that I make when I want to take things slow in the kitchen and feel like a domestic powerhouse. I always use home made crust, but if you don’t have that kind of time, store bought 9-inch double crusts will do the trick. If you go the store bought crust route, only pay attention to the “Pie Filling” instructions and bake that baby for 40 minutes at 350.
If you want to literally cut the number of calories in half, decrease the grams of fat and carbs, and make this a more protein heavy meal – ditch the crust. It’s a thousand times easier to make and you don’t have to bake it. I know, I know, some of you think that by even suggesting this I’m committing treason; but I do this all the time when I have leftover filling that won’t fit inside the pies. And I do it happily because it’s delicious. Just. Eat. The filling. (I’ll also include nutrition and pricing information for just the filling after my normal stats for the full pie recipe in the notes section.)
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9 inch pies
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- 1/2 tbsp olive oil $0.04
- 1 small yellow onion $0.36
- 2 tsp minced garlic $0.03
- 2 lbs chicken breasts, boneless, skinless $3.98
- 3 medium potatoes, peeled and diced $0.33
- 3 medium carrots, peeled, half coined $0.24
- 3 stalks celery, finely chopped $0.24
- 1/2 cup frozen (or canned) corn $0.19
- 1/2 cup frozen (or canned) green beans $0.14
- 1/2 cup frozen (or canned) peas $0.18
- water to cover mixture free(ish)
- 1 can cream of chicken soup $0.83
- 1 "can" skim milk (10.5 oz), or whatever % you have on hand $0.21
- 1 tbsp poultry seasoning $0.75
- 1/2 tsp black pepper $0.03
- 5 cups all purpose flour $0.45
- 2 cups butter, unsalted, cold $2.98
- 1 tsp salt $0.01
- 3/4 cup ice water (approximately) free(ish)
Ingredients
Pie filling
Pie crusts
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- Start by making the pie crusts so they can chill in the fridge while you make the filling. In a large bowl, combine the cold butter, salt and flour with a pastry blender or large fork. this mixture should resemble fine crumbs with a little bit of left over flour when blended adequately.
- slowly add in the ice water (blending with the pastry blender or fork between additions) You don't have to use exactly 3/4 cup water, it may be a little more or a little less. The crust is ready when the crumbs start holding and melding together when you form it into a ball. Try not to add too much water past this point or your crust won't be as flakey.
- Split the dough up into four even sized balls and wrap them with plastic wrap. Put them in the refrigerator to chill while you make the filling.
- In a large stock pot, heat the olive oil on medium heat and saute the onions and garlic together.
- Once the onions are soft, add the chicken (frozen or not) and all of the prepared/chopped vegetables.
- Add water to the stock pot to JUST cover the mixture. (You may have pieces of chicken sticking out the top but that's okay, they'll shrink as they cook.) Bring the mixture to a boil then reduce the heat to medium for a rapid simmer until the chicken is cooked through and the potatoes are soft. (This chicken's internal temperature should reach 160 degrees.)
- Remove the chicken onto a cutting board and pour the rest of the mixture into a large, sturdy colander to drain. Shred the chicken with two forks or chop the chicken up into tiny half-bite sized pieces.
- In the now empty stock pot, combine the cream of chicken soup, milk, poultry seasoning and pepper and bring the mixture to a boil. Once the mixture is boiling, turn the heat off and add the chicken a vegetables back to the stock pot. Stir everything up until everything is coated. The filling is now ready to be split into two pie crusts.
- Sprinkle a wide work surface with flour and roll out one of the dough balls into a big circle (about 10-11 inches in diameter). If you lay the pie pan upside down, in the center of the pie dough, the dough should stick out about 1-2 inches around the edges.
- Lay the rolled out pie crust in the pie pan, making sure it's lying snugly in the bottom edges. There should be a little crust hanging out over the top edges of the pan.
- Repeat with the second ball of dough.
- Fill both pie crusts with the filling. Don't be afraid to make a little pile out of it and really fill the pan. I haven't experienced it boiling over. You may have some filling left over. I usually just put it in some tupperware and eat it later on without any crust. (Sometimes I actually prefer it that way.)
- Take the third and fourth balls of dough out of the fridge and roll them out into two large circles, about 10-11 inches in diameter, and lay them over your two prepared pies. I find it easiest to rub a light layer of flour over the top of the rolled out dough, roll it up like a carpet, pick up the roll and unroll it back onto the top of the pie. Seal the edges and cut a few slits in the top of the pie to let steam escape.
- Bake at 375 for 40 minutes, or until the filling is bubbly and the crust is a deep golden brown color. I usually let the pie set up for about 20 minutes before serving so the pieces actually hold together and don't turn to soup on your plate.
- Prepare the pies as directed above in disposable 9 inch tin pans that have lids. On the lids, write: • Preheat oven to 375 • Bake covered with foil for 30 minutes • Uncover and bake for an additional 45 minutes • Let stand for 20 minutes before serving • Date you froze the pie
- You can freeze these pies for up to 6 months. Since the chicken is already cooked through, the center of the pie should reach 140 degrees to be heated through, but feel free to let it reach 160 if you want to be safe.
Serving size: 1/6 of a pie
Servings: 12
Price for dish: $10.99
Price per serving: $0.91
Nutrition per 1/6 pie:
Calories: 614
Carbs: 52.1 g
Protein: 22.9 g
Fats: 34.3 g
Sodium: 301.9 mg
Sugar: 4.1 g
Stats for just the filling:
Serving Size: 1 cup
Number of Servings: 12
Price for filling: $7.55
Price per cup: $0.63
Nutrition for filling (1 cup):
Calories: 164
Carbs: 15.4 g
Protein: 17.9 g
Fat: 4.1 g
Sodium: 290.5 mg
Sugar: 4.1 g
