Chicken Pot Pie is an easy chicken casserole dish with tender chicken, homemade pot pie filling, and a flaky crescent dough crust.
Whether it’s a Classic Chicken Pot Pie, Tater Tot Chicken Pot Pie or this casserole, a flaky crust over creamy gravy, juicy chicken cubes and mixed veggies is the ultimate comforting meal for a weeknight Dinner, sure to be a family favorite.
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Sabrina’s Chicken Pot Pie Casserole
Chicken Pot Pie Casserole is a classic American dish and wholesome comfort food loved by people of all ages. This delicious casserole is a perfect combination of savory chicken, flavorful pot pie filling, and a flaky buttery crust. It is an easy-to-make dish perfect for busy weeknights when you need dinner in less than an hour or prepped ahead as a freezer meal.
While this tasty dinner takes a shortcut with refrigerated crescent roll dough, the homemade chicken pot pie filling is completely from scratch! The gravy is made from fresh veggies, dried thyme, and a flour roux so it’s creamy, rich and full of the comforting flavors you love without relying on cream of chicken soup. A couple hearty cups of cooked chicken are mixed in along with frozen peas and then your filling is ready to be topped with crescent dough and baked until it’s bubbling and the crust is crispy.
Ingredients
- Chicken and Vegetables: Chunks of chicken and mixed vegetables will make up the bulk of this dish. The fresh veggies you’ll use are carrots, celery, onions, and frozen peas to add delicious flavor and healthy nutrients to this classic dish. You can use all frozen vegetables if needed.
- Butter and Seasonings: 3 tablespoons of butter is used to saute the vegetables. It adds richness and depth of flavor to the filling, along with creamy texture in the sauce. The seasonings used to bring flavor are thyme and parsley, along with classic salt and pepper.
- Flour: ⅓ cup flour is used to thicken the sauce and create the signature creamy filling. You want to heat it before adding the liquid so it cooks off the raw flour taste.
- Chicken Broth and Milk: 2 cups chicken broth is the base of the sauce and adds a savory flavor to the dish. 2/3 cup milk is used to create a creamy color and texture in the sauce.
- Crust with Egg Wash: A refrigerated crescent dough sheet is used as the crust for this pot pie casserole. It is easy to work with and creates a flaky and buttery crust. You’ll brush this dough with an egg wash mixture of egg yolk and milk to create a shiny golden crust. If you prefer a more traditional pot pie crust, you can use pie dough instead.
Kitchen Tools and Equipment
- 8×10-inch Baking Dish and Cooking Spray: Your whole casserole will bake inside a rectangular baking dish. 8 x 10 inches is best to fit the dough topping, but you could stretch it to fit a wider dish if needed. Nonstick cooking spray will help make sure nothing sticks to the bottom of the dish.
- Large Pot: Use a large pot or dutch oven to begin cooking the filling for your casserole on the stove top. It will finish cooking in the oven.
How to Make
Time needed: 40 minutes.
- Prep Time
Preheat your oven. Grease a baking dish with cooking spray. Cook chicken (unless you’re using pre-cooked chicken) and dice into bite size cubes.
- Cook Veggies
Heat the butter, onion, celery, and carrots over medium heat. Stir the veggies and cook until translucent.
- Thicken and Season
Stir in the thyme, salt, pepper, and flour until flour is absorbed, then cook for 30 seconds.
- Gravy
Slowly add the broth while stirring constantly until smooth. Add the milk slowly, continuing to stir, and cook for a few minutes.
- Add Chicken
Stir in the chicken, parsley, and peas into the mixture.
- Pour Filling
Transfer the chicken mixture to the prepared baking dish.
- Dough Topping
Cover the filling with the whole crescent roll sheet still intact. Whisk the egg yolk and milk, then brush over the dough.
- Season
Season with salt and pepper. Cut 6 slits evenly in the crust.
- Bake
Bake uncovered until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbling.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 onion , chopped
- 3 stalks celery , chopped
- 3 carrots , chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- 1/3 cup flour
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2/3 cup whole milk
- 3 cups chicken breast , cooked and diced
- 2 tablespoons parsley , chopped
- 2/3 cup frozen peas
- 1 can crescent roll sheets
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon whole milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray an 8×10-inch baking dish with vegetable oil spray.
- In a large skillet add the butter, onion, celery, and carrots on medium heat.
- Stir well to coat and cook for 6-8 minutes until translucent.
- Add in the thyme, salt, pepper, and flour and stir well until flour is absorbed, then cook for 30 seconds.
- In a very slow stream, add in the chicken broth, stirring constantly until sauce is smooth.
- Stir in the milk in a slow stream until smooth then cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the chicken, parsley, and frozen peas, stir to combine.
- Pour the mixture into the baking dish.
- Unroll the crescent pie sheet and place gently over the top of the baking dish.
- Mix egg yolk and milk and brush over the crescent dough.
- Sprinkle with additional kosher salt and black pepper and cut 6 slits across the pastry top.
- Bake, uncovered, for 25-28 minutes or until the crescent dough is golden brown and filling is bubbly.
Nutrition
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Chef’s Note: Use Pre-Cooked Chicken
You have the choice to cook up some fresh chicken for this recipe, but another option is to use pre-cooked chicken instead. Using cooked, diced chicken breast saves lots of time making this dish without overcooking the crust to ensure the meat cooks through. You can use any cooked chicken like Grilled Chicken, Rotisserie Chicken, boiled chicken, or canned chicken.
Can this be made ahead of time?
Yes, Chicken Pot Pie Casserole can be made ahead of time. Prepare the filling and assemble the casserole as directed, but do not bake it. Cover the casserole tightly with foil or plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. When ready to bake, remove the foil or plastic wrap and brush the crescent dough with the egg wash. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until the crescent dough is golden brown and the filling is hot and bubbly.
Nutritional Facts
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- Take care with the dough.
- Crescent roll dough has perforations already in it, in order to easily take it apart and form the crescents. Usually the sheet is still all stuck together, but sometimes the dough is torn. You can pinch it back together in those spots, so that you will have control over evenly spacing the slits that you cut before baking.
- Thicken sauce properly.
- The flour mixture cooked in the butter mixture is what helps the sauce thicken. To make sure it thickens properly, be sure to slowly add the liquids while stirring constantly so that a smooth sauce forms. It should only take a few minutes of simmer to thicken, but you can keep simmering until it gets to a thicker consistency.
What to Pair with Casserole
The best part of making Chicken Pot Pie Casserole is that it is a one-dish meal that can be served as a cozy hearty family dinner all by itself. For extra veggies though, you could always add a light side of Sauteed Green Beans or green salad. Leftovers taste great as a next day lunch with some cozy Tomato Soup.
How to Store
- Store: If you have leftover Chicken Pot Pie Casserole, let it cool completely and then cover it tightly with foil or plastic wrap, or transfer to an airtight container. It can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Reheat: If it’s not in the pan, place the portion you want to reheat in a baking dish. Otherwise, remove any plastic wrap and cover the dish with aluminum foil. Bake the oven at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until heated through.
- Freeze: Once baked, let the chicken casserole cool completely and then cover it tightly with a layer of plastic wrap then aluminum foil. It can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat from frozen by removing the plastic wrap, re-covering with aluminum foil and bake for 20-30 minutes, until heated through.
Frequent Questions
Traditional Chicken Pot Pie is classic comfort food of a savory pie filled with chicken, vegetables, and a creamy sauce. The filling is typically made with a combination of chicken, carrots, celery, peas, and onions, while the sauce is made with chicken broth, cream, and flour. The filling is then poured into a pastry crust and baked until the crust is golden brown and the filling is hot and bubbly.
Yes, you can use boneless chicken thighs instead of chicken breast for this recipe. As long as the chicken is cooked through, it can be used in this recipe. You could also use canned chicken, or leftover cooked chicken.
Pot pie and casserole are two different dishes, although they may have some similarities. A pot pie is made with a pastry crust on the bottom and the top, and is typically baked in a pie dish. A casserole, on the other hand, is a baked dish that is made with a variety of ingredients, such as vegetables, meat, and pasta, and is typically baked in a casserole dish. Creamy Chicken Pot Pie Casserole is a combination of these two dishes, with a filling similar to a pot pie, but with a crescent dough crust on top, similar to a casserole.
Variations
- Cheese and Herb: Add grated cheddar cheese and use fresh herbs like rosemary, and sage, to make a cheesy herb filling. You can also use Parmesan cheese, Monterey jack cheese, Gouda cheese, or other favorite shredded cheese.
- Mushroom and Spinach: Add Sauteed Mushrooms and chopped spinach instead of the frozen peas. Try fresh veggies or frozen veggies like kale, green beans, cauliflower, or broccoli.
- Bacon and Sweet Potato: Add crumbled bacon and diced sweet potatoes to the filling for a sweet and savory combination. You want to use frozen sweet potatoes or par-boil them first so they get nice and tender.
- Turkey: Substitute cubed turkey pieces in this recipe to make a delicious Turkey Pot Pie. Add this recipe to your list to use for Thanksgiving leftovers.
- Crust: You can use actual pie crust instead of the crescent roll dough, either refrigerated pie dough or homemade Pie Crust. Refrigerated biscuit dough or drop Biscuit Dough would taste delicious too as the crust.
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