Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuits

Homemade Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuits is a must make recipe your whole family will love! It’s a warm, savory, satisfying pie loaded with juicy chicken (or leftover turkey!), potatoes, carrots, celery and peas swaddled in a creamy, herb-infused white gravy all topped with mega soft, mega buttery, mega flaky biscuits. The biscuits can be made 100% from scratch (highly recommend) or with shortcut store-bought biscuits for all those busy nights. This chicken pot pie with biscuits is way better than frozen pot pie and a show stopping, clamoring-for-more, repeat-favorite dinner.

Course Main Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 40

Total Time 1 10

Servings servings

Ingredients

POT PIE

1 pound chicken breasts or 2 1/2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken or chopped turkey
salt and pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 Yukon gold potatoes peeled, chopped 1/2-inch cubes (about 1 ½ cups)
1 medium yellow onion chopped
2 medium carrots (1 cup) thinly sliced
1/2 cup sliced celery
4 cloves garlic minced
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups low sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 1/2 tsp EACH chicken bouillon, dried parsley
1/2 tsp EACH dried oregano, dried thyme, dried sage
1 cup frozen peas do not thaw

BISCUITS (see notes for store-bought)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 cup finely shredded sharp cheddar cheese
3 tablespoons chopped chives (or 1 TBS dried)
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley (or 1 tsp dried)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 cup buttermilk see DIY buttermilk in notes
1 egg mixed with 1 TBS water for egg wash

Instructions

BISCUITS

Make the biscuits first so they have time to chill.
Chop the butter into small pieces and place in the fridge.
Add the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and garlic powder to a large food processor (or large bowl). Pulse (or whisk) until combined. Add the cheese, chives and parsley and pulse/whisk to combine.
Add the cubed butter and pulse several times until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs (the largest piece of butter should be no larger than pea-size). If not using a food processor, cut the butter into the dry ingredients with a pastry cutter.
Add the buttermilk and pulse a few times to moisten. Do not overmix/overwork the dough, it will be crumbly with some wet spots. If not using a food processor, make a well in the center of the mixture and add the buttermilk to the center. Fold together with a spatula until it begins to come together – again do not overwork the dough.
Pour the dough and any crumbles onto floured parchment paper. Bring the dough together with floured hands and pat it into a rough ¾-inch thick rectangle.
Fold one side into the center, then the other side (see photos in post), gently flatten into a 3/4-inch-thick rectangle again and repeat folding and flattening one more time.
Use a biscuit cutter or drinking glass to cut six 2.75 or 3-inch round biscuits. (Tip: Do not twist the biscuit cutter when pressing down into the dough). Re-shape the scraps to get 2 additional biscuits.
Transfer biscuits on a parchment lined baking sheet/plate to the refrigerator to chill while you make the pot pie filling.

FILLING

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Add potatoes to a microwave safe bowl. Add ¼ cup water. Cover and microwave for 5-6 minutes, until fork tender; set aside.
While the chicken is still on the cutting board, pat it dry and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon paprika and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a 12-inch cast iron skillet or a 3.5 qt braiser over medium-high heat. Once hot, add chicken and cook just until the outside is opaque (it will not be cooked through); transfer to a plate, leaving the oil behind in the skillet.
To the now empty skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add onions, carrots and celery and sauté until almost softened, about 6 minutes. Add garlic and sauté for 30 seconds; sprinkle in the flour and cook 2 minutes.
Reduce heat to low and slowly whisk in chicken broth. Whisk cornstarch into heavy cream and add to the skillet followed by chicken bouillon and all seasonings. Season with1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper to taste.
Bring to a simmer, whisking constantly, and continue to simmer until thickened to desired consistency. The consistency now will be the same as when it comes out of the oven. For a thinner consistency, stir in additional chicken broth or heavy cream; for a thicker consistency, simmer longer.
Remove from heat and stir in the chicken, strained potatoes and frozen peas.

ASSEMBLE AND BAKE

Arrange the biscuits on top of the filling and brush the tops of the biscuits with egg wash.
Bake at 425 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until biscuits are cooked through.

Notes

*DIY BUTTERMILK

If you don’t keep buttermilk on hand, it’s easy to subsite with sour milk. Add 1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice to a measuring glass. Add enough milk to equal 3/4 cups. Give it a stir and let sit 5-10 minutes in order to activate and slightly curdle. It is best to use whole milk, but if you don't have whole milk, add a splash of half and half or heavy cream to the glass first then fill the rest with whatever milk you have on hand.

TO USE STORE BOUGHT BISCUITS

Use Pillsbury ORIGINAL Grands Biscuits and not Pillsbury Butter Tastin', Southern Homestyle Biscuits or the baking time will be off. You may use the Butter Biscuits if you bake them separately.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Bake biscuits on a parchment lined baking sheet for 10 minutes (otherwise the bottoms will be soggy).
Flip biscuits over and add to the top of the biscuit filling.
Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes until the biscuits are deeply golden.

Tips and Tricks

The best chicken pot pie means the best filling and biscuits! Here’s what to pay special attention to:

Easy chicken pot pie: see post for how to use shortcuts such as rotisserie chicken and frozen vegetables.
Variations: see post for all sorts of filling and topping variations.
Don’t cook chicken all the way through in the skillet. Don’t chop the chicken too small or it will cook quickly in the skillet and dry out in the oven. Instead, you want to sauté the chicken in the skillet just until it’s browned/opaque but not cooked through in the center so it can finish cooking in the oven and emerge juicy tender.
Cook flour long enough. It is crucial that you cook the flour for a full two minutes to get rid of the raw flour taste - so set a timer and don't shortcut it!
Make sure the butter is cold for the biscuits. To create flaky layers, the butter must be very cold. Cold butter melts as the biscuits bake which releases steam and creates little pockets of air which translates into airy and flaky biscuits. If the butter melts or softens before the biscuits bake, they will be hard and flat.
Make biscuits first. Making the biscuits first allows you to chill them for 15 minutes or so while you make the filling. This is an insurance policy against melted butter to create soft, flaky biscuits.
Don’t overwork the biscuit dough. Don’t overmix, over-pulse or over-handle the biscuit dough. Overworking the dough will melt the butter and over-activate the gluten in the flour resulting in hard, and flat biscuits. The biscuit dough should be crumbly.
Don’t skip folding the dough. Flattening the dough and folding it over on itself creates the flaky layers.
Don’t twist the biscuit cutter. When you're ready to cut your biscuits, punch straight down with your biscuit cutter and don’t twist. Twisting the cutter seals the edges, which prevents your biscuits from rising as high.

How to store and reheat

Storage: let chicken pot pie cool to room temperature, cover and refrigerate for up to 5 days.
Microwave: transfer individual portions to a microwave safe plate and microwave for 90 seconds then at 20 second intervals as needed.
Oven: loosely cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until the filling is warmed through.

How to Make Ahead

This chicken pot pie with biscuits is extremely make ahead friendly. You can make the biscuits and make the filling in advance and store them separately. *Do not assemble the whole pie and bake the next day because the filling will take longer to warm than the biscuits will to bake. Instead, warm the filling then top with biscuits:

Filling: the chicken pot pie filling can be made and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator 24 hours ahead of time. Warm in the skillet or oven when ready to finish baking the pot pie. Once completely warmed, you may need to add extra milk or chicken broth to thin to desired consistency. Assemble and bake the chicken pot pie as directed.
Biscuits: the biscuits can be prepared completely (without baking) 3 days in advance and tightly covered in the refrigerator then used as directed in the recipe. It is best to refrigerate the dough already cut into biscuits. Cut biscuits can also be frozen for up to 3 months then thawed overnight in the refrigerator before using in the recipe.

How to freeze

You can either freeze the filling and raw, cut biscuits separately for an easy thaw, assemble and bake pot pie, or you can freeze the baked pot pie for up to two months. Do not freeze the assembled, unbaked pot pie because the filling needs to be warmed before adding the raw biscuits.