By Julia Moskin
- Total Time
- 1 hour
- Rating
- 4(1,959)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Here's a radical notion: chicken potpie does not have to be filled with goopy white sauce, carrots and peas. Traditional recipes are long on starch and richness, short on flavor. This updated version is savory with chicken stock, herbs, and wine (no white sauce needed), easier to make, and still familiar. Use thigh meat, for more taste and better texture than breast. And vegetables should be served separately, not forcemarched into the filling. Roasted carrots, peas with mint and buttered steamed asparagus are all nice to serve alongside chicken potpie.
Featured in: Chicken Potpie for the Modern Cook
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Ingredients
Yield:6 servings
- 1tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1garlic clove, peeled and smashed
- 6ounces bacon or pancetta, preferably thick-cut, sliced into strips
- 1medium onion, chopped
- 8ounces mushrooms, such as button or cremini, thickly sliced
- ¼cup all-purpose flour
- 1teaspoon dried thyme
- ½teaspoon paprika
- Salt and ground black pepper
- 1pound boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
- 2tablespoons butter
- 2½cups rich chicken stock
- ¼cup Marsala, Madeira or sherry
- 1tablespoon sherry vinegar
- 2tablespoons finely chopped parsley, more for garnish
- 19-inch pie crust, chilled, or 1 sheet puff pastry
- 1egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
465 calories; 34 grams fat; 11 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 15 grams monounsaturated fat; 6 grams polyunsaturated fat; 16 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 3 grams sugars; 21 grams protein; 680 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Heat oil and garlic together over low heat. When it sizzles, add bacon and onions and cook, stirring often, until fat is rendered and bacon is golden brown. Adjust the heat so the bacon slowly gives up its fat. Remove garlic clove and add mushrooms. Cook, stirring, until mushrooms are browned and slightly softened.
Step
2
In a sealable plastic bag, combine flour, thyme, paprika, 2 large pinches salt and 1 large pinch pepper. Add chicken and shake well to coat.
Step
3
In the skillet with the bacon and mushrooms, add butter and melt over medium heat. Add chicken pieces and any flour that remains in the bag. Cook, stirring, until chicken pieces are golden and the flour on the bottom of the pan is browned. Pour in stock, Marsala and vinegar. Scrape bottom of pan, and let simmer about 5 minutes, until thickened. Taste for salt, pepper and vinegar and adjust the seasonings. Turn off heat and stir in parsley.
Step
4
Heat oven to 400 degrees.
Step
5
Transfer chicken and sauce to 9-inch round pie dish or 8-inch square baking dish. Roll out pie crust to desired shape and size. Drape crust over filling, making a few slits or decorative holes on top. Tuck edges down around filling and brush crust with egg wash. If the dish is piled high with filling, place on a baking sheet to catch any overflow before transferring to oven.
Step
6
Bake until crust is browned and filling is bubbling, 20 to 30 minutes.
Step
7
Let cool slightly, at least 10 minutes, before serving with a big spoon. If desired, garnish each serving with parsley.
Tips
- To make individual potpies, divide the mixture among 6 large ramekins, mini pie pans or ovenproof bowls. Roll the pastry out into a rectangle and cut into 6 squares, each one large enough to cover the filling and drape over the rim of the dish. Lightly place a pastry square over each dish and evenly fold down the four corners on the outside edge. Press gently to seal. Snip or cut a few slits in the top. Place on a cookie sheet for baking.
- Leftover cooked chicken (or turkey) can be used instead of raw. Add the flour mixture by itself in step 3. Cut leftover chicken into bite-sized pieces and stir into the pan at the end of step 3 to heat through.
Ratings
4
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1,959
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Cooking Notes
Chris
Nice simple recipe and I used Melissa Clark's all-butter crust and simply laid the crust over the cast iron skillet i prepped everything in.
Two things:
don't waste a plastic bag to flour the chicken. i use a small steel mixing bowl with a lid or a tupperware and just toss the stuff around in it. takes two seconds to wash. no junk added to the landfill.
i added blanched diced carrots and potatoes. my daughter insists on vegetables in a chicken pot pie.
David
How about cooking in a cast iron pan and then baking it in there once it has its crust cover?
Michael
For an easier version dispense with the crust altogether and top with grated cheese -- Parmesan, grana, Gruyere, or Comte -- and make a gratin.
Mike Walker
Fora healthier version of chicken or turkey pot pie use home made potatoe leek soup with roasted vegetable stock from how to cook everything vegetarian by Mark Bittman in the filing and skip the dairy, bacon, etc.
Heidi
This recipe appealed to me, I had all the ingredients except chicken, so I used Pork Tenderloin instead. It was excellent. I used red wine to deglaze the pan.
And I used a cast iron skillet - only 1 dirty pan
Ron Aaronson
I found that the 2 1/2 cups of stock called for was way too much; the sauce never thickened as it should and I had to add a cornstarch slurry just to get some reasonable viscosity. And I still had way too much sauce, which may not be a problem for some. But because I did not want to over-thicken the sauce, the crust drowned and became soggy.
Julia Moskin
You can just leave it out entirely, and add extra mushrooms. The filling will still be savory and delicious.
Susan Lopez
Great version of chicken marsala with a crust! I made in a cast iron skillet with puff pastry. You can also make a veggie version by eliminating the chicken and adding more mushrooms (its mushroom season after all). The filling tastes great over fresh fettuchini. If you use sherry instead of marsala it tastes great with a dollop of crème fraîche.
mkh
I must differ from Ms Moskin. There is nothing wrong with a cream sauce version of chicken pot pie - Ina Garten's is terrific. (Add some sherry to the cream sauce if you want.) This recipe would have made a nice chicken stew with mushrooms and a crust on top - but the recipe calls for WAY too much dried thyme for my taste - it overwhelms everything else. I won't make this recipe again, but I will cook and eat Ina Garten's chicken pot pie at least 3 times this fall and winter.
Julia
Years ago, had a version of this at The Wheel Pump in Canadensis PA made with sausage instead of bacon. I've been making this ever since. The sausage adds depth. Suggest trying different kinds of sausage to see what combination you like best. Otherwise the recipe is pretty much the same as above, except I season the mushrooms with a little grated lemon rind and a squeeze of lemon juice instead of the vinegar.
vinaigrette
This was fairly time-consuming, especially waiting for the bacon and mushrooms to get well-browned, on a low flame. Although the gravy is delicious, the flavor of the chicken thighs is lost. This recipe would work better with cubed beef, as the overall flavor of the gravy is similar to a Beef Bourguignon.
Make sure the filling is at room temperature before topping it with the crust.
India
About 25 years ago, I was in Cambridge (UK) and went to Brown's for dinner. They made a game pot pie that was very similar to this but had a sky-high puff pastry top crust. It was fabulous! This recipe appears to be quite similar. Now to just find some scrapes of pheasant, venison and rabbit...
marilyn
This was amazing. My husband and I wished our kids had suffered through the pre made, bland, white sauce version of our childhood, so they could truly appreciate how wonderful this potpie was. I used 1/3 cup flour after reading the comments, put the solids in the pie pan first and reduced the sauce for an additional 5 minutes before pouring over. This would be a great make-ahead dish, keeping the filling in the fridge and baking it when company arrives.
Elayne
I have been making Julia Child's chicken-tarragon pot pie since it was published in the Times in 2005, without the cream and substituting other herbs for the tarragon. It's fantastic.
Margaret
So many things are off with this recipe. What does the author have against English peas? The point of a pot pie is to be a one pot meal; the veg goes in the filling, just like shepherd pie. Why is there bacon?? Calls for a fancy alcohol you’ll need to buy: check. Calls for too much vinegar: check! So many NYT tend to call for too much lemon or vinegar (or both) and some pricy ingredient you probs don’t have.
Sara Parks
Delicious. Pancetta takes 20 min. Use cast iron. Added 1tbsp cornstarch.
Sara Parks
Delicious. Add more chicken. Pancetta takes about 20 min to cook down. Use cast iron next time.
Sara Parks
Delicious. Pancetta takes 20min . Use cast iron.
Sara Parks
Delicious. Pancetta takes 20 min. Use cast iron.
Susan
Any idea how to make this to freeze and serve later? Thanks!
Kit
I've made this recipe at least 6 times and have yet to have the stuff thicken up enough even when I have added slurry. The puff pastry just lies on the top and makes a soggy mess. What gives???
Shannon Joy Mekeel
I am thrilled to find this recipe. Over the years, I have experimented with the traditional pot pie variations too but you are right- that white sauce is a mistake. I have everything to make this but the bacon. Do I need to go to the store or can I omit it? Maybe use some beef tallow to add some fat depth instead....help!
steph
Cast iron preparation is a must. Carmelization ia fantastic.
cfxk
Had high hopes for this. Not fulfilled. Not even close.There is probably a reason traditional "chicken potpie...(is) filled with goopy white sauce, carrots and peas." It tastes good and, Julia Moskin notwithstanding, not short on flavor.
Carol Comerford
Excellent!
Sandra
1.5 cups Stock0.5 cups MarsalaTarragon instead of Parsley
Susan
I used herbes de Provence.
katie
Really good. The only thing is that I felt that the Smokey taste from the bacon overpowered the taste of the Marsala. Next time I will use pancetta, prosciutto or omit altogether. I also had to add a slurry to thicken. I definitely have not given up on this recipe.
Shannon Joy Mekeel
OHHHH-thanks for chiming in Katie. You answered my post from above.
Susan in Minnesota
I love this recipe so much. But also, I "force march" peas and carrots in and it is terrific. The whole point is it's a one-pot meal. I use Pappy's pie crust dough made with lard to lay over the top of the skillet.
Stephen Lamade
I used dry Madeira and it turned out great. Use all of the flour in the recipe, and if it is still to soupy, then use a slotted spoon when doling out the sauce into the pie pan or cast iron skillet.
Ellie
Amazing!! I left out the bacon and did more chicken and a little more flour. Crowd pleaser!!!
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