Chicken Pot Pie in the Cast Iron Skillet (2024)

Learn how to make a delicious chicken pot pie in the cast iron skillet. Everything is made in one skillet, the effort is minimal, and the results are super tasty and comforting.

This chicken pot pie in the cast iron skillet is a classic recipe made in just one pot. Less working steps and less clean-up, but the same yum and comfort you associate with a chicken pot pie.

The creamy chicken and vegetable filling and the buttery and crispy puff pastry crisp make a cozy, warming dinner perfect for these cold winter days. And if you like some more crowd-pleasing pies, check out our Chicken Mushroom and Leek Pie or the Chicken and Ham Pie. Or make a Turkey Pot Pie with Puff Pastry.

Why should you make the pie in a skillet?

• Just one pot - a large cast iron skillet (9 inches/ 30 cm). You cook the filling in the cast iron pan on the stovetop, cover it with the crust, and bake the pie in the hot oven.
• Many shortcuts (one skillet, store-bought puff pastry, leftover or rotisserie chicken) make this easy chicken pot pie recipe easier to make. But the flavor and comfort remain the same.
• Puff pastry crust: It is crispier and so easy to use. You can skip the dough-rolling part if you buy a disc or already-rolled pastry.
• Single crust: As much as I love any pastry crust, I was never particularly keen on the bottom crust of a classic chicken pot pie. The top crust is terrific - golden, flaky, and crispy, and the bottom crust can’t compete with that.
  • So, why bother? Use just one crust layer to save money, time, and calories. You will not miss anything.

Recipe ingredients

• Chicken: Start from scratch and cook 1 lb chicken breast or thighs.
  • Use rotisserie chicken or leftover chicken.
  • Make this easy skillet chicken pot pie with leftover turkey or ham.

• Puff pastry: One disc of already-rolled puff pastry from the grocery store’s refrigerator section. If the pastry is rolled in one rectangle, trim it to fit the skillet.
  • Frozen puff pastry is also great, but you must thaw and roll it according to the packet’s instructions.

• Vegetables: Mushrooms, onion, carrot, celery, and frozen peas.

• Stock: You can cook the breasts in stock or water. You will also need the cooking water or some chicken stock for the gravy. Don’t forget to reserve the cooking liquid.
  • Using low-sodium broth or stock is preferable to avoid oversalting the sauce. In this case, adding more salt at the end is better than having too much from the start.

• Roux ingredients: All-purpose flour, butter, cooking liquid or stock, and whole milk. I prefer to use unsalted butter to make the creamy chicken gravy.

• Other ingredients: More butter for cooking the vegetables, one egg and a little milk for the egg wash, a bay leaf, fine sea salt or Kosher salt, and ground black pepper.

How to make chicken pot pie in the cast iron skillet?

• Cook the breasts in water or low sodium stock or broth (1). Reserve the cooking liquid; you will need it for the gravy. Dice or shred meat into small pieces. Alternatively, use already-cooked meat.

• Vegetables: Cook the sliced mushrooms on medium heat until golden (2). Remove them from the skillet. Cook the diced vegetables in a bit more butter until they soften slightly (3).

• Gravy: Melt butter (4), add flour, and sauté for a couple of minutes (5). Slowly add cooking liquid and milk, whisking continuously to avoid clumps (6). Simmer until the gravy thickens (7). Add the mushrooms, meat, and peas and stir to combine. Adjust the taste with salt and pepper.

• Assemble: Pour the filling into the skillet (8) and cover it with the pastry. Crimp the dough around the edges to seal and cut four slits into the pastry for venting (9). Brush the skillet chicken pot pie with the egg wash.

• Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until the creamy sauce bubbles and the crust golden brown. Rest for 5 minutes and serve.

Expert Tips

• Don’t skip the egg wash. Sometimes, I think sacrificing an egg for just a bit of brushing is not worth it, but it is… every time. Without the egg wash, the pie remains pale and doesn’t look like much. But, on the other hand, the egg wash makes it golden, shiny, and so appetizing.

• If you notice that the crust gets too brown too soon, cover it loosely with a piece of aluminum foil to prevent it from burning.

How to freeze the unbaked pie?

• I only freeze the unbaked pie if I make it with refrigerated puff pastry (not frozen and defrosted pastry).
• You can’t freeze it in the cast-iron skillet; use a freezer-friendly AND oven-friendly container (like a foil pan).
• Prepare the chicken mixture, pour it into the dish, and cover it with the crust. Don’t brush it with egg wash yet. Cover the chicken pot pie with aluminum foil and freeze for up to 3 months.
• Bake the frozen pot pie: Place the dish (still covered with foil) in the preheated oven and bake it for 30 minutes. Remove the foil, brush the pastry with the beaten egg wash, and bake until golden brown and cooked through; it will take between 40 and 60 minutes.

Recipe FAQ

What to serve with it?

This cast iron chicken pot pie is a meal in itself and only needs something light on the side, like salad or vegetables.

We love to serve it with a green salad with Yogurt Dressing or vinaigrette, Cucumber Salad with Dill, Simple White Cabbage Salad, or tomato and onion salad.

Serve it with steamed or sauteed vegetables like spinach, kale, Swiss chard, asparagus, peas, or green beans. Or serve some roasted vegetables on the side, like broccoli, cauliflower, beets, peppers, etc.

For an even more filling meal, serve it with Roasted Garlic Parmesan Mashed Potatoes, Rich Truffle Potatoes, Creamy Spinach Potato Mash, or Homemade Yeast Rolls.

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