Chicken Pot Pie in Puff Pastry Shells is an amazing alternative to the traditional pot pie enclosed in a pie crust. It’s the ultimate comfort food that is both packed full of goodness and simple to prepare.
The most time-consuming part of making this recipe is cutting the chicken and the vegetables. However, it’s well worth the time!
Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
Table of Contents
Ingredients
I used the following ingredients for this delicious dish: Unsalted butter, chicken breasts, rutabaga, carrots, onions, salt, pepper, dried thyme, flour, white wine, low sodium chicken broth, green peas, milk and Bisto.
As the name indicates, I also used Puff Pastry shells.
What is a Rutabaga and What is Bisto?
Two ingredients that you may not be familiar with are rutabaga and Bisto.
Rutabaga is also known as swede. It is a largish root vegetable that is somewhat sweet and packed with nutrients. It’s flesh is yellow and its skin with a purplish tinge is generally waxed in the US.
While some people eat rutabagas raw, the most common way of preparing it is to boil and mash it with some butter.
Bisto is a British meat-flavored gravy powder that is used for thickening gravy and other sauces.
I use Bisto all the time. If your local supermarket has an international food section, look in the British section because you just might find it there. You can also order Bisto online.
Making the Chicken Pot Pie Mixture
I started by cooking the chicken in melted butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat. After about 7 minutes, the chicken was no longer pink.
Next, I added the salt, pepper, thyme, rutabagas, carrots, and onions to the chicken.
I stirred everything together and let the mixture cook for about 10 minutes to allow the onions to start to become tender.
Next I mixed in the flour and let it cook for a minute or two.
After that, I added the white wine and chicken broth.
I brought the mixture to a boil, stirring constantly until it had thickened slightly.
Then I covered the pan and reduced the heat to medium low. I cooked the mixture for about 45 minutes, until the vegetables were tender.
Finishing the Chicken Pot Pie Mixture
While the pot pie mixture was cooking, I whisked together the milk and the Bisto.
After about 45 minutes, the vegetables were tender. The one that took the longest was the rutabaga.
At this point, increased the heat to medium and stirred in the frozen peas.
After adding the peas, I heated the mixture just until the peas were no longer frozen. The reason for this was that I wanted the peas to retain their green color and not be over-cooked.
Finally, I added the milk/Bisto.
I stirred the mixture constantly until it thickened and was bubbly.
I gave the mixture a final taste and declared it perfectly seasoned!
For dinner, I served it over Puff Pastry Shells that had been cooked according to the package directions along with some steamed broccoli.
It was absolutely delicious. Yum!
Frequently Asked Questions
If you’re unable to find rutabagas, you can substitute turnips or potatoes. Because potatoes cook much more quickly then rutabagas, however, they should be added about 15 minutes before the mixture is ready.
My English husband introduced me to Bisto which I use all the time. If you are unable to find Bisto, however, you can substitute cornstarch. The color of the chicken pot pie mixture will be lighter, but just as delicious.
You can definitely omit the wine and substitute ½ cup of additional chicken broth for the wine.
While I like serving the chicken pot pie mixture over puff pastry shells, I also like it served over rice. In addition, you could make it into an actual pot pie by placing it into an oven-proof dish and topping it with regular pastry of puff pastry. This is equally delicious.
The recipe can be easily cut in half. Just divide the quantity of each of the ingredients by 2!
One of the beauties of this recipe is that the chicken pot pie mixture can be made ahead of time and reheated right before dinner.
Leftovers, if any can be refrigerated in a covered container and reheated either in the microwave for several minutes or on the stovetop.
This recipe makes a lot. Generally, I will freeze the leftovers in individual serving sizes and then vacuum seal the servings.
If you’re looking for some more great meals served in Puff Pastry Shells, check out my Elegant Shrimp Newburg in Puff Pastry Shells or Chicken Vol-au Vents.
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Chicken Pot Pie in Puff Pastry Shells
Ingredients
- 2 pounds skinless and boneless chicken breasts cut into 1-inch cubes (about 4 cups)
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 cups rutabaga, peeled and cut into ¼-inch pieces (about a half rutabaga) (See Tip 1)
- 2 cups carrots, peeled and cut into ¼-inch pieces (3 to 4 large carrots)
- 2 ½ cups finely chopped onions, (2 large onions)
- 2 ½ teaspoons Kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ cup (2.5-ounces) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (4-ounces) white wine (See Tips 2 and 3)
- 4 cups (1 quart, 32-ounces) low sodium chicken broth
- 2 cups (10-ounces) frozen green peas
- ½ cup (4-ounces) milk
- 2 Tablespoons Bisto (See Tip 4)
- Puff Pastry Shells, cooked according to package directions
Instructions
- Melt butter in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook until all pink is gone, about 7 minutes. Add the salt, pepper, thyme, rutabaga, carrots, and onions. Cook until the onions are tender, about 10 minutes. Add the flour to the mixture; stir until well blended. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the wine and chicken broth. Stir over medium heat until mixture is bubbly and thickened. Cover and cook over low heat until the carrots and rutabaga are tender, about 45 minutes. Add the green peas; stir to combine.
- Increase the heat to medium. Mix the milk and Bisto together; add to chicken and vegetable mixture. Cook stirring often until mixture is bubbly and thickened. Correct the seasonings. Serve over Puff Pastry Shells.
- Yield: 10 servings. (See Tip 5)
Chula’s Expert Tips
- May use turnip root or potatoes in place of the rutabagas. Adjust the cooking time to ensure that the turnip root or potatoes are not over cooked.
- Use a good white wine that you would drink. I tend to use chardonnay.
- You can substitute additional chicken broth for the wine if you would prefer to leave the wine out.
- You can substitute cornstarch for the Bisto.
- This makes excellent leftovers and freezes extremely well. Also, the chicken pot pie mixture can be made ahead of time and reheated.
Nutrition
I originally published this post on July 8, 2016. Since then I’ve made the recipe numerous times with the same awesome results
This repost contains all new photographs and updated text. However, the recipe remains unchanged.
Love this recipe! We use it quite often. I double the carrots and celery and add minced onion flakes to it and use Uncle Ben’s Wild Rice. After a couple hours check it to see if it needs a little bit more water added.
Harold Burton
Harold,
Your modifications sound yummy!
Chula