Description
This hearty turkey pot pie uses 1 pie crust as the topping and plenty of delicious vegetables and cooked turkey in the creamy gravy filling. See the recipe Notes for vegetable substitutions and other ingredient suggestions.
Ingredients
- 1 unbaked pie crust (what I used) or all butter pie crust*
- 3 Tablespoons (43g) unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup (65g) chopped yellow onion (1/2 of a medium onion)
- 1 cup (120g) sliced or diced carrots (1–2 large carrots or a handful of baby carrots)
- 1 cup (120g) sliced or diced celery (2–3 stalks)
- 1 cup (120g) roughly chopped mushrooms
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup (31g) all-purpose flour (spoon & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon finely chopped dried rosemary (or more thyme, or dried sage)
- 2 cups (480ml) chicken broth/stock or turkey broth/stock
- 1/2 cup (120ml) whole milk
- 1 cup frozen peas (or other vegetable add-in, see Note)
- 3 cups (370g) chopped or shredded cooked turkey (or chicken)
- egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with 1 Tablespoon milk
Instructions
- At least 2 hours ahead, make the pie dough: Make the pie crust through step 5 according to my directions and video tutorial in my pie crust recipe. Make pie dough in advance because it needs to chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before rolling out (step 3). The recipe makes 2 crusts, and you only need 1 for this pie, so save the other for another pie.
- Make the filling: Melt the butter in a large skillet or pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, mushrooms, and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until vegetables have softened and released some liquid. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, thyme, and rosemary until flour has absorbed all the liquid. Stir in the broth and milk. Simmer for 7–8 minutes or until thickened into a gravy consistency. Stir in the frozen peas and turkey, and then remove from heat. Taste and add more salt & pepper, thyme, or rosemary to taste, if desired. Cool for 10 minutes at room temperature. (Or up to 1 day. Cover and store in the refrigerator if making 1 day ahead.) After it has cooled for at least 10 minutes, transfer the filling to a 9-inch pie dish.
- Preheat oven to 375°F (191°C).
- Roll out the chilled pie crust: Remove 1 disc of pie dough from the refrigerator. On a lightly floured work surface using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough out into an 11- or 12-inch circle. Make sure to turn the dough about a quarter turn after every few rolls. Carefully lay dough over top of the filling. Trim dough edges so there is only about an inch of overhang. Fold the overhanging dough under, melding it into itself to form a thick edge crust. Crimp the edges with a fork or flute the edges with your fingers.
- Cut slits in the top to make steam vents. Lightly brush the top of the pie crust with the egg wash.
- Bake for 35–40 minutes or until the top of the crust is golden brown. After 20 minutes of baking, be sure to cover the edges of the crust with aluminum foil or use a pie crust shield to prevent the edges from getting too brown. (See this post on the best pie baking tools for instructions on how to make a pie crust shield out of foil.)
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving. Leftovers keep well in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Reheat as desired.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Filling can be prepared 1 day in advance. Cover and chill in the refrigerator as noted in step 2. After chilling, set out on the counter for at least 30 minutes before continuing with step 3. You can also prepare and freeze the filling for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature before covering with crust and baking. The pie crust dough can be made ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using. Baked and cooled pot pie can be frozen up to 3 months. Thaw and then reheat, covered with foil, in a 300°F (149°C) oven for 20-30 minutes or until warmed through.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Rolling Pin | 9-inch Pie Dish or 9-inch Glass Pie Dish | Pastry Brush | Pie Crust Shield
- Pie Crust: Both linked pie crust recipes make 2 crusts. You only need 1 crust for this pie, so freeze the second half for another pie. You can also use store-bought pie dough.
- Can I use puff pastry? You can use thawed store-bought puff pastry instead of a top pie crust. However, keep in mind that the underside of the dough (that touches the filling) usually ends up tasting soggy. For that reason, it’s an option I usually skip when making pot pie. Biscuits are a great alternative to pie crust, though. You can use the biscuit topping from this biscuit vegetable pot pie.
- Mushrooms: Feel free to skip the mushrooms if desired. Add another 1 cup of vegetable add-in, see recipe Note below.
- Milk: Use whole milk and avoid lower-fat milks because the gravy/filling will not thicken as much. Plain unsweetened almond milk or oat milk work if a dairy-free alternative is needed. Do not use half-and-half or heavy cream because both are too thick.
- Vegetable Add-ins: Feel free to skip the peas and replace with fresh or frozen chopped broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, leeks, bell peppers, green beans, butternut squash, and/or fresh/frozen/canned corn. No need to thaw or cook these vegetables before using, but if they’re already cooked, that’s fine too. Just add them in! If also skipping the mushrooms, use 2 cups of vegetable add-ins.
- Smaller Individual Pot Pies: If you have smaller pie dishes or 8 oven-safe 8-ounce ramekins, you can spoon the filling into each and top with smaller pie crust circles. Cut the pie dough into circles about 1 inch larger than the diameter of your ramekins/smaller pie dishes. The bake time will be shorter than the full-size version, and that time really depends on the exact size of your mini turkey pot pies. When the crust is golden brown on top and the filling is bubbling through the steam vents, they’re done. You may need more than 1 disc of pie dough since the filling:crust ratio changes when using smaller dishes.