This Instant Pot Chicken Pot Pie is a faster way to make pot pie filling and is finished off in the oven with puff pastry.
Ingredients in this recipe
You don’t need many ingredients to make these yummy pot pies! Here’s what you need (full instructions are available at the bottom of this page)
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1/2 lb chicken breasts
- diced 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp fresh thyme or 1/2 tsp dried
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1 Yukon gold potato, diced
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/4 cup heavy cream or 1/2 cup milk
- 1 tbsp flour
- 1 (750g) bag frozen vegetables
- 1/2 sheet puff pastry cut into squares
How to make chicken pot pie in the Instant Pot
Here’s how to make these mini chicken pot pies:
- Spread butter over the bottom of Instant Pot. Add onions, chicken, thyme, garlic, salt & pepper, potato, chicken broth, heavy cream and flour in that order, gently stirring flour overtop of mixture.
- Place lid on Instant Pot and pressure cook for 3 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven and grease ramekins with cooking spray. Cut out 4 small squares or circles of puff pastry using a pizza roller to fit the tops of the ramekins and set aside.
- Do a quick release of the pressure, then add veggies to filling.
- Stir to mix well.
- Divide filling among ramekins and then add piece of puff pastry.
- Bake on a baking sheet in the oven for 10 minutes or until pastry is golden brown. Serve and enjoy!
Ingredient substitutions
- butter – this is for cooking the onion and chicken, and it also combines with flour in the pot to create a roux. You can substitute the butter with any other cooking fat, such as bacon grease, coconut oil, or cooking oil.
- boneless skinless chicken breasts – If you prefer dark meat, you can use chicken thighs instead. Even turkey breasts or thighs will work.
- fresh thyme leaves – for the best flavour, use fresh herbs. If you need a substitute, dry thyme leaves will be fine
- potato – I use Yukon Gold, but feel free to use any thin skin variety, like reds. They hold their shape better than russets
- chicken broth – feel free use chicken or vegetable stock instead 1/4 cup heavy cream or 1/2 cup milk
- frozen vegetables – I use frozen veggies for convenience. If you want to use fresh, you will need to saute or steam them before using them in the recipe
Alternative forms of crust
Puff pastry makes for a beautiful, flaky crust on the pies. I buy puff pastry sheets, which I slice into squares. Here are some other crust options though.
- pastry dough – homemade or store-bought pie crust will work. Pie crust dough is kept in the refrigerated foods aisle, near the biscuit and crescent roll dough)
- biscuits – if you want to use biscuits, you will need to bake them separately from the pies. Then, just before serving, place one baked biscuit on top of each pie
- phyllo dough – use this according to my recipe instructions, just as if you were using puff pastry
- mashed potatoes – Topping the pies with potatoes makes them similar to shepherds pie
Using a larger casserole dish
To serve a crowd, you can prepare the Instant Pot pot pie filling according to the instructions in the recipe card below. Then, rather than using ramekins, add the filling to a casserole dish instead. Instead of using squares of puff pastry, you can leave the sheet uncut. Just be aware that it may take a few additional minutes to bake.
Making this dish healthier
To reduce calories and fat in this recipe, you can make the following substitutions:
- Use milk instead of cream
- Make a crustless pot pie
- Omit the potato
- Use 1 teaspoon olive oil instead of 2 tablespoons butter
Storing and reheating
If you have leftover pot pie filling, transfer it to an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator. It will last about 5 days. Any baked puff pastry may be kept at room temperature.
However, to prevent it from becoming stale quickly, store the baked puff pastry in a zip top plastic bag or airtight container.
After 3-4 days, the pastry squares will start to become stale. So, use them up within that time.
Freezing leftover pies
It is nearly impossible to freeze baked puff pastry without a change in the overall texture.
Don’t let that keep you from freezing the filling though! If you have leftover pies with puff pastry or another type of crust on top, simply remove the crusts.
Then, transfer the filling from the ramekins into a freezer-safe storage container. The filling may be kept frozen for up to 3 months. Transfer the container to the refrigerator to thaw overnight before reheating.
More Instant Pot comfort food
Meal prep tools for this recipe
- Grab some oven-safe ramekins here
- Freeze the filling in glass microwave-safe bowls up to 3 months
- I get all my free-range chicken from Butcher Box, conveniently delivered to me frozen.
Instant Pot Chicken Pot Pie
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1/2 lb chicken breasts, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp fresh thyme or 1/2 tsp dried
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1 Yukon gold potato, diced
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/4 cup heavy cream or 1/2 cup milk
- 1 tbsp flour
- 1 (750g) bag frozen vegetables
- 1/2 sheet puff pastry cut into squares
Instructions
- Spread butter over the bottom of Instant Pot. Add onions, chicken, thyme, garlic, salt & pepper, potato, chicken broth, heavy cream and flour in that order, gently stirring flour overtop of mixture. Place lid on Instant Pot and make sure valve is set to seal.
- Press the pressure cook button and set to high, then cook for 3 minutes. Instant Pot will take about 5-10 minutes to come to pressure then pressure cook for 3 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 F. Grease ramekins with a little bit of cooking spray. Cut out 4 small squares or circles of puff pastry using a pizza roller to fit the tops of the ramekins and set aside.
- Do a quick release of the pressure on the Instant Pot by flicking the switch at the top with a spoon. Open the lid when pressure gauge has dropped and the lid opens easily.
- When filling is done cooking, open lid and stir in veggies, mixing well. Divide filling among ramekins and then add piece of puff pastry. Bake on a baking sheet in the oven for 10 minutes or until pastry is golden brown. Serve and enjoy!
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