Crustless chicken pot pie made in a skillet! Instead of pastry, serve this skillet of chicken pot pie filling over buttered toast for a yummy easy dinner, all made in just 30 minutes!
Crustless chicken pot pie
Crustless chicken pot pie is for people who love the inside of chicken pot pie, but absolutely cannot be bothered to use a crust. Either you don't want to buy pie crust and roll it out, you don't want to make crust from scratch, or it was omitted from your grocery order and you have all the ingredients to make chicken pot pie, except the crust! I'm definitely speaking from experience here!
I feel like I have a good relationship going with my grocery shopper, but how were they to know that all of the ingredients for chicken pot pie in my cart should be put back once you realized store-bought pie crust was out of stock? I don't blame them one bit, because I still made a yummy dinner!
Serving this crustless chicken pot pie over buttery toast was the best decision! My kids thought it was fun to dunk the toast, and since they both love bread, it helped them eat more of their dinner. This is a fun way to stretch my chicken pot pie for two into a meal for my family of 4.
Crustless Chicken Pot Pie Ingredients
- butter
- chicken tenders
- onion
- carrot
- frozen peas: You need ¼ cup frozen, OR, you can absolutely use ¾ cup of frozen mixed vegetables instead of carrot, peas, and corn individually. You might have some leftover from my shepherds pie for two.
- frozen corn
- dried thyme leaves
- flour
- heavy cream
- milk
- salt
- pepper
- 2 slices thick bread: I like thick Texas toast smeared with butter and placed in the toaster oven until fragrant for this recipe. Use your favorite bread, and be generous with the butter! You need to make my strawberry cheesecake toast for dessert with the leftover bread!
How to make Chicken Pot Pie Filling
- To a 10" skillet, add half of the butter and melt over medium low heat. Add the chopped chicken tenders, and cook until golden brown on both sides, about 4 minutes on each side.
- Remove the chicken from the pan, and then add the remaining half of the butter, followed by the onions and carrots. Let these saute and start to soften over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Next, add the frozen corn, peas, and thyme leaves, stirring everything together. Sprinkle the flour evenly over the skillet, stir it and let it cook for 1 minute.
- Once the flour has cooked for a minute, add the cream and stir very well to bring up any delicious brown bits in the skillet. Then, add the milk, salt and pepper. Let it simmer until it thickens, about 1-2 minutes. Taste, and adjust it for extra seasoning, if needed.
- While everything comes together and thickens, spread butter generously on your toast slices, and serve this crustless chicken pot pie filling over the buttered toast.
I promise your whole family will loves this recipe! It uses ½ a pound of chicken tenders to serve 2-3 people, but you can double the recipe to make it serve more people and use a whole pound of chicken tenders.
Can you make this crustless chicken pot pie ahead of time?
Since my family loves this recipe, I have made the entire filling and stored it in the fridge for up to 2 days before serving. The night you serve it, make the toast, warm the filling through, and serve. You might have to thin the filling with a splash of milk.
Is this recipe gluten free since it doesn't have a crust?
Unfortunately, the filling relies on flour for thickening. However, you can substitute it to make it truly gluten free a few ways. You can dissolve cornstarch in the COLD milk before pouring it into the skillet. You can use a one-for-one gluten free flour substitution, or you can use arrowroot!
If you need gluten free, you should try my sweet potato toast.
What to Serve with This Chicken Pot Pie Skillet
My favorite thing to serve with this easy dinner is a salad with a bright and tangy vinaigrette. A classic Italian salad with a balsamic dressing is the perfect side dish.
Storing Leftover Chicken Pot Pie (Filling Only)
If you have any leftovers, move them to an airtight food storage container and place them in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat, use the microwave or place it in a pot and heat over low until bubbling. You may need to add a splash of chicken broth to thin it out.
Chicken Pot Pie Skillet FAQs
How do you thicken a pot pie filling?
This recipe contains flour for thickening. If for some reason it is not thickening for you, crank the heat up and let it bubble until it is thick.
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Chicken Pot Pie Skillet Recipe
Crustless chicken pot pie is all the flavors of a tasty chicken pot pie filling in the fraction of the time!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter, divided use
- ½ pound raw chicken tenders, diced
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 small carrot, diced
- ¼ cup frozen peas
- ¼ cup frozen corn
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 2 tablespoon heavy cream
- 1 cup 2% milk
- salt, to taste
- pepper, to taste
- 2 slices thick bread
Instructions
- In a small skillet, add 1 tablespoon of the butter. Turn the heat to medium and let melt while you chop the chicken.
- Add the chicken to the skillet, along with a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook the chicken until both sides are brown, about 4 minutes a side. It's okay if the insides are still slightly pink. Remove the chicken from the pan, trying to leave as much butter as possible, and return the pan to the heat.
- Add the remaining tablespoon of butter to the pan, along with the onions and carrots. Saute for 5 minutes over low heat until the vegetables have softened, but not browned. The onions shouldn't brown.
- Add the peas and corn and turn the heat back to medium. Crush the thyme leaves in your hand to release the oils and add them to the skillet. Stir to combine. Sprinkle over the flour and stir to combine. Let cook for 1 minute.
- Add the heavy cream and milk to the pan, along with a few pinches of salt and pepper, to taste.
- Add the chicken back in the pan, and toss to coat it with the sauce. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat until thickened. It should take 1-2 minutes to thicken.
- Meanwhile, toast the bread. Slice it on the diagonal.
- Divide the toast between two plates and top with chicken mixture. Serve immediately.
Notes
frozen vegetables: You need ¼ cup frozen corn and peas, plus chopped carrot. You may substitute ¾ cup of frozen mixed vegetables instead of carrot, peas, and corn individually.
dried thyme leaves: use thyme leaves, not ground thyme for this recipe.
2 slices thick bread: I like thick Texas toast smeared with butter and placed in the toaster oven until fragrant for this recipe. Use your favorite bread, and be generous with the butter!
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
2Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 727Total Fat: 40gSaturated Fat: 16gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 20gCholesterol: 109mgSodium: 1533mgCarbohydrates: 63gFiber: 5gSugar: 13gProtein: 32g
crystal says
Love this idea! I'm vegetarian, so I'm going to try this with mushrooms instead.
starz says
This is suspiciously the exact same thing as Chicken A La King. But someone else already pointed that out.
Mathes says
Love this! I've got one with celiac disease, so this will be perfect for him (with gluten-free bread, of course).
Eric says
I do all the cooking in my house, and after marching band practice with one kid and karate with the other I really want to be lazy sometimes. I think the ultimate lazy version of this recipe would be using jarred chicken gravy, pre-cooked chicken breast chunks, and frozen mixed vegetables. Server over toast of the idea of canned biscuits sounded good too. Using heavy cream two tablespoons at a time, it would go bad before I used the rest of it and I would have to throw it out. Lazy and frugal, that's me.
Barbara W. says
You can substitute evap milk, undiluted for the heavy cream. Both products can be frozen in a glass jar and defrosted in the micro-wave for exact amount needed. I cook for two and usually have a jar of evap milk frozen
for just that kind of use.
Nicole says
Do you know if I could sub anything in for the heavy cream. We can't eat that here. Thanks.
Rauxann says
how many calories are it it per serving. and is there a low fat version?
Michelle says
Does it have to be 2% Milk or can I sub for almond, or even skim? I'm making this for my nieces this weekend! They are picky eaters but I guarantee I can get them to eat this! Thanks!!!
Christina Lane says
Hi Michelle! I think you can sub; I just haven't tried it. I hope your nieces love it :)
ANNE says
I found this via pinterest clicking and love the idea.. however I don't see where you add the chicken back in? help! Thanks :)
Beth says
I tried this over biscuits instead of toast. OMG! Thought I died and went to heaven
Priyam says
where has this been my whole life? Chicken Pot Pie isn't something readily available in India. And i'm in love with this since I've had this. I'll be trying this out. thanks!