Healthier Chicken Pot Pie Recipe
Whether you want something to use up leftover cooked poultry or you are starting from fresh, this healthier chicken pot pie recipe will be a big hit! My son loves this tasty dish our family affectionately refers to as “the bomb”.
Creamy and delicious, healthy chicken pot pie is made from scratch and contains no preservatives or extra sodium. Served over lower-carb popovers brings down the overall calorie count without detracting from the comfort of this comfort food.
Honesty, I came up with this recipe because we were all tired of plain leftover turkey and wanted something different. But I didn’t want the higher carb counts of a traditional pie crust or biscuit mix. So on the Monday after Thanksgiving one year, I made a healthier version of chicken pot pie served over low-carb popovers.
After my son took his first bites, he mumbled “Mom, this is the bomb!” And the name stuck.
Table of Contents
Ingredients for the Filling of Healthier Chicken Pot Pie
For the White Sauce:
- Butter
- Flour
- Milk
- Pepper
- Chicken Bouillion Granules. The granules dissolve most easily but if you only have cubes you can substitute that and just be extra thorough to get them dissolved.
You will make the white sauce and then add the following.
- Onion. Fresh onion is best. Onions that have set around for too long become stronger in flavor and could be off-putting in this dish. Here’s a tip! Before your onions get too old, dice them up and freeze them in baggies to use in recipes later.
- Celery. You’ll only need one stalk of nice, firm celery.
- Small Red Potatoes. A couple of small diced potatoes add a more firm texture to this dish.
- Carrot. The flavor of carrots is my favorite bit of sweetness!
- Frozen Peas. Frozen peas are the perfect touch.
- Turkey or Chicken. Pre-cooked. This dish is perfect to use up those leftovers! If you don’t have leftovers, a perfect shortcut is to use a rotisserie chicken from the supermarket.
How to Make Healthy Chicken Pot Pie Filling.
Make the sauce first.
Melt the butter in a saucepan on medium high. Once, melted, whisk flour into butter until smooth and free of lumps. Gradually add milk and continue stirring until the sauce thickens. Add pepper and bouillon. Turn to simmer and continue to stir so a film doesn’t form on the top.
Add the Veggies and Meat.
Get ahead start of the cooking process by microwaving potatoes and carrots on high setting for 6 minutes. Sauté the onion and celery in a non-stick pan until onion is translucent and fragrant. Add peas, meat, and microwaved ingredients to the onion and celery.
Fold in white sauce and put in a casserole dish. Place in heated oven for 20 minutes or until bubbly.
Ingredients for the Popovers of our Healthy Chicken Pot Pie
- Milk. Set the milk out ahead of time to bring it to room temperature.
- All-Purpose Flour. If you don’t use flour often, make sure yours is fresh and hasn’t absorbed odors. Note for low carb/gluten-free diets – replace flour with cream cheese. Start with one ounce and adjust to your desired consistency.
- Eggs. Two eggs are what make the magic happen in this two-minute recipe.
- Salt. Just a bit. Not too much.
You’ll find the full recipe on the recipe cards below.
HOW TO MAKE POPOVERS
Preheat the oven first so that it’s nice and hot. You’ll need it at 425º when you put the popovers in.
Mix it up! Just blend all the ingredients in a blender until smooth.
Prepare the pan. Traditionally, popovers are baked in a custard cup or special popover pan. I used a regular muffin pan and it turned out great!. Grease generously, and put the muffin pan in the oven for 2 minutes to get it nice and hot.
Remove the muffin tin and fill with batter halfway. Put in the oven and let the popovers puff for 20 minutes. Don’t be tempted to open the oven. It needs to stay hot!
After 10 minutes, reduce the heat to 350 and cook an additional 10 minutes.
Fast and easy popovers form the perfect base for the healthy chicken pot pie. Popovers will be nice and fluffy and golden brown when they are ready.
Serving the Healthy Chicken Pot Pie
To serve the pie, simply scoop the filling over the popovers on a plate. You can add a bright salad for contrast or serve it by itself and make it a satisfying one dish meal.
If You Have Leftovers
If you are using up turkey on the Monday after Thanksgiving, you probably shouldn’t keep the leftover healthy chicken pot pie in the refrigerator after your meal. You can freeze single portions in microwaveable containers to eat later!
If you’ve used a rotisserie chicken or freshly cooked chicken for this dish, you can keep it in the fridge in an airtight container for two days after the chicken was first cooked. Freeze on the second day in individual servings to reheat another day. You can find a food storage chart here.
To be blunt, our leftovers of this chicken pot pie never make it that long.
Other Chicken Recipes You will Love
Low Carb Chicken Casserole. A throwback to the classic potluck casserole you remember from childhood, but without the higher calorie count.
Low Carb Chicken Piccata Recipe. A crazy burst of flavor goodness in less than thirty minutes to the table.
Grilled Ginger Sesame Chicken Salad. A refreshingly bright salad with all the goodness of ginger. One of my favorites.
Jalapeño Popper Chicken with Bacon. Instead of little bitty appetizer size jalapeño poppers, this amazing cheesy goodness is layered over full chicken breasts. All the flavor, no chintz.
Healthy Chicken Pot Pie “The Bomb”
Ingredients
- CREAM SAUCE
- 4 Tablespoons butter
- 3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon of chicken bouillon granules
- CHICKEN POT PIE FILLING
- 1/2 onion diced
- 1 celery stalk diced
- 2 small red potatoes diced (microwave for 6 min.)
- 1 carrot diced (microwave for 6 min.)
- 1/2 cup frozen petite peas
- 2 cups turkey or chicken diced
- POPOVERS
- 1 cup of milk at room temperature
- 1 cup of all-purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- dash salt
Instructions
Cream Sauce
Melt butter in saucepan on medium high. Once, melted, whisk flour into butter until smooth and free of lumps. Gradually add milk and continue stirring until the sauce thickens. Add pepper and bouillon. Turn to simmer and continue to stir so a film doesn’t form on the top.
CHICKEN FILLING
Preheat oven to 350°F- Get ahead start of the cooking process by microwaving potatoes and carrots on high setting for 6 minutes. Sauté the onion and celery in a non-stick pan until onion is translucent and fragrant.
- Add peas, meat, and microwaved ingredients to the onion and celery.
- Fold in white sauce and put in a casserole dish. Place in heated oven for 20 minutes or until bubbly.
POPOVERS
- Preheat oven to 425°F
Blend ingredients in a blender until smooth. Traditionally, popovers are baked in a custard cup or special popover pan. I used a regular muffin pan. Grease generously, and put muffin pan in the oven for 2 minutes. - Remove pan and fill with batter half way. Put in oven and let the popovers puff for 20 minutes. Don’t be tempted to open the oven. It needs to stay hot!
- After 10 minutes, reduce the heat to 350°F and cook an additional 10 minutes. Popovers will be puffy and golden brown.
Notes
Nutrition
Disclaimer
Please note that the nutritional information provided are guidelines and may vary based on the brand of products used. For your specific nutritional goals use My Fitness Pal or Verywell Fit recipe calculators. All content within this site is not intended as medical diagnosis or treatment and should not be considered a substitute for professional medical expertise.
This recipe was first published in 2011. It has since been updated with additional tips and photos (2020). The recipe is the original version.
Let’s make this easier — can you come over to our house and prepare this wonderful experience? Thx
I think we can barter! I can use some tile work in our bathroom. Sound like an even trade? =))
Looks delish!!
these pics are awesome! i love the oven shot!
Thanks! I’m anxious to learn how to use my “good” camera.
So I’m guessing “the son” probably won’t post, so I’ll say it for him… these were definitely “the bomb!” Yum!!!
He did mention that I should create a page just for him with cooking instructions when he goes to college!
Thanks for being so appreciative to all the meals I serve 🙂