Transform Chicken Pot Pie into a Handheld Delight with This Recipe

If you’re a fan of the vintage comfort elicited by breaking through the top of a chicken pot pie into the saucy meat-and-veggie-studded filling, then these crackling handheld chicken pot pie pockets are going to blow you away. Like everything that comes in a fun-sized package, these pot pies take dinner and make it a whole lot more exciting.

Beneath the flaky, buttery homemade crust of these pot pies hides a creamy, savory chicken and vegetable center. Recipe developer Ksenia Prints from At the Immigrant’s Table takes the traditional chicken, carrots, celery, and peas and adds a hit of garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper. The resulting bake is an indulgent and familiar comfort, but one that you can take on the road with you anytime, anywhere. These little pies are perfect for a snack or an office lunch that is anything but boring. They also make a hearty lunch or a light dinner served alongside a salad or a bowl of soup.

Of course, you can make a great chicken pot pie any day of the week. And it’s probably going to taste just fine. But if you take the time to make our chicken pot pie pockets, you’ll see why they say good things come in small packages. 

For the homemade dough that sets these chicken pot pie pockets apart, you will need all-purpose flour, salt, cold unsalted butter, ice water, and an egg for egg wash. For the filling, prep olive oil, boneless chicken thighs, a finely diced onion, diced carrots and celery stalks, garlic, fresh thyme leaves, all-purpose flour, chicken stock, heavy cream, frozen peas, and salt and pepper, to taste.

In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt.

Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Add the ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until a dough forms.

Divide the dough into 8 portions, flatten into discs, wrap and refrigerate 1 hour.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Season the chicken with salt and pepper.

Transfer the chicken to the skillet and cook until browned (5-6 minutes). Remove and set aside.

Cool the chicken until it’s safe to handle, then dice it into ½-inch cubes.

To the same pan, add the onion, carrots, and celery and cook until softened (5 minutes).

Add the garlic and thyme, cook 1 minute.

Sprinkle flour over the vegetables, stir 1 minute.

Gradually whisk in the stock and cream, and simmer the sauce until thickened (3-4 minutes).

Return the chicken to the pan and add the peas.

Season to taste, and let cool completely.

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Prep a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Flour your working surface, and roll each dough disc into a 7-inch circle. You can roll it between two pieces of cling wrap plastic or parchment paper to avoid sticking.

Place ¼ cup of filling on one half of the circle, leaving a ½-inch border.

Fold the other half over and seal the edges with a fork. Cut off any extra dough to give it a neat appearance (you may get an extra pie from the extras).

Cut vent holes.

Place on the parchment-lined baking sheet.

Brush with egg wash.

Bake 25-30 minutes until golden brown.

Cool for 5 minutes before serving.

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We love a good flaky dough for these pies, but if you want to try another variety, there is no shortage of types of dough to choose from. Biscuit dough is a great alternative, as its tender, slightly crumbly texture works well with the rustic filling of these pockets. Empanada dough, which is usually just a mix of flour, water, and a fat like lard or oil, is sturdier and less flaky, and it will also work great in these pies as it’s meant to hold moist fillings without becoming soggy. And with the Russian heritage of our recipe developer, we’d be remiss not to mention yeasted dough, like that used for soft rolls or piroshki, as it provides a particularly pillowy, airy cushion that gently cradles and soaks up the rich fillings.

And if you’re ever short on time, then a store-bought pie crust offers a great, convenient shortcut to making your own dough. You could also try canned crescent roll dough (though they’ll be a little smaller), store-bought biscuit dough, or even store-bought puff pastry sheets. You’ll still end up with a flaky, buttery base, with little work.

Though decidedly worth it, these chicken pot pie pockets take quite a bit of work, and we do recommend breaking the process up over a couple of days to make life a bit easier. Start by making the filling a couple of days in advance and refrigerating it until ready to use. Then, make the dough a day before and chill it as well. Assemble the pockets just before baking to maintain the best texture, and then bake according to instructions.

If, however, you want to make these individual pot pies and freeze them, that’s also an option. It’s best to freeze them before baking, as they maintain their shape and will still give you that fresh-from-the-oven feel. But if you want these to be grab-and-go, you can also bake them fully and then just cool and freeze them. To reheat, take them straight from the freezer and bake for 10 minutes at 400 F.

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