Is there even anything better than your own personal Mini Dutch Oven Chicken Pot Pie? There is something so fun about having your own little baking dish to dig into! These comfort classic mini chicken pot pies are filled with a creamy chicken, carrot, potato and green pea mixture and topped with flakey pie crust. The tops can be customized with a pie crust cut out to suit any holiday or special event of your liking!
These homemade chicken pot pies are perfect for a cold winter day when you need something to warm you up. You can prep these ahead of time and pop them in the oven about an hour before you plan to eat, which makes these a great option when you are cooking for a crowd. Customizing the top with pie crust cut outs makes these especially exciting and festive for the whole family!
This mini dutch oven recipe can be modified to fit any size baking dish you have available. If you have small ramekins or a larger baking dish, you can still make this just the same. Cooking time remains the same and you can get creative with your pie crust top!
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Ingredients Needed
- Yellow onion: I prefer to use a sweeter yellow onion for this, but you could easily use a white onion.
- Butter: I usually use salted butter when I'm not baking, but you could use either salted or unsalted for this. It's just whatever you prefer! Alternatively, you could use olive oil for sautéing the vegetables, if you prefer.
- Flour
- Salt
- Chicken Broth
- Milk: You can use whatever percentage of milk you prefer or have on hand.
- Creole seasoning: This adds a very mild hint of spice to the filling. You could substitute with ½ teaspoon black pepper or cajun seasoning.
- Chicken: You need about 3-4 cups cooked, chopped or shredded chicken for this recipe. I prefer to get a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store and use all the meat (white and dark) for these pot pies. Typically one rotisserie chicken gives me the perfect amount of meat for this recipe. Alternatively, this is a great way to use leftover chicken.
- Cubed hash browns: These can be found in the freezer section of your grocery store. If you can't find cubed, you could use shredded or any other shape of frozen potatoes.
- Carrots: I prefer to peel and chop whole carrots for this, but store-bought matchstick cut carrots in a bag would work too!
- Green peas: You will want to use frozen for this.
- Pie crust: I like to use refrigerated store-bought crust for convenience purposes. Obviously, homemade pie crusts are going to be even better! Alternatively, you could use store-bought puff pastry.
- Egg: This is used for the egg wash that is brushed on top of the crust before baking.
How to Make Mini Dutch Oven Chicken Pot Pies
The first thing you will do is preheat the oven to 350°F.
In a large frying pan with sides or a large dutch oven, melt butter on medium high heat. Once the butter is melted, add the onions and cook until tender, about 3-4 minutes. Next, you will sprinkle the flour and salt over the onions and cook for one minute stirring constantly.
Now you will gradually whisk in the chicken broth and milk. Continue to cook on medium-high heat until the mixture is thickened, about 3-4 minutes. Next, add the Creole seasoning and stir to combine. Finally, add the chicken, hash browns, carrots, and peas. Stir to combine.
Evenly distribute the chicken mixture among your mini Dutch ovens, or whatever baking dish(es) you are using. Next, carefully roll your pie crust out. Using a pastry cutter or butter knife, cut circles slightly larger than the top of your mini Dutch ovens. Place over the top of the filling and lightly press down on the edges of the baking dish to secure the crust to the edge.
In a small bowl, whisk the egg with 1 teaspoon of water. Brush the egg wash mixture over the top crust. Next, place pie crust cut outs of your choice on top of the pie crust, pressing slightly to secure to the tops. Using a sharp knife, cut several slits in the pie crust to allow steam to escape. Place mini Dutch ovens on a baking sheet. Bake in hot oven at 350°F for 1 hour or until crusts are golden brown in color.
Remove from the oven and sprinkle with flake salt, if desired. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.
FAQ
- Do I have to do that Christmas tree cut out on the top? No! You could decorate the top with any cut out you prefer. You can also leave the cut out off completely. It's just for looks, so however you want your Mini Dutch Oven Chicken Pot Pies to look is fine!
- Can I use different ingredients? Yes. You could use turkey instead of chicken, matchstick cut carrots instead of chopped carrots, different shaped hash browns or any other vegetables you've got lying around. I would try to keep the proportions about the same, but feel free to mix and match with what you have!
- Can I use homemade crust instead of store bought? Absolutely! Store bought is convenient and quick. If you've got the time to make your own pie crust, by all means, do it!
- I don't have mini Dutch ovens. Is there any other way I can make this recipe? Yes! You can pretty much put the filling in any oven proof dish you would like to use. I've made this in smaller ramekins, a large cast iron skillet, a 3-quart baking dish...the possibilities are endless! You may have to get creative with how you place the pie crust on top if you end up using a larger baking dish, but the cooking time should remain the same-about an hour in a 350° oven.
- Where does one purchase mini Dutch ovens? Mine are from a garage sale and that is why I only have 5! In a perfect world, I would have a full set (or two!) of these beautiful little guys from Williams-Sonoma. Some other great options are these and these too!
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Recipe
Mini Dutch Oven Chicken Pot Pies
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup butter
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- ⅓ cup flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups chicken broth
- 1 ½ cups milk
- 1 ½ teaspoons Creole seasoning
- 3 cups cooked chicken, chopped or shredded
- 2 cups frozen cubed hash browns
- 1 cup chopped carrots
- 1 cup frozen green peas
- 2 refrigerated pie crusts, at room temperature
- 1 egg
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In a large Dutch oven or frying pan with sides, melt the butter over medium high heat. Add the onions and cook 3-4 minutes or until tender.⅓ cup butter, 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- Sprinkle flour and salt over the onions and stir constantly for one minute.⅓ cup flour, 1 teaspoon salt
- Gradually whisk in chicken broth and milk. Cook over medium high heat until mixture has thickened, about 3 or 4 minutes. Remove from heat. Add Creole seasoning and stir to combine.1 ½ cups chicken broth, 1 ½ cups milk, 1 ½ teaspoons Creole seasoning
- Stir in chicken, hash browns, carrots and peas. Evenly distribute mixture among mini Dutch ovens.3 cups cooked chicken, chopped or shredded, 2 cups frozen cubed hash browns, 1 cup chopped carrots, 1 cup frozen green peas
- Carefully unroll pie crusts. Using a knife cut circles slightly larger than the top of your mini Dutch ovens. Place cut circles on top of each Dutch oven, pressing lightly around the edges to secure.2 refrigerated pie crusts, at room temperature
- In a small bowl, whisk the egg with 1 teaspoon water. Brush the tops of the pie crusts with the egg wash. Place pie crust cutouts on top of crust pressing lightly to secure in place. Using a sharp knife, cut a couple slits in the top of the pie crusts to allow steam to escape.1 egg
- Bake in 350°F oven for about 1 hour or until the crusts are golden brown. Remove from oven and sprinkle with flake salt, if desired. Let sit for 10 minutes before serving.
Jean Davis says
Delicious!!
Nancy Falk says
Absolutely delish!
Lexi Bissett says
Yummy comfort food!
Morgan says
I love the process shots in this recipe, it makes it so easy for me to follow step by step. I cant wait to make this pot pie!
John B says
You can get the 0.5 qt Dutch ovens @ Bed, Bath & Beyond. I got them on sale, 3 for $19.44. Did it on-line and got 6. Really nice.
Ashlyn Meredith says
Thanks for the hot tip!