Vintage Chicken Pie
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This fantastic vintage recipe for Chicken Pie contains no peas, no carrots, no vegetables of any kind. It’s just tender shredded chicken in a rich, delicious gravy topped with a batter crust and cooked until golden brown and irresistibly delicious!
This is one of those 1960s-70s recipes that I had almost forgotten about until I heard someone mention it recently. I would guess that I made this old recipe hundreds of times “back in the day.”
It’s so delicious and very easy. Especially if you take the fast route and use a purchased rotisserie chicken from the grocery store deli.
You probably noticed that there’s no “Pot” in the title. It’s just plain Chicken Pie, not Chicken Pot Pie.
That’s because there’s nothing but chicken and gravy in it. No veggies of any kind. No peas, no carrots, no onions. Perfect for your picky eaters!
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The only real variation I’ve seen to this recipe is that some people will include sliced hard boiled eggs. I like it that way, too.
However, once you start adding veggies to the recipe, well then you just have a regular old chicken pot pie. Why don’t you try this one without veggies and see what you think?
Ingredient Notes
- Whole Chicken (You’ll need a chicken weighing about 3 1/2 to 4 pounds. Or take a shortcut and use a purchased rotisserie chicken and use purchased broth.)
- Bouquet Garni (A bouquet garni is simply a bundle of fresh herbs. For this recipe I’ve used fresh parsley, fresh thyme, and a bay leaf.)
- Buttermilk (This makes the crust rich with a slight tangy flavor. If you don’t have buttermilk you can make an acceptable substitute by stirring one tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar into one cup of whole milk.)
You’ll find detailed measurements for all ingredients in the printable version of the recipe at the bottom of this post.
How to Make Chicken Pie
Let’s Go Step-by-Step
I always like to show you the photos and step-by-step instructions for my recipes to help you picture how to make them in your own kitchen. If you just want to print out a copy, you can skip to the bottom of the post where you’ll find the recipe card.
Cook the Chicken
If you plan to cook the chicken for the pie (instead of taking the rotisserie chicken shortcut), start by putting all the chicken, onion, celery, and bouquet garni in a large pot.
COOK’S TIP
How to Make a Bouquet Garni: Cut a short piece of kitchen twine (about 6 inches). Place the herbs in a small stack on top of the twine. Wrap the twine around the herbs to make a little bundle and tie the ends to secure.
Add enough water to cover the ingredients by about one inch. Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the chicken is cooked through (about 35 minutes).
Remove the pot from the heat and let it stand until the chicken is cool enough to handle. Remove all the meat and discard the skin and bones. Shred or chop the meat and measure out three cups for the recipe. Also, save two cups of the broth for later use in the recipe.
COOK’S TIP
A good alternative to boiling a chicken, is to use a purchased rotisserie chicken and purchased chicken broth. Remove the meat from the chicken discarding the skin and bones and proceed from here with the recipe.
Assemble the Pie
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Put the shredded meat in the bottom of a 2-quart (8×8) casserole dish or baking pan.
In a medium saucepan, combine the broth and soup. Bring the mixture to a boil. Remove from the heat and pour over the shredded chicken.
In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt, and pepper. Whisk in the melted butter and buttermilk. Pour this over the top of the casserole without stirring it into the chicken mixture.
Bake the Chicken Pie
Bake for approximately 45 minutes or until the crust is brown and the filling is bubbly.
Serve with a side of old fashioned green beans, or butter beans, and some hot water cornbread for a real feast!
Tips and Variations
- Some cooks add sliced hard-boiled eggs in with the shredded chicken. If you’d like to try that, use two or three eggs, slice them about 1/4-inch thick and fold them in before pouring over the broth and soup mixture.
- Turn this recipe into a Turkey Pie by using Thanksgiving leftovers in place of chicken.
- This is a great recipe to take to a potluck or to a neighbor who may be under the weather. If cooking for a neighbor, I’d cook the recipe, let it cool, and include instructions for how to reheat (350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes.)
- Even though this is an heirloom recipe, you can certainly play around with it to make it your own. I’d recommend adding some poultry seasoning, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes. Or even try making it a curry chicken pie with a teaspoon or so of curry powder stirred in. Or turn it into a Mexican chicken pie with the addition of cumin.
Storage and Reheating
- Keep leftovers well sealed in the refrigerator for up to three days. Reheat individual portions in the microwave.
- To freeze, allow to cool completely. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap covered with aluminum foil. Freeze for up to three months. To reheat, thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Bring to room temperature and warm in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes or until heated through.
FAQs
If you don’t wish to use canned cream of chicken soup, you can easily make your own. A fellow blogger, Gimme Some Oven has an excellent recipe for Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup.
The fresh herbs in this recipe can be easily replaced with their dried ounterparts. Substitute 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, 1 tablespoon dried parsley and of course, the bay leaf is already dried. You might want to tie them up into a little cheesecloth packet to keep your broth as clear as possible.
Have you tried this recipe? I’d love for you to give it a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in the recipe card and/or in the comments section further down. You can always stay in touch on social media by following me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest and Sign Up to Get my Newsletter, too!
Recipe
Chicken Pie
Ingredients
For the chicken:
- 4 pound whole chicken
- 1 onion halved
- 1 rib celery cut into 2-3 pieces
- Herb bouquet of fresh parsley, fresh thyme, and a bay leaf
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 12 whole peppercorns
For the pie:
- 3 cups cooked, shredded chicken
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 10.5 ounces cream of chicken soup
- 1 cup self-rising flour
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter, melted (1 stick or 8 tablespoons butter)
- 1 cup buttermilk
Instructions
Cook the Chicken:
- Place the chicken, onion, celery, bouquet garni, salt, and peppercorns in a large pot. Add water to cover the ingredients by about 1 inch.
- Add water to cover the chicken by about 1 inch.
- Bring the pot to a boil, reduce to low heat and simmer until the chicken is cooked through (about 35 minutes).
- Remove from the heat and let stand at room temperature until cool enough to handle.
- Remove all meat from the chicken and discard the skin and bones. Save 2 cups of the broth for use later in the recipe.
Make the Chicken Pie
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
- Put the shredded meat from the chicken in the bottom of a 2-quart (8×8) casserole dish.
- In a medium saucepan, combine the broth and cream of chicken soup. Bring the mixture to a boil. Remove from the heat and pour over the shredded chicken.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt, and pepper. Whisk in the melted butter and buttermilk. Pour this over the top of the casserole without stirring it into the chicken mixture.
- Bake for approximately 45 minutes or until the crust is brown and the filling is bubbly.
Notes
- Choose a whole chicken weighing about 3 ½ to 4 pounds. Or take a shortcut and use a purchased rotisserie chicken and use purchased broth.
- A bouquet garni is simply a bundle of fresh herbs. To make a bouquet garni, cut a short piece of kitchen twine (about 6 inches). Place the herbs in a small stack on top of the twine. Wrap the twine around the herbs to make a little bundle and tie the ends to secure. For this recipe I’ve used fresh parsley, fresh thyme, and a bay leaf. To use dried herbs in this recipe, substitute ½ teaspoon dried thyme, 1 tablespoon dried parsley and of course, the bay leaf is already dried. You can tie them up into a little cheesecloth packet to keep your broth as clear as possible.
- Buttermilk makes the crust rich with a slight tangy flavor. If you don’t have buttermilk you can make an acceptable substitute by stirring one tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar into one cup of whole milk.
- If you don’t wish to use canned cream of chicken soup, you can easily make your own. A fellow blogger, Gimme Some Oven has an excellent recipe for Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup.
- Some cooks add sliced hard-boiled eggs in with the shredded chicken. If you’d like to try that, use two or three eggs, slice them about ¼-inch thick and fold them in before pouring over the broth and soup mixture.
- Turn this recipe into a Turkey Pie by using Thanksgiving leftovers in place of chicken.
- This is a great recipe to take to a potluck or to a neighbor who may be under the weather. If cooking for a neighbor, I’d cook the recipe, let it cool, and include instructions for how to reheat (350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes.)
- Even though this is an heirloom recipe, you can certainly play around with it to make it your own. I’d recommend adding some poultry seasoning, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes. Or even try making it a curry chicken pie with a teaspoon or so of curry powder stirred in. Or turn it into a Mexican chicken pie with the addition of cumin.
- Keep leftovers well sealed in the refrigerator for up to three days. Reheat individual portions in the microwave.
- To freeze, allow to cool completely. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap covered with aluminum foil. Freeze for up to three months. To reheat, thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Bring to room temperature and warm in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes or until heated through.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information is calculated by software based on the ingredients in each recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes. You should consult your health care provider or a registered dietitian if precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.
— This post was originally published on April 29, 2013. It has been updated with new photos and additional information.
Enjoyed this so much. One of my favorite recipes. And have had Request from others wanting the recipe. Thanks Lana
It’s my pleasure to share this great old recipe! I’m so glad to know you enjoyed it.
Thank you for this recipe. I recently read a book that (partially) took place in the 1930s. One of the characters served a meal consisting of chicken pie, green beans, mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce. It sounded so good to me that I decided to replicate the meal. I came across this recipe and it was really fantastic. My family doesn’t care for chicken pot pie but really enjoyed this. The flavors were great and the crust cooked perfectly; no gooey bottom. If anyone reading this is considering side dishes, the green beans, mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce were perfect with it.
I’m so glad your family enjoyed the recipe, Leelee! It’s so simple to make and I love your side dishes. Perfect!
What if you wanted to add mixed vegetables?
Then you would be making Chicken Pot Pie. Chicken Pie is just chicken, gravy, and crust. You can certainly add them if you want, but you’ll get a different result.
This looks delicious! Would you mind telling me how you’d make it with the hard-boiled eggs added in? I remember that from my youth and would love to know how to make it that way. Thanks!
Sure, Justin. Just make 2 or 3 hard-boiled eggs, slice them and mix them into the shredded chicken layer. That’s it!
This is the chicken pie I grew up on…. in fact, I made this last night for my sweet family as we all seek comfort and some peace in these difficult times. My mom who is 84 and suffers from dementia, and although she made this for me my whole life and doesn’t remember that anymore, just said “mmm, this is so good”. My whole heart was lifted in that brief moment. Thank you for sharing a sweet, old recipe and igniting a memory for my mom…
Angie – thank you so much for this comment! You just don’t know how much it means to me to know that this recipe was enjoyed by your family, especially your mother. Wishing you and your family peace and comfort in these times.
Again, seeking comfort I turn to your recipes as they remind me so much of the ones my family has made for years… we lost my sweet mom in April of this year and although it’s been months I am still seeking that comfort of things remembered… I’m making this recipe this weekend and will be thinking of mom and quietly thanking you (again) for sharing such a special recipe and evoking such wonderful memories for me. Your chicken and rice will be next on my list of special recipes to make (it was Dad’s favorite…). Thank you so much Lana.
Your comment reminds me that all I set out to do with my blog was to provide recipes to folks. Sometimes we lose sight of that simple goal among the thousands of things going on in the background. It’s my pleasure to be able to pass that recipe, and others, on to you to enjoy.
Thanks for this recipe! I needed a crust for my chicken pot pie and did not have time to make one or go to the store and buy one. This worked out perfectly! Not overly bready and browned nicley.
This looks delicious, Lana! Stumbling and pinning for future use. xo
Thank you, Kelly. Hope you enjoy it!
But seriously, Cream of Chicken soup? Seriously?
you bet! Just because it comes ready made, don’t knock it. I’ve had,and made, some pretty incredible dishes using canned soups as an ingredient.
Have to laugh when someone turns their nose up at Cream of Chicken Soup! The South could not survive without it- and Cream of Mushroom & Celery. Every true Southerner know that.
Smithville, Ga has an annual Chicken Pie Festival, which includes a Chicken Pie contest. The entries that are submitted for judging do not include veggies. Thus, you and the festival authorities are in complete agreement. So there.
Looks great.
Miss P
I had forgotten all about Smithville’s festival! Honestly, I like this chicken pie even better than a traditional pot pie with veggies. I’d rather have my veggies on the side :-)