Description
A comforting and delicious leftover turkey pot pie featuring a creamy turkey and vegetable filling topped with garlic buttered bread chunks and melted cheese, baked to golden perfection. Perfect for using up cooked turkey or chicken in a hearty, satisfying meal.
Ingredients
Scale
Filling
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 150g / 5 oz mushrooms, sliced 1/2cm / 1/5″ thick
- 50g / 4 tbsp butter
- 1 onion, finely chopped (brown, white, or yellow)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 carrot, peeled and chopped into 1cm / 1/3″ pieces
- 4 tbsp plain flour (all purpose)
- 2 1/2 cups milk (any fat % fine)
- 4 cups (600g) cooked chopped turkey or chicken
- 1 1/2 cups frozen peas
- 1 tsp chicken or vegetable stock powder (or 1 cube, e.g. Vegeta powder)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Topping
- 50g / 4 tbsp salted butter
- 2 garlic cloves, minced using garlic press
- 5 packed cups bread chunks, ~2.5cm / 1″ cubes
- 2 tbsp parmesan cheese, grated (optional)
- 1 cup mozzarella or other melting cheese, shredded or sliced (enough to cover most of top)
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F), suitable for all oven types, to prepare for baking the pot pie.
- Prepare Topping: Stir together the melted salted butter and minced garlic. Place the bread chunks in a bowl, drizzle the garlic butter over them, and toss well to coat. Set aside to let flavors meld.
- Brown Mushrooms: Heat olive oil in an oven-proof skillet over high heat. Add the sliced mushrooms and cook for about 4 minutes until browned. Remove mushrooms from skillet and set aside.
- Sauté Garlic & Onion: Reduce heat to medium-high. In the same skillet, melt the 50g butter. Add the finely chopped onion and minced garlic, and cook for 2 minutes until softened and fragrant.
- Add Carrot: Add the chopped carrot pieces to the skillet and cook for 1 minute to start softening.
- Add Flour: Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and cook for 1 minute, stirring continuously to form a roux (a pasty mixture). Don’t worry if it looks dry at this stage.
- Create Roux and Add Milk: While stirring, gradually add half of the milk to the skillet, mixing quickly to dissolve the flour paste into the liquid smoothly. Then add the remaining milk, stirring well to combine. Add the chicken or vegetable stock powder, salt, and black pepper, stirring thoroughly.
- Thicken Sauce: Cook the sauce for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring regularly. It should start steaming and bubbling, thickening enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon—test by drawing a line through it.
- Add Meat and Vegetables: Stir the cooked chopped turkey (or chicken), browned mushrooms, and frozen peas into the thickened sauce until evenly combined.
- Assemble Topped Dish: Spread the turkey mixture evenly in the skillet. Top with the garlic buttered bread chunks, spreading them to cover the entire surface. If using, sprinkle grated parmesan cheese over the bread topping, then cover with shredded or sliced mozzarella cheese.
- Bake: Place the skillet in the preheated oven and bake for 12 to 15 minutes until the cheese develops golden brown spots. To prevent cheese from sticking to foil, tent foil over the dish if you continue baking, then bake for an additional 10 minutes to ensure thorough heating.
- Serve: Optionally sprinkle extra parmesan cheese over the top just before serving. Serve hot and enjoy your leftover turkey pot pie!
Notes
- Note 1: Bread chunks should be about 2.5cm / 1″ cubes for the perfect topping texture.
- Note 3: Use an oven-proof skillet so the dish can be cooked on stovetop and then baked directly in the oven.
- You can substitute turkey with cooked chicken if preferred.
- The stock powder can be substituted with a vegetable or chicken stock cube if desired.
- Adjust seasoning to taste, adding more salt or pepper as needed.
- Use any milk fat percentage that you prefer; whole milk will yield a richer sauce, while lower fat milks will yield a lighter dish.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: leftover turkey recipe, pot pie, turkey pot pie, leftover chicken recipe, comfort food, winter meals, casserole, easy dinner
