Ham Pot Pie with Biscuit Topping
Ham pot pie with biscuit topping is the perfect way to use up ham leftovers from your holiday dinner. Tender vegetables in a savory sauce with diced ham is topped with either a homemade biscuit crust or your favorite refrigerator biscuits.
Every Easter we make a giant spiral-cut glazed ham for our holiday dinner even though we only have 4 - 5 people at the holiday table. We love to have lots of ham leftovers to use in other recipes for a couple days.
Last year I decided to chop up all the leftover ham from Easter and use it up in this delicious biscuit-topped ham pot pie.
We are big pot pie fans here but I usually make pot pie with pie crust or sometimes phyllo dough. I loved the idea of using biscuits for the top crust instead since ham and biscuits are such a popular combination for breakfast.
This recipe calls for making the biscuits for the topping from scratch, but you could really easily substitute a can or two of your favorite refrigerator biscuits to keep it extra easy.
I've included both directions on how to bake the pot pie with either homemade or pre-made biscuits, however you prefer.
Why This is the Best Recipe
- DIY Meal Kit Friendly: You can prep an easy meal kit for the fridge or freezer by prepping the filling ahead of time.
- Rich and Cozy: The savory pot pie sauce pairs perfectly with the sweet roasted veggies in the mix. Buttery biscuits on top and salty ham are comfort food staples.
- Travel-Friendly: Need a dinner to bring to a friend? This would be easy to split into two pans to share or you can bring the whole dish in one container for a family that needs support.
Ingredients
This homemade pot pie recipe is perfect because you likely already have leftover ham and just need to add the vegetables and biscuits.
Your shopping list is pretty easy:
- Ham: You can use leftover ham from our Crockpot spiral ham recipe or this delicious mustard glazed ham with pineapple. You could also buy thick-cut ham at the deli counter or use a ham steak.
- Celery
- Carrots
- Fennel: This vegetable gives a unique flavor to the dish and I highly recommend trying it. In a pinch, you could skip it if you can't find it.
- Onions
- Chicken Stock
- Dried Thyme
- Olive Oil and Butter
- Flour
You can use canned biscuits from the refrigerator section or make my easy homemade biscuits. If you plan to make the homemade biscuits you'll also need:
- Flour
- Baking Powder
- Baking Soda
- Butter
- Buttermilk
Or you can substitute 2 canisters of prepared biscuits (like Pillsbury.)
Prep the Vegetables
First, prepare the vegetables for the easy filling.
To enhance the flavor of the finished pot pie, the chopped fresh veggies are roasted before adding them to the filling.
If you really don't want to roast the vegetables, you could sauté them on the stove top until they are softened and the onions are translucent.
However, I really do recommend roasting the vegetables because it makes them extra sweet and tender, especially the fennel. They can be cooking in the oven while you prepare the broth so it really doesn't add that much time to your work.
Roast the chopped veggies on a large baking sheet at 425°F for 20 minutes.
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Prep the Sauce
While the vegetables are roasting, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
Whisk the flour into the butter to form a roux. Let the butter and flour cook together for 2 - 3 minutes and then drizzle in the chicken stock.
Add the thyme, salt, and pepper and reduce the heat to low. Let the mixture bubble for 10 minutes.
Assemble the Pot Pie
Add the roasted veggies and diced ham to the sauce. Stir to combine and then transfer to a 9 x 13-inch baking dish.
Choose Your Biscuit Topping
You have three choices for the biscuit topping:
- Homemade Biscuits Baked on Top
- Prepared Biscuits Bake on Top
- Prepared Biscuits Baked on a Baking Pan and Served on the Side
If you're serving kids, option #3 might be your best bet. It's how we love to serve our favorite "crustless chicken pot pie."
Make Homemade Biscuits
Add the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda to the bowl of a food processor and pulse them together until blended.
Add the butter and continue to pulse until the butter becomes the size of peas.
Pour the dough into a large bowl and add the buttermilk. Stir until there is no more flour visible.
Flour a cutting board and turn the dough out onto the flour. Gently knead the dough 8 - 10 times and then roll it into a 9 x 13-in rectangle.
You can cut the biscuits into round or square shapes, whichever you prefer.
Place the shaped biscuits over the pot pie filling, making sure to slightly overlap the edges of each biscuit to form the crust.
Use Prepared Biscuits
You can skip making the homemade biscuit dough and simply layer refrigerator biscuits over the top.
I tested this with Pillsbury Flaky Layers Buttermilk Biscuits. I scraped just half of the pot pie filling into a smaller baking dish and used 1 can of biscuits for the topping.
If I had assembled the entire pot pie, I would have needed 2 cans of biscuits for a full 9x13-inch baking dish.
You'll want to be sure your pot pie filling is piping hot or the underside of the biscuit may not bake properly.
Baking Instructions
Set the oven temperature to 350°F.
Bake for 25 - 30 minutes for homemade biscuits or for the length of time listed on the prepared biscuit container.
Double check the underside of your biscuit has cooked through. If it hasn't, loosely cover the baking dish with aluminum foil to prevent the biscuits from getting too dark and bake for 5 more minutes.
Make Ahead and Freezer Tips
I think the pot pie tastes best served fresh from the oven. If you want to make it ahead, you can prep the filling and store it in a container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Then just reheat it in the microwave before filling your baking dish and topping with the biscuits before baking.
You could also put it in a freezer container and just freeze it without the biscuits.
Plan to defrost and thoroughly heat the ham filling before you bake it with the biscuit topping when you want to serve it for dinner.
This makes an easy DIY Meal Kit for a busy night, especially if you use prepared biscuits.
Serving Suggestions
This savory ham pot pie with biscuit topping is a rich and comforting all-in-one dinner.
If you want to add additional side dishes to it, I recommend a lighter garden salad or Caesar salad.
Fresh fruit makes an excellent side dish. You could use it to make my easy citrus salad or serve it on a platter with a simple fruit dip for a special treat.
More Ham Recipes for Leftovers
Looking for more tasty ways to use up your leftover ham from the holiday? These are some of our favorite things to make in the days after Easter and Christmas:
📖 Recipe
Ham Pot Pie with Biscuit Topping
Ingredients
For the Pot Pie Filling:
- 3 celery ribs diced
- 2 onions diced
- 2 carrots diced
- 1/2 fennel bulb diced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/2 cup flour
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon Parisian shallot herb blend see notes for substitute
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 2 cups cooked ham diced, from thick-cut deli ham or leftover holiday ham
For the Biscuits (or use 2 cans of your favorite refrigerated biscuits):
- 2 cups flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2/3 cup butter cubed
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
Instructions
Prepare the Pot Pie Filling:
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Chop the celery, onions, carrots, and fennel and toss them together on a large rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle the olive oil over the veggies, sprinkle them with salt and pepper, and toss them to coat in the oil. Roast them for 20 -24 minutes until lightly browned. Stir them occasionally to prevent burning.
- While the veggies are roasting, melt the butter in a large saucepan. Stir in the flour and whisk it into the butter. It will thicken and form small bits of dough that look like peas. Continue to stir and cook until the mixture smells slightly nutty, about 3 - 4 minutes.
- Slowly pour in the chicken broth and whisk the butter and flour in until smooth. Add the thyme, Parisian shallot herb blend (or substitutes), salt and pepper, and bring the broth to a boil. Reduce the heat and let the broth bubble for 10 minutes.
- Add the roasted veggies and chopped ham and stir them to combine with the sauce.
- If you want to bake the dish right away, pour the mixture into a 9x13-inch baking dish and set aside. Otherwise you can store the filling in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Prep the Homemade Biscuits:
- Prepare the biscuits just before you plan to bake the pot pie. If you stored the filling in the fridge, save this step for just before dinner time. If you don't want to take the time to make homemade biscuits, you can substitute two containers of your favorite refrigerated biscuits instead.
- To make the biscuit dough, add the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda to the bowl of a food processor and pulse them together until blended. Add the butter and continue to pulse until the butter becomes the size of peas.
- Transfer the dough into a large bowl and add the buttermilk. Stir the mixture together until there is no more flour visible.
- Sprinkle a little flour on the surface of a cutting board and turn the dough out. Gently knead the dough 8 - 10 times and then roll it into a 9 x 13-in rectangle.
- You can cut the biscuits into circles or squares, as you prefer. Arrange the biscuits over the ham mixture in the baking dish making sure to overlap the edges slightly as you go.
Baking Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- If your pot pie filling is still warm, simply top the surface with your biscuits and bake. If you prepped it ahead of time, you can warm the filling through first in a saucepan on the stovetop or in the microwave. This helps reduce the total baking time.
- Bake the pot pie topped with homemade biscuits for 25 - 30 minutes or until the biscuits are golden brown. If you use refrigerated biscuits, be sure the ham filling is completely warmed through before pouring it into the baking dish and then bake the pot pie for the length of time the biscuits require as directed on the canister they came in.
Recipe Notes
Seasoning Substitute:
If you do not want to purchase the Parisian shallot spice blend I used, you can substitute a sprinkle each of dried dill and dried basil.Save This Recipe to Your Recipe Box
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