Light Chicken Pot Pie

This light chicken pot pie uses phyllo dough and a lightened up sauce to make a healthier version of the comfort food you love!

I love chicken pot pie. It is the absolute definition of comfort food. Well, maybe homemade mac and cheese would win that title, but pot pie sure comes close.

Normally people think that pot pie is complicated to make so they rely on the premade varieties from the grocery store.

I'd like to introduce my solution to that puzzle.

The beauty of this particular pot pie is that it is basically a pantry/freezer staple except for the chicken.

Pick yourself up a rotisserie chicken and you'll be all set with the easiest, lightest pot pie ever.

Ingredients

My kitchen always has these items on hand so I can make this recipe in a pinch. I shred the chicken meat and always have a container of it in my freezer!

• Rotisserie chicken meat, shredded
• Onion
• Olive oil
• Flour
• Milk
• Frozen vegetables
• Frozen phyllo dough, thawed
• Dried thyme, salt and pepper

How to Lighten the Recipe

Even though this chicken pot pie is lighter than the more decadent varieties, it is absolutely filled with flavor.

Thicken the sauce with a simple roux:
A little flour is added to the olive oil as you soften the onion. This helps to thicken the sauce without the use of butter or heavy cream.

Use Low Fat Milk:
I have used both fat-free milk and reduced fat milk in this recipe with great results.

Use Frozen Phyllo Dough instead of pie crust:
Pie crust is made with lots and lots of delicious butter. If you want to lighten the recipe but still have a crispy top, frozen phyllo dough is perfect! Just a few sheets of the pastry go a long way and are much lighter than a thick buttery pie crust.

How to Use Phyllo Dough for the Crust

The most surprising part is the use of phyllo dough instead of traditional pie crust. It looks like it would be so difficult but in fact is far easier.

Use an 8 x 11 baking dish and the phyllo sheets will fit perfectly across the top without trimming. Phyllo is only tricky when you have to cut it and mold it.

Here, you just lay it right down and move on.

The use of cooking spray even prevents the frustration of a pastry brush tearing the delicate sheets.

Variations

If you're interested in a heartier version of this classic comfort food, you may want to use the filling from this recipe to make a buttery crusted pot pie with my favorite all-butter pie crust dough.

You could also swap the chicken and use cooked ham or skip the phyllo dough and make homemade biscuits for layering on as the top crust.

Continue to Content

📖 Recipe

Light Chicken Pot Pie

Yield: 6 - 8 servings

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

This quick and easy chicken pot pie is made healthier with lots of veggies and lightened sauce.

Print

Ingredients

• 1 rotisserie chicken, meat shredded
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• ¼ ts dried thym leaves
• ¼ cup flour
• 2 ½ cups skim milk
• 1 bag of frozen mixed vegetables (carrots, peas, green beans)
• 6 phyllo sheets, thawed
• Cooking spray

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°.
2. Heat 2 tablespoon olive oil in a large saucepan over medium. Add onion and thyme, season with salt and pepper, and cook until onions are translucent and soft. Add flour, cook 1 minute. Gradually add milk, stirring until smooth. Cook, stirring occasionally until mixture comes to a simmer and thickens.
3. Remove from heat; stir in chicken and thawed frozen vegetables. Pour filling into an 8×11 baking dish (a 2 qt pan).
4. Working quickly, place 2 sheets of phyllo dough across the top of the filling. Spray an even coat of cooking spray. Add another 2 sheets of dough, spray. Place the final 2 sheets of dough and brush evenly with just a bit of real olive oil for better taste and browning, or go easy and use more spray.
5. Bake until golden and bubbling, 20 – 25 minutes.