Turkey Pot Pie with a Stuffing Crust
A creamy skillet filling of leftover turkey, onion, celery, peas and carrots, topped with wedges of leftover stuffing bound with an egg and baked crisp at 475°F, in about half an hour and one pan.
Edited by JP Lambiase
Change the estimate
Swaps change the price only: cook any meat to its own safe temperature. Where these numbers come from
Wikipedia describes the pot pie as a savory pie, usually meat under a flaky crust, popular in the United States; it traces the idea to English meat pies of the 16th century, which settlers carried to North America, and notes that in Pennsylvania Dutch country "pot pie" (bot boi) means something else entirely: a stew with homemade noodle-like dumplings and no full crust. The day-after version here swaps pastry for the other thing every Thanksgiving fridge holds. Cook's Country (America's Test Kitchen) published it in its October/November 2007 issue: the leftover stuffing is mixed with an egg, rolled flat between sheets of parchment, cut into wedges and baked on top of the filling until crisp, and ATK's note says the whole dish takes under 30 minutes and two bowls.
🎬 The full story: 10 Leftover Turkey Recipes From Around the World (One Is a Sitcom Sandwich)
🇺🇸 This one is American
A creamy skillet filling of leftover turkey, onion, celery, peas and carrots, topped with wedges of leftover stuffing bound with an egg and baked crisp at 475°F, in about half an hour and one pan.
🇺🇸 The original
The oldest American leftover recipe here is 1896 scalloped turkey: cold turkey layered with buttered crumbs and gravy and baked. See the Scalloped Turkey (Fannie Farmer, 1896) recipe.
📖 : How Long Do Thanksgiving Leftovers Last? →
Why it works the kitchen science
A quick roux, then cream
Two tablespoons of flour cooked in the vegetable butter thicken the broth in minutes, and the cream makes it taste like a long-simmered filling.
The egg is the glue
It binds loose leftover stuffing into a sheet that can be cut, lifted and baked into a crisp, browned lid.
🧰 You'll need 8 items
Everything the steps call for. Tick off what you have before you start.
Appliances
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Supplies
Step by step
- Step 1
Set an oven rack in the upper-middle position and heat the oven to 475°F. Melt the butter in a 12-inch ovensafe skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and celery and cook about 4 minutes, until softened.
- Step 2
Stir in the flour and cook about 1 minute, until lightly browned. Slowly whisk in the broth and cream, bring to a simmer and cook 5 to 7 minutes, until thickened.
✓ What it should look like - Step 3
Stir in the peas and carrots and the turkey and cook about 2 minutes, until hot through (165°F). Season with salt and pepper and turn off the heat.
- Step 4
Meanwhile, mix the stuffing and egg in a large bowl. Press and roll it between two sheets of parchment into an 11-inch circle. Peel off the top sheet and cut the circle into 6 wedges.
- Step 5
Lay the wedges over the filling, stuffing side up, and bake about 12 minutes, until golden brown and crisp and the stuffing reads 165°F in the center. Let it stand 5 minutes, then serve.
✓ What it should look like
Turkey Pot Pie with a Stuffing Crust
Serves 6 · one 12-inch skillet pie · 35 min total
Filling
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 celery rib, chopped
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup frozen peas and carrots, thawed
- 4 cups shredded leftover roast turkey
- Salt and pepper to taste
Stuffing crust
- 3 cups leftover stuffing (or one 6 oz box of stuffing mix, prepared and chilled)
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
Equipment: Oven, Skillet, Instant-read thermometer, Chef's knife and cutting board, Measuring cups and spoons, Mixing bowls, Whisk, Parchment paper
Method
- Set an oven rack in the upper-middle position and heat the oven to 475°F. Melt the butter in a 12-inch ovensafe skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and celery and cook about 4 minutes, until softened.
- Stir in the flour and cook about 1 minute, until lightly browned. Slowly whisk in the broth and cream, bring to a simmer and cook 5 to 7 minutes, until thickened.
- Stir in the peas and carrots and the turkey and cook about 2 minutes, until hot through (165°F). Season with salt and pepper and turn off the heat.
- Meanwhile, mix the stuffing and egg in a large bowl. Press and roll it between two sheets of parchment into an 11-inch circle. Peel off the top sheet and cut the circle into 6 wedges.
- Lay the wedges over the filling, stuffing side up, and bake about 12 minutes, until golden brown and crisp and the stuffing reads 165°F in the center. Let it stand 5 minutes, then serve.
Adapted from America's Test Kitchen (Cook's Country, October/November 2007), "Turkey Pot Pie with Stuffing Crust", as written (ATK says 6 to 8 servings; we call it 6). The 165°F checks for the filling and for the egg-bound stuffing are our additions, from UGA Extension. America's Test Kitchen. Ingredient list follows the source; the method is in our own words.
Tips
- Homemade leftover stuffing works best, but ATK says a boxed mix, prepared and chilled, works too.
- Chilled stuffing rolls out more easily than warm; roll it straight from the fridge.
- Any leftover vegetables (green beans, roasted carrots) can go in with the peas and carrots.
The rules people argue about
What the sources agree on, what they don't, and what is just a good story.
- A pot pie has a pastry crust. Disputed: most American pot pies do (Wikipedia), but Pennsylvania Dutch pot pie is a crustless stew with noodle-like dumplings, and this one uses stuffing.
- Pot pie is an American invention. Disputed wording: the name is chiefly American, but Wikipedia traces the dish to English meat pies.
- It takes under 30 minutes. Documented as ATK's claim; our timing with chopping is about 35 minutes.
Every other leftover turkey recipe
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