Use up your holiday turkey: Turkey “Pot Pie”

The name of this meal is really a misnomer. I have made it from chicken, turkey, and pheasant- so it really should be called “poultry pot pie”. But then, I rarely serve it in an actual pie! It is delicious served over stale bread, biscuits, corn bread, or mashed potatoes. So perhaps the name should be “Thick Poultry Stew”. I don’t think that sounds very appealing! Gentle reader, please try this recipe out and then send me your name suggestion! 😉

Whatever you call it, your family will swoon when they taste this hearty, healthy, comforting, delicious meal. It is affordable and freezes exceptionally well. It is pretty, even when thawed, and therefore is a good option to serve guests. Giggle and Wiggle love it too. What a resume! Let’s get started.

You can make this meal from raw meat, but why would you? Using leftover cooked poultry and your patiently-waiting stock means this meal is both quick and affordable. If you didn’t make the stock, or used it up in some other way, substitute home-canned or store-bought chicken stock or broth. My kitchen mantras are: when possible, make do with what you have and make the recipe fit your life, not the other way around. So if you have frozen corn, not frozen peas, or you have leftover pearl onions instead of fresh onions, just use them instead.

First, weigh your leftover poultry. Use that weight to determine how many portions of this meal to make. I almost always double this recipe and have, in the past, quadrupled it and shared with friends. The ingredients list is for one portion that serves approximately 6 hungry adults.

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This recipe has been adapted from American Classics: More Than 300 Exhaustively Tested Recipes For America’s Favorite Dishes.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lb cooked poultry of your choice

2 cups poultry broth/stock

1 1/12 teaspoons grapeseed oil (or your favorite cooking oil)

1 large onion, chopped

3 large carrots or the approximate equivalent in smaller carrots, chopped

2-3 stalks celery, chopped (Approximately 1 cup in total)

1 lb mushrooms (optional)

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 cup flour

1 1/2 cup milk (I use whole milk)

1 teaspoon dried thyme

Optional: 3 tablespoons or a large splash or dry sherry, dry vermouth. I have recently been using Zirbenschnapps (The best way i can describe this is Austrian pinecone liquor) simply because I have a lot of it!

1 cup frozen green peas

large handful fresh parsley or other fresh herb, if available.

I try to chop my vegetables in advance of cooking if possible. So do this whenever you have a moment before making this meal. In any case, after chopping, saute the onion, carrots, celery and mushrooms (if you are using them) in a large stock pot or pan with the oil until tender.

Make sure to stir occasionally so the vegetables cook evenly. Depending on how many multiples of the recipe you are making, this could take 10 or 15 minutes. You may want to put the mushrooms in another pan so that the mirepoix doesn’t just steam in the mushroom liquid. This step is a great chore to do while washing up some dishes, or serving your toddlers their second breakfast! 😉

When the vegetables are “just tender”, transfer to a container with your weighed poultry. If you need to set this activity aside at this point, go ahead and refrigerate the vegetables and poultry until you have some more time to cook.

Next, measure out your broth and milk, or at least have it all easily accessible. Melt the butter in your now-empty stock pot. Add the flour and whisk, cook approximately one minute. Whisk in your broth or stock, milk, and thyme. Bring to a simmer. Keep simmering for about a minute or until the sauce fully thickens. If you are using an optional liquor ingredient, stir it in now. Add salt and pepper.

Guess what! You are basically done! The rest of the job can be done by you, a helper, a friend, or a spouse! (Who should arguably be also a helper and friend, but I digress).

Mix the chicken, vegetables, and sauce together. Add the frozen peas (you can thaw them first if you want) and your parsley or fresh herb.Now scoop it into your freezer containers, in whatever sizes you want. After you have portioned out these “put-by” meals, refrigerate until cool and then freeze.

By this point, the peas are probably thawed or perhaps the mixture has cooled…. continue warming on the stove until desired temperature, then serve over your preferred bread or potato base.

Consider this meal your frozen arsenal to doctor a cold, feed new parents, buy yourself some time, and use up stale breads. To reheat frozen meals, thaw in the refrigerator or in a sink full of warm water (my quick fix method) and serve to the people you love.

Can’t wait to hear your thoughts and a better name suggestion!