Sweet, hearty butternut squash and spicy, complex curry love each other, so they decided to celebrate! Then cinnamon, clove, thyme, and sage heard and wanted to join the party. Who else crashed the love fest? Chicken, potatoes, and peas! Now it’s a cozy-up-feel-good- meal all topped with a light n’ flaky puff pastry lid. This unique curried butternut squash and chicken pot pie is here to wrap you up in a warm, spicy hug, and hold you until the rest of the world melts away.

Recipe Notes

Puff Piece
The first time I tested this recipe it was around Halloween, and I was desperate to get a jack-o-lantern face cut into the puff pastry (because the cute factor, hello!!) Well, I carved those faces into the puff, laid them over the pie fillings, and baked them. The result? they were Halloween-appropriate because they ended up looking like misshapen monsters.
Because the puff pastry was baked on top of the filling, it didn’t puff all the way and was soggy on the bottom.

Now, I *do* actually kind of enjoy a slightly soggy puff pastry, but I decided to instead bake the puff separately for a few reasons:

If the pastry is baked separately it puffs all the way, bakes evenly, and is super light and crisp. all good things.
BONUS: any scraps of pastry can also be baked on the same baking sheet, perfect for dipping and munching. I cut my scraps into stars because again, HELLO, the cute factor. Even if you don’t cut the scraps into cute shapes, be sure to bake them and enjoy them, don’t throw them out for godssake.
Because the pastry cooks on its own, you don’t need to bake the filling of the pie at all, just ladle it into bowls and top with the baked pastry. Boom. This cuts down on overall cooking time, AND it means you can have individual portions in bowls (that don’t even need to be oven safe!)
Easy cooking, easy serving.

Spice World
When it comes to the spices involved in this recipe, the most important one is curry, followed by cinnamon. If you don’t have turmeric or clove, please don’t sweat it, you can leave them out and life will go on and you’ll still have a lovely pot pie. I really do love the sage and thyme in this, but if you need to leave one or both out, it’s okay! You can also do dried spices instead of fresh, but please use less because dried spices are more condensed.
I realize this ingredient list is hefty, I just want you to know you have options!

Curried Butternut Squash + Chicken Pot Pie Recipe

Print Recipe

Curried Butternut Squash + Chicken Pot Pie

Easily make this recipe vegetarian by forgoing the chicken and using vegetable stock in place of chicken stock.

Course: Main Dish

Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients

1/2 tbsp butter
2 tsp olive oil
1 lb skinless boneless chicken thighs
salt and pepper
2 shallots minced
5 ribs celery diced
2 medium yellow onions diced
1.5 tsp curry powder
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp clove
1/4 tsp turmeric
10 cracks black pepper
2 tbsp flour
2 cups chicken stock
1 large yukon gold potato peeled and diced (1/2” pieces)
2 cups butternut squash peeled seeded, and diced (1/2” pieces)
2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
2 tsp finely chopped fresh sage
1 cup whole milk + 1 tsp more for brushing
1/2 cup cream
1 cup frozen peas
1 egg
16 oz frozen puff pastry thawed in the refrigerator (if the pastry is too warm, it will be difficult to cut. If needed, chill in the freezer a few minutes for easier cutting.)

Instructions

In a dutch oven, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Pat the chicken thighs dry all over and season on both sides with salt and pepper. Add the thighs to the pot and brown undisturbed for 3 minutes on each side. Cover, reduce heat to low, and cook 4-5 minutes more, or until cooked through (the internal temperature should be 165F.) Leaving the drippings in the pan, transfer the chicken thighs to a cutting board and allow to cool. When cool enough to handle, dice the chicken and set aside.
Increase the dutch oven heat to medium. Add the shallots, celery, and onion, and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle the spices, flour, and ½ tsp salt over the top and cook, stirring, about 2 minutes.
Add the chicken stock, potato, and butternut squash and bring to a boil. Boil 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. If bits stick to the bottom of the pot, don’t fret, this is normal.
Reduce the heat to a simmer and stir in the thyme, sage, milk, and cream. Taste for salt and adjust if needed. Simmer 15 minutes more, adding the peas for the last 2 minutes of simmering.
While the filling simmers, prepare the puff pastry. Unfold the pastry on a piece of parchment. Invert desired bowls or croques onto the pastry and use a sharp paring knife to trace and cut to size. Use a small cookie cutter to cut shapes out of the excess pastry if desired. Line two baking sheets with parchment and divide the pastry between them, leaving 1-2 inches between pieces of pastry. In a small dish, whisk together the egg and the remaining 1 tsp milk. Use a pastry brush to brush the top of the pastry pieces. Bake the pastry until puffed and golden.
When ready to serve, stir the diced chicken thighs into the filling. Ladle the filling into dishes and top with rounds of puff pastry. Serve with extra puff pastry cut outs for dipping!