Deep-Dish Leftover Turkey Pot Pie

Thanksgiving leftovers better than the big dinner.

Your Thanksgiving needs this deep-dish leftover turkey pot pie recipe: a creamy vegetable filling stuffed with turkey, topped with an all-butter double crust.

The Very Best Thanksgiving Leftover Turkey Pot Pie Recipe

People are often meh about Thanksgiving turkey, preferring the sides. But leftover turkey added into a creamy, vegetable filling with an all-butter double crust makes Thanksgiving turkey just about the best thing ever — you may just need an additional day before you get to eat it.

If there is a better way to eat leftover Thanksgiving turkey, I have not found it. Perfect roast turkey and homemade turkey soup rank for sure. But there is something about a warm, homemade turkey pot pie with a flaky, buttery crust that just seems to make life — and dinner — a little better.

This recipe for Thanksgiving deep-dish turkey pot pie does right by your leftovers, with a creamy filling stuffed with turkey and vegetables, plus a double butter pie crust to put it over the top.

You’ll also like: Roast Chicken With Herbs and Spicy Turkey Gumbo

Deep-Dish Turkey Pot Pie: Recipe Notes and Tips

This is a big ol’ deep-dish turkey pot pie. Meaning, use a deep-dish pie plate. if you use a standard 9-inch Pyrex pie tin, you will have extra filling. This is not a bad thing.

Here’s how you can adapt if you do not have a deep-dish pie plate:

• Enjoy the excess creamy filling it on its own, or over smothered buttermilk biscuits.
• Bake the entire recipe, but use a casserole dish. A pie plate is not strictly necessary. You can line and cover a casserole with pie dough just as easily, and the result will be very rustic and homey, just like turkey pot pie should be.
• Cut the filling recipe down to a 3/4 recipe

Let the Turkey Pot Pie Rest Before Eating

Let the pot pie rest. This turkey pot pie, like all proper pot pies, is fairly soupy when it comes out of the oven —  not to mention 425 degrees Fahrenheit — way too hot to eat. Let it rest for a solid 15 minutes before digging in. The leftovers (if any) will be firmer.

Can I substitute puff pastry for pie dough?

The Puff Pastry Alternative. Many great turkey pot pie recipes call for store-bought puff pastry, such as this excellent chicken pot pie recipe from one of my go-to food blogs, Once Upon a Chef. Puff pastry is a delicious way to go, producing flaky, buttery layers similar to a pie dough.

If you do not want to make homemade pie dough, and want to use puff pastry instead:

• Eliminate the bottom crust (it will be too soggy) and cut a single circle of puff pastry two inches wider than the pie plate.
• Drape the puff pastry over the filled pie shell (leave the overhang in place).
• Then egg wash, use a knife to cut a few vents on top, and bake.

How to Make Turkey Stock

Taking stock. I suggest making your own turkey stock with the carcass. You can also add leftover turkey gravy into the stock, for an even richer flavor. Use this recipe for turkey soup to see how to make the stock. (And make some turkey soup while you’re at it!)

If you do not have turkey stock to use for this turkey pot pie, just use chicken broth.

How to Make Homemade Pie Dough for The Deep-Dish Leftover Turkey Pot Pie Recipe

Perfect pie dough. A lot of people are intimidated by homemade pie dough. Don’t be. It is actually easy to make, and the flavor and texture of a buttery pie crust here is worth the effort. Mostly you just have to 1) not overwork the dough, and 2) let it rest.

Read over my step-by-step tutorial on making great pie dough.

Did you make this Deep-Dish Leftover Turkey Pot Pie recipe? How was it?

Thanksgiving Leftovers Turkey Pot Pie

Thanksgiving turkey leftovers baked into a creamy, vegetable-filled sauce in a buttery pie dough shell. This leftover turkey pot pie casserole recipe is so good, it may be better than Thanksgiving dinner.

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time45 minutes mins

Total Resting Time (Pie Dough + Finished Pot Pie)1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Course: dinner

Cuisine: American, english

Keywords:: casserole, comfort food, dinner, leftovers, pot pie, thanksgiving, thanksgiving leftover turkey pot pie recipe, thanksgiving leftovers, thanksgiving turkey pot pie, turkey, turkey pot pie recipe

Servings: 4 to 6 people

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Ingredients 

1x2x

• 1 recipe perfect pie dough (recipe linked below)
• 4 cups cooked turkey meat, cut into a large dice
• 1 cup peeled, diced carrots (about 3 medium carrots)
• 1 cup peeled, diced celery (about 3 medium stalks)
• 1 cup peeled, diced yellow onion (about 1/2 large onion)
• 1/2 cup peas, fresh or frozen (no need to thaw)
• 1/2 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen (no need to thaw)
• 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 cup unsalted chicken or turkey stock
• 2 cups milk
• 1 bay leaves (optional)
• 1 sprig thyme
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
• 2 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt, or to taste
• 1 teaspoon fresh-cracked black pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• egg, whisked
• flaky sea salt, such as Maldon, to garnish

Instructions

For the Pie Dough

• Prepare a double-crust pie dough to the point of chilling the two flattened discs. Let rest, covered in the refrigerator, for at least one hour, or up to 24 hours.
• After you have made the turkey pot pie filling below, remove the pie doughs from the fridge, and roll on a lightly-floured surface to a round 1.5" to 2" wider than the pie tin, and about 1/8" thick. Proceed as written below.

For the Filling

• Preheat the oven to 425°F.
• While the pie dough is chilling, make the filling. Heat a large sauté pan or skillet over medium heat with the olive oil. Add the carrots, celery, and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are translucent and the vegetables have softened, about 7 to 10 minutes. Add the peas and corn and cook two minutes more. Remove from heat and set aside.

  TIP: If the vegetables start to brown too much, or the pan seems dry, add a tablespoon or two of water.
• Make the white sauce. In a large sauce pot, melt the butter over medium-high heat, swirling to make sure no areas of butter burn. Add the flour and whisk to a paste; this is your roux. Cook the roux until a light golden color, about 1 minute.

  Add the chicken or turkey stock in several additions, whisking thoroughly to make sure no lumps form. Whisk in the milk, thyme, parsley, salt, pepper, and bay leaves. Bring the sauce to a low boil, then stir constantly until thickened, about 2 to 3 minutes.

  PRO TIP: Leftover turkey gravy can be used as the stock, as long as it is not too thick.
• Remove from heat. Fish out the bay leaves and thyme. Add the diced turkey and the cooked vegetables to the sauce, and stir to combine. Taste for seasoning.

To Assemble and Finish

• On a lightly-floured surface, roll out one of the pie dough rounds with a rolling pin until the dough is about 1.5" to 2" wider than the pie pan and about 1/8" thick. Dust the pie dough with a little flour and rotate often so it does not stick to the rolling pin or the counter.
• Pour the turkey pot pie filling into the pie shell and smooth. Do not overfill.
• Roll out the other pie dough as above, and gently drape over the filling. Using a knife or kitchen shears, cut the excess dough from the pie, leaving about a 1" drape on all sides.
• Tuck the draped dough upward, folding it down onto the rim of the pie. Use the tines of a fork to crimp the edges and seal the two doughs. Lightly brush the egg wash over the pie and garnish the top with a sprinkle of flaky sea salt, such as Maldon. Use a knife to cut a few vents in the top.

  PRO TIP: Put the pie plate on a rimmed baking sheet or some tin foil to catch any juices that may spill out of the pie during baking.
• Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the filling bubbles slightly from the vents. Rest for 15 to 20 minutes before serving.