You’re not alone if you look forward to leftover turkey as much as the main holiday meal, and this homemade Turkey Pot Pie with Puff Pastry is an easy, family-friendly dish that everyone will rave about! There’s no fussing with pastry for this recipe, and it bakes up light, flaky, buttery, and golden brown delicious.
This post may contain affiliate link(s). As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. See Disclosure.
With a filling that’s thick, creamy, chunky, and loaded with tender turkey, herbs, and veggies, turkey pot pies are a much-loved dish and leftover turkey recipe. And the best part is these pot pies aren’t hard to make – using store-bought puff pastry makes them quick and easy, and they always turn out great.
What You Need To Make Turkey Pot Pies with Puff Pastry Lids
- Individual-size baking or casserole dishes or one large casserole dish
- Store-bought puff pastry sheets – you’ll need about one sheet of puff pastry – see my notes below
- Butter
- Carrots
- Yellow onions
- Celery
- Garlic – fresh is best
- All-purpose flour
- Milk – Or turkey stock, or chicken broth
- Leftover turkey gravy from Thanksgiving dinner – if you have any
- Leftover turkey – a combination of dark meat and white meat cut into chunks
- Frozen peas
- Dried parsley
- Dried or fresh thyme
- Salt
- White or black pepper
- Egg
What is Puff Pastry
Puff pastry is a technique for making pastry that results in very thin, crispy layers. It’s made by folding the dough over and over again while working in layers of butter. It puffs up when cooking (the butter releases its moisture, causing the dough to rise, puff, and cook in flaky layers), and when you brush the top of the dough with a beaten egg, it cooks up golden brown and glossy.
You can make puff pastry dough from scratch, but it is a labor of love and involves quite a bit of technique. And these days, store-bought puff pastry is affordable and accessible.
How to Buy Puff Pastry
Puff pastry is available in just about all large grocery stores, and you’ll usually find it near the desserts, particularly near the pie shells and frozen pie dough.
It’ll come frozen in a long, narrow box. When you get it home, pop the whole box into the fridge and let it defrost in the fridge. You want to keep the butter in the puff pastry as cold as possible without being frozen.
How To Make Turkey Pot Pies with Puff Pastry
(Please scroll all the way down to the bottom for the full list of ingredients and instructions)
- Melt the butter in the bottom of a heavy-bottomed pot or large skillet.
- Add the diced onion, carrot, celery, and garlic and cook over medium for about 4-5 minutes or until the onion is soft and translucent.
- Turn off the heat and add the flour. Mix well to incorporate the flour. Add a touch more butter (and let it melt) if you need more fat to distribute the flour.
- Heat the milk in a smaller pot or in the microwave. Add the heated milk in a stream to the flour and veggies while whisking.
- Turn the heat back to medium-low and stir until the mixture is thick and bubbling. Add the gravy if you have it, or add another 1/2 cup of milk or cream.
- Add the dried parsley, thyme, salt, pepper, and diced turkey. Heat the turkey mixture through and set aside to prepare your puff pastry.
To Prepare the Puff Pastry and Assemble the Pot Pies
- Unroll or unfold the puff pastry on a clean work surface.
- Using a small knife, cut squares or circles out of the puff pastry that are slightly larger than the top of your pot pie dishes. You want the puff pastry to hang over the edges a bit. I love putting squares of puff pastry on top of round dishes – it looks so inviting and delicious!
- To make individual turkey pot pies – fill individual-size oven-safe dishes with the pot pie filling and top with a square or circle of puff pastry.
- Cut a few slits into the top of the puff pastry (to allow the steam to escape) and use a pastry brush to brush the tops with a beaten egg. Turkey pie with puff pastry will cook glossy and golden brown when egg-washed.
- To make a larger puff pastry turkey pot pie, cut the puff pastry into strips or overlap circles of puff pastry and lay them on top of your pot pie filling. Brush with a beaten egg.
How to Cook the Best Turkey Pot Pie with Puff Pastry
- Put the pot pies on a baking sheet, so they don’t ooze over and make a mess in your oven.
- Bake on the middle rack in a preheated 375-F oven for about 20-25 minutes or until the tops are golden brown and the filling is bubbling and hot.
- Serve and enjoy!
recommended
Chef Jenn’s Tips
- Don’t worry if the turkey pot pie filling seems thick – the turkey and veggies will give off more liquid when cooking, so it needs to start out pretty thick.
- If your puff pastry gets too brown, cover the top lightly with foil.
- No gravy? No problem – just substitute with heavy cream for a richer flavor or more milk.
- You can add more veggies to this, including diced potato, diced sweet potatoes, pearl onions, turnip, green beans, or any of your favorites. Stay away from watery veg like zucchini, or they’ll fall apart in the cooking process.
- No leftover cooked turkey? Turn this into chicken pot pie with leftover chicken or rotisserie chicken
- No time to chop veggies? Use about 4 cups of thawed previously frozen mixed vegetables instead.
What To Serve With Turkey Pot Pies with Puff Pastry
These creamy turkey pot pies are a hearty meal all on their own, but I usually round it out by serving a salad or, for my teen, a heel of crusty bread. I also like pairing this meal with a fabulous soup like this Cauliflower & Sweet Potato Soup, or a more brothy Beef & Barley Soup. For dessert, try these air fryer cookies!
How To Freeze Mini Turkey Pot Pie with Puff Pastry and Leftover Gravy
Puff pastry doesn’t like to be thawed and refrozen. If you have extra filling, I’d freeze it and keep some of the puff pastry frozen. Then, just thaw the filling and assemble with the puff pastry and bake when you’re ready to eat it.
You can freeze the filling just fine, and I use Souper Cubes for stuff like this.
Keep food fresh and freezer tidy with odor-proof, space-saving trays. Designed for easy stacking and maximum efficiency, store up to 8 cups in a gallon bag.
Frequently Asked Questions
I’ve used both Pepperidge Farms and Tenderflake with fabulous results. I wait until it goes on sale (because I’m thrifty that way) to buy it, then keep it in the freezer to make this easy turkey pot pie recipe.
You sure can! You can adjust how much gravy you use. You need about 2 1/2 cups of liquid in this recipe, so you can use a combination of gravy, milk, and cream to suit your fancy.
I sure think so! It’s thick, chunky, and loaded with tender veg and tasty turkey. The puff on top is light and flaky, and the whole dish is fancy enough to impress but easy enough for weeknight dinners. It’s the perfect turkey pot pie with puff pastry!
Step BY Step Process
Turkey Pot Pies with Puff Pastry
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter
- 2 cups diced carrots
- 1 cup diced onion
- 1 cup diced celery
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 2 cups milk
- 1/2 cup turkey gravy or substitute milk or cream
- 4 cup cooked turkey
- 1 cup peas
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper or to taste
- 1/2 package puff pastry
Instructions
- Melt the butter in the bottom of a heavy-bottomed pot or large skillet.
- Add the diced onion, carrot, celery, and garlic and cook over medium heat for about 4-5 minutes or until the onion is soft and translucent.
- Turn off the heat and add the flour. Mix well to incorporate the flour. Add a touch more butter (and let it melt) if you need more fat to distribute the flour.
- Heat the milk in a smaller pot or in the microwave. Add the heated milk in a stream to the flour and veggies while whisking.
- Turn the heat back to medium-low and stir until the mixture is thick and bubbling. Add the gravy if you have it, or add another 1/2 cup of milk or cream.
- Add the dried parsley, thyme, salt, pepper, and diced turkey. Heat through and set aside to prepare your puff pastry.
To prepare the puff pastry
- Unroll or unfold the puff pastry on a clean work surface.
- Using a small knife, cut squares or circles out of the puff pastry that are slightly larger than the top of your pot pie dishes. You want the puff pastry to hang over the edges a bit. I love putting squares of puff pastry on top of round dishes – it looks so inviting and delicious!
- To make individual turkey pot pies – fill individual-size oven-safe dishes with the pot pie filling and top with a square or circle of puff pastry.
- Cut a few slits into the top of the puff pastry (to allow the steam to escape) and brush the tops with a beaten egg. Turkey pie with puff pastry will cook glossy and golden brown when egg washed.
- To make a larger pot pie, cut the puff pastry into strips or overlap circles of puff pastry and lay them on top of your pot pie filling. Brush with a beaten egg.
To bake:
- Put the pot pies on a baking sheet so they don't ooze over and make a mess in your oven.
- Bake on the middle rack in a preheated 375-F oven for about 20-25 minutes or until the tops are golden brown and the filling is bubbling and hot.
- Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
A Note on Nutritional Information
Nutritional information for this recipe is provided as a courtesy and is calculated based on available online ingredient information. It is only an approximate value. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site cannot be guaranteed.
