The “meat pie” is a dish that’s everywhere in England – even massive stadiums. Last weekend, I zipped across the pond to cover one of three NFL games this season being played in North London at Tottenham-Hotspur stadium. Am I a sports reporter? Absolutely not. My job was to show viewers what Minnesotans who traveled to the game were experiencing and connect with Vikings fans from all over the world who showed up to cheer on their team. Not a bad assignment, to say the least.

The locals say that when it comes to stadium food – the Meat Pie reigns supreme. I got my paws on a chicken tinga version – basically chicken, onions and beans in a spicy red sauce baked into a flaky crust. It was tasty as all heck. Upon my return, I decided that my favorite version of a meat pie – the Chicken Pot Pie – needed to be on the Reimers family dinner menu immediately.

I grew up eating chicken pot pie this way – baked into a large pie pan and served in slices. My mom made it for us all the time in the fall and winter and it’s deceptively easy, totally impressive and most importantly – incredibly delicious. I made it this week on Minnesota Live and then served it for dinner.

A few pro tips before we get to the recipe:

• You can make this totally from scratch or use shortcuts as you see fit
• Homemade bone broth is great here – or use a box or jar version. My favorites are Kettle & Fire, Epic, Bonafide Provisions and Taking Stock Foods
• You can also sub the cooked chicken thighs for rotisserie chicken, although your pie won’t be quite as flavorful
• Homemade pie crust is wonderful but a store bought version is just fine too – my mom swears by the brand Pappy’s in the freezer section
• Feel free to make the filling ahead, refrigerate, then roll out the dough, fill the pie and bake later in the day
• You can also freeze the pie unbaked (and without the egg wash or heavy cream) and bake it straight from the freezer – it will just take a little longer to cook

Chicken Pot Pie

adapted from Two Peas & Their Pod

Gather:

1 tsp olive oil

1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1 cup chopped carrots

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped celery

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup butter

1/3 cup all purpose flour

2 cups chicken broth

1/3 cup heavy cream

1 cup frozen peas

1/2 tsp fresh thyme

2 tbsp chopped fresh Italian parsley

salt and pepper

homemade or store bought pie crust (enough for a top and bottom crust in a 9 inch pie plate)

1 tsp heavy cream or 1 beaten egg (to brush on the top of the crust)

Cook:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper or your favorite poultry seasoning blend (I love this one from Here’s the Deal Spice Co.). Cook the chicken thighs for about 5 minutes on each side, until just cooked through. Take the chicken thighs out of the pan and set aside. Add the butter, carrots, celery, onion and garlic to the same pan and use a wooden spoon to scrape the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Season with salt and pepper.

Sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the flour to the vegetables and stir to coat – cooking for about 2 minutes. Then add the chicken stock and simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes. In the meantime, chop the chicken into 1 inch pieces. To the pan, add the heavy cream, thyme, parsley, chicken and peas. Stir over low heat to combine and continue to thicken. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed.

Set aside to cool slightly while you prepare the pie crust. Place the bottom crust in a 9 inch pie plate. Add the filling, then top with the second crust. Crimp the edges, cut a few slits in the center of the top crust to let steam escape and use a pastry brush to coat the top with a thin layer of heavy cream or beaten egg.

Set the pie plate on a rimmed sheet pan (to keep your oven clean!) and bake for 45 minutes, until the crust is golden brown. You can use a pie shield or tinfoil to cover the edges to prevent them from browning too quickly. Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.