I’ve always found it a little annoying that marketing cretins “geniuses” at baking mix companies have co-opted the term “pot pie” to use on their back-of-package recipes for making a biscuit topped chicken dish. These are the same folk that invent words like “lite”, as if removing some consonants from the word “light” makes their product contain less calories. All I have to say to these nincompoops is that if it doesn’t have a pie crust, it’s not a pie. That said, there’s certainly nothing wrong with sticking moist golden-brown biscuits atop a filling of chicken, vegetables and a creamy gravy, and there’s a certain allure of not having to roll out a pie dough to make dinner. So what should the dish be called then? Well, it’s a cobbler. I know that in the US the term “cobbler” is usually preceded by a fruit, but it’s a term used in other English speaking countries to describe any sweet or savory dish covered in biscuit dough. You could even call it a chicken pot-cobbler if you like, but please don’t call it a biscuit topped chicken pot-pie. So now that that’s off my chest, I’ll get off my soapbox and tell you about this awesome chicken cobbler. Beneath the golden buttery biscuit crust lies a filling that’s as flavorful as it is colorful thanks to the chicken, onions, carrots and mushrooms being thoroughly browned. For the gravy, I like using a mixture of chicken stock and whole milk to get just the right amount of creaminess without making it too rich and cloying. Because the chicken stock plays such a major role, use the best stock you can get your hands on. My rich chicken stock gives the gravy some nice body with an intense chicken flavor. As for the chicken, you can certainly use breast meat, but because you’re cooking it twice, it tends to become overcooked in the oven. That’s why I recommend using chicken thighs. Finally, to ensure the peas stay green, I add frozen peas to the filling just before putting everything in the oven. That way, they have just enough time to warm up, without ending up a swampy green color.
📖 Recipe
