For The Easiest Chicken Pot Pie, Reach For One Canned Product

I love a hearty chicken pot pie, but it's a pretty time-consuming dish to make from scratch. I didn't really appreciate them growing up, but as an adult, I realized that they were actually awesome and perfect for a chilly evening. If you're looking for a way to enjoy this classic dish without dedicating a ton of time to making a perfect crust, there's one pantry staple that makes it all easier: canned biscuits.

These versatile dough rounds (which you can also use for easy mini French dip sandwiches) create a golden, flaky topping for your pot pie in a fraction of the time it would take you to roll out and shape a traditional pie crust. With canned biscuits, you can create a weeknight-friendly meal that doesn't sacrifice flavor or presentation. The biscuits speed up the process and add a rich, buttery flavor that works perfectly with the creamy pot pie filling.

All you have to do is spoon your chicken mixture into a baking dish and layer the uncooked biscuits on top. Then just bake the pot pie until your biscuit crust is golden brown. The result is a bubbling pot pie with a perfectly crisp and tender crust. This basic hack makes dinner prep a breeze, and I'd even call it an upgrade to the standard pot pie.

Traditional chicken pot pie involves a delicate, time-sensitive balance of preparing a flaky crust and a rich filling, but not if you use canned biscuits. These rounds are pre-portioned, foolproof, and bake up to a beautiful light brown color. With a homemade dough, you have to be a lot more precise with your measurements to create just the right amount to cover the pot pie. Biscuits' slightly sweet taste and buttery texture add layers of flavor to the savory filling, upgrading the dish without any extra effort.

To get started, prepare your pot pie filling with cooked chicken, frozen mixed vegetables, and a creamy sauce made from chicken broth and flour. Pour the filling into a casserole dish, then arrange canned biscuits on top, leaving a bit of space between each one for even browning. As they bake, the biscuits puff up, forming a delicious crust. If you're vegan or vegetarian, you can also make this dish using mushrooms and still benefit from the flaky biscuits.

This method provides consistent results and is also highly customizable. You can brush the biscuits with melted butter, sprinkle them with herbs, add a bit of white wine (like Ree Drummond does to her pot pies), or even add shredded cheese if you want flavors that really pop. You can also make these with the kids since the recipe is so simple.

Using canned biscuits as a pot pie crust offers a soft, pillowy bite that contrasts with the creamy filling. They also bake faster, so your dish is ready to serve in under an hour.

One of the biggest advantages of canned biscuits, though, is their adaptability. You can cut them into smaller pieces for a more uniform topping or leave them whole for a dramatic, bakery-style presentation. While the biscuits are baking, their edges crisp up while the undersides soak in the liquids from the pot pie, creating delicious pockets of flavor and texture.

The accessibility and affordability of canned biscuits also make them a very attractive choice when you're in a hurry but still want to make a quality meal. Chicken pot pie is one of my go-to comfort foods, and using biscuits allows me to easily recreate a childhood favorite. Also, the canned topping tastes just as good (if not better) than the more time-consuming traditional pie crust. To each their own, but for me, the flavor difference is negligible. This swap is suited toward home cooks of all skill levels, and it's a great way to enjoy chicken pot pie with minimal effort and maximum flavor.