It never fails-- when there's snow on the ground and a grumbling in my stomach, I always crave comfort food in the form of Chicken Pot Pie.
Juicy chicken, tender vegetables, and creamy sauce all nestled beneath crisp, golden crust; that's my idea of cold weather consolation. Everything about Chicken Pot Pie screams "All-American classic"... but does it have to? What if we got crazy and creative with it?
I decided to indulge my curiosity (and my love of Indian food) by making a Butter Chicken Pot Pie with Naan Crust and, you guys, I'm telling you: IT. WAS. SO. GOOD. I'm talking the Go get these ingredients and try it out now kind of good. The How on Earth did I not think of this sooner? kind of good.
This recipe might seem a bit intimidating, but it's actually easier to pull off than you'd expect, it just takes a bit of time. Trust me, though, it's worth it.
To start, I prepare some Naan dough. I dissolve a teaspoon of yeast and sugar in warm water until frothy, and while I wait, I sift together flour, baking powder, a bit more sugar, and salt.
Side note: That green bowl and blue-rimmed sieve pictured above are part of an awesome set of stacked bowls that I cannot get enough of. If you have limited storage space and find it hard to keep all of your mixing bowls and measuring cups together, check out the Joseph Joseph Nest 9 Plus Food Prep Set. It's like those adorable Russian nesting dolls, but for the kitchen.
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But I digress! Back to the Naan!
So after the dry ingredients are all sifted together and the yeast is activated, they both get mixed together with ¼ cup of greek yogurt and bit of olive oil. The dough seems at first like it's too wet, but it will turn into a soft dough in just a few minutes of mixing and be ready to rise.
While I let my dough sit, I prepare the Butter Chicken! First I marinate some chicken thighs in a mixture of yogurt, lemon juice, and spices, and stick it in the refrigerator. I let it sit for about an hour and use that time to chop up my onion, jalapeño, garlic, and ginger, and then clean up whatever mess I've already made in the kitchen.
When the chicken is ready, I saute everything I chopped in butter and oil, and then pour in the chicken and marinade. Next comes some chicken stock, and then some cream, mixed veggies, and tomato paste. That's all it takes to make the filling! Try not to eat it all at this point, you need to save some for your pot pie!
Then I simply fill my mini baking dishes with the Butter Chicken, divide my dough, and stretch the dough on top of each dish. They're all ready for the oven! If you prefer, you can just make one big pot pie instead.
Once the Naan turnes golden, I remove the pot pies from the oven. Typically, Naan is a bit lighter in color with brown bubble-spots from cooking directly on a baking sheet, stone, or in a pan, but here it isn't getting direct contact with a heat conductor, so it comes out looking a bit different. Still, it has the same characteristic flavor with just a bit more crispiness on the outside.
I brush my Naan-topped pot pies with a bit of melted butter and sprinkle it with large grains of salt and some cilantro, and then dig in.
I didn't find it surprising that I love the Butter Chicken Pot Pie with Naan Crust, but I was shocked that James devoured his the first time I made it. Throughout our entire relationship, he has shied away from anything even remotely resembling Indian cuisine, but he practically licked the mug clean with these!
I can't say I blame him.
Butter Chicken Pot Pie with Naan Crust
- Total Time: 2 hours 35 minutes
- Yield: 6
Ingredients
For the Naan Top:
- 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour, plus more to dust
- 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to top
- ⅛ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ cup Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted, to top
- Cilantro, to top
For the Butter Chicken:
- 1 ½ cups Greek yogurt
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoons garam masala
- 2 tablespoons cumin
- 1 tablespoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs, cubed
- 4 tablespoons (½ stick) butter
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 1 large white onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons ginger, minced
- 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
- ½ cup chicken stock
- 1 ½ cups frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
- 1 cup cream
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
Instructions
- Start by preparing the Naan dough. In a glass measuring cup, combine the dry yeast, 1 teaspoon sugar, and ¾ cup warm water. Let it sit for 10 minutes, or until foamy. Meanwhile, sift the flour, salt, remaining 1 teaspoon of sugar and baking powder into a large bowl.
- When the yeast is ready, mix the Greek yogurt and olive oil into the yeast mixture. Pour into the dry ingredients and mix. When the dough is nearly formed, use your hands to mix and knead until a soft dough forms. Cover and let rise in a warm area for 2 hours.
- While you wait, put together the chicken marinade. Combine the Greek yogurt, lemon juice, garam masala, cumin, turmeric, paprika, salt, and cinnamon in a large container. Add in the chicken thigh pieces and mix well to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour.
- After an hour, melt 4 tablespoons butter with 2 tablespoons oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add in the diced onion and saute until softened, stirring often. Add in the garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant.
- Add the diced tomato, jalapeno, chicken, and chicken marinade, and cook for 10 minutes. Add in the chicken stock and bring to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer. Simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
- Mix in the vegetables, cream, and tomato paste and continue to cook for 5 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Spray 6 oven safe mugs or one casserole dish with cooking spray.
- Fill the mugs or casserole dish with the Butter Chicken. Set aside.
- On a lightly dusted surface, turn out the dough. Divide into 6 equal pieces and gently stretch to cover the tops of the mugs. Gently press to the sides of the mugs to adhere.
- Bake until golden, about 15 minutes.
- Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with salt and cilantro, if desired. Serve warm.
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 35 mins
Karen @ On the Banks of Salt Creek says
Brilliant!
It looks so tasty . And how cute in mugs.
I'll be trying this.
Frannie says
This looks fantastic! Hoping to make it this weekend. Do you know how big of a casserole dish/cast iron pan (?) would be right to use if just making one big pot pie?
Morgan says
I have to guesstimate because I've only made mine in the mugs, but I believe that a 8 x 8" baking dish would be best.
jennifer niles says
i am so excited to try this recipe. chicken pot pie and indian food are two of the favorites in my house. thank you for the inspiration!
Alifemoment says
Love the recipe and the photography! Well done!
Kate says
Morgan! You are a genius. This looks so good, you are one smart cookie!!
Thalia @ butter and brioche says
WOW this is seriously delicious. Butter chicken in pie form?? With a naan crust? Genius!
peter @feedyoursoultoo says
I am in love with this fusion idea. Got to try it!
bristol plasterer says
I love this recipe. One of my favorites. Thank you for sharing this.
Simon
Stephen Tremp says
I love chicken pot pies. I never thought to make them in a cup but it makes sense. Smaller portion size and fewer calories. I can't eat like I used to. I'm keeping this recipe.
Vince says
First, this is amazing! It blends the distinct flavors of Indian cuisine with American comfort food. I decided to make this in one dish vice the individual ramekins. You will need about a 2 qt. sized casserole to fit this in; I used a ~10x10 inch ceramic casserole and it fit fine. I would suggest just a couple of minor changes, but these, of course, are to taste.
First, even though this is "butter" chicken, I had a hard time using 4 tablespoons of butter; 2-3 work fine in the filling without compromising flavor. Second, I found that the butter chicken filling needed about 1 extra tablespoon of salt to bring out all of the flavors. When cooking the filling, I found it to be forgiving and cooking it on a higher temperature for 30 minutes reduces the liquid continent a bit, but that wasn't a bad thing since a cup of cream was soon to come. When making the naan, I suggest adding a few extra tablespoons of flour to make it more easily workable; think pizza dough consistency. Lastly, I made this on a week/work night...while this is doable, it does take some time to make this so I suggest saving it for a weekend. But really, once you have this, you will want to make it any day of the week.
YUM!
ekusedavies21 says
I knew I wanted to make an Indian-like crust for my curried pot pie filling. After going through the usual recipe websites, I Googled chicken pot pie with naan crust and found your lovely recipe for buttered chicken pot pie. I'm about to start my naan right now. Wish me luck. I'll be back to give a full report. BTW, I'm adding a bit of dill and cumin seed to mine. Cannot wait....
elisedavies21 says
Okay, it's been a few weeks since I tried this recipe and I'm finally getting back to writing about my results. First off, I only made the naan part of the recipe, since I had already made my curried chicken filling. I also have to admit that I made it "my own" by adding about a teaspoon of dill seed and a half teaspoon each of cumin seed and garlic powder to the dry ingredients. Other than that, I followed the recipe to the letter. So glad I did too. It was fabulous! I got enough dough to cover four large ramekins, plus two naan "loaves" (would've covered 6 ramekins if I had had enough filling).
The crust was golden and crispy on top, light and chewy underneath. The best naan outside of a good Indian restaurant I've ever had. Hubby could not get enough of it. Even when I reheated two of the ramekins and the crust got a little dark, it was still really delicious. This will be my new naan recipe for sure.
Thank you, Morgan, for a terrific recipe!
Emma Kaye says
This is a good time to read or listen to the Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken, a Vish Puri mystery by Tarquin Hall. Get it from your local library - always my first choice for all kinds of reading/listening materials.
Alex says
Can this recipe be frozen and cooked in the oven at a later time?
Sarah Rubinstein says
This recipe is a decent butter chicken, but not the best. Definitely add at least half a teaspoon of ground fenugreek to the butter and get it toasty if you want that real butter chicken taste.
Clara Edman says
I found this very soupy. I have cooked several Indian dishes, but nothing ever turned out like this one. It is like a soup with a crust. Not what I expected.
Joleen says
Your love for indian food shows in your cooking! This recipe was cleverly delicious!! My 3 and 5 year old were picking at the pot pie throughout dinner, after finishing their plates! Thank you so much Morgan I look forward to making more of your food!