This dairy-free chicken pot pie recipe was originally shared with us by the mom behind the blog My Buddy Mimi. Her daughter, Mimi, had a milk allergy, so she adapted a popular Alton Brown recipe to be dairy-free. She sometimes makes it with curry, sometimes without – both ways are delicious. We’ve also increased the liquid in the recipe a bit, since the original version can come out a little too thick.
Special Diet Notes: Almost Alton’s Chicken Pot Pie
By ingredients, this recipe is dairy-free / non-dairy, egg-free, nut-free, peanut-free, and soy-free.
Almost Alton's Dairy-Free Chicken Pot Pie with Curry Option
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
This pot pie is modified from a recipe by Alton Brown, who I actually got to meet once. Very cool guy! The puff pastry gets a little chewy when you refrigerate the leftovers, but otherwise it’s pretty fool proof.
Author: My Buddy Mimi (former blogger)
Recipe type: Entree
Cuisine: American
Serves: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 4 cups frozen vegetable mix (peas, carrots, corn, etc.)
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 tablespoon + 2 tablespoons dairy-free buttery spread, divided
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ⅔ cup lite canned coconut milk or plain unsweetened dairy-free milk beverage
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 to 2 teaspoons curry powder (optional)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon fresh ground pepper
- 2 cups cubed or shredded cooked chicken
- 1 package puff pastry (Pepperidge Farm is dairy free)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400°F.
- Toss the frozen vegetables with the oil and spread them evenly onto a sheet pan. Bake until the vegetables are golden brown.
- Heat 1 tablespoon buttery spread in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the onion and celery and let them sweat.
- In another medium saucepan, heat the broth and coconut milk until hot, but not boiling.
- Add the remaining 2 tablespoons buttery spread to the celery-onion mixture and cook out the water. Add the flour and curry powder (if using) and cook, while stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes. Whisk in the hot liquid and cook, whisking often, until thickened. Whisk in the salt and pepper.
- Add the browned vegetables and the chicken to the sauce and toss to coat.
- Pour the filling into a shallow baking pan and top with puff pastry.
- Bake for about 25 minutes, or until the puff pastry has browned and the mixture is hot and bubbly.
More Comforting Dairy-Free Chicken Dinners
Oven-Fried Chicken
Mom’s Curry Chicken
24 Comments
Could you use a roll of crescents instead of puff pastry? I have all this on hand minus puff pastry!
That should work!
Does it have to be a canned milk? Or can I use milk I have off hand (oat milk in a carton, almond milk, etc)?
Canned coconut milk is a different product from milk beverages (the type in cartons that you can drink as beverages). It’s richer. As noted, you can use a milk beverage, but it won’t be as rich. I’m not personally a fan of oat milk for recipes, but a lot of people use it.
Can I use corn starch to thicken it instead of flour?
Cornstarch should work, but it creates a different consistency than the flour. I would use 2 tablespoons starch in place of the flour.
Hi Kristen, I can’t comment on the brand you might have purchased, but most brands of puff pastry are dairy-free by ingredients, including Pepperidge Farm (as noted in the recipe) and most generics. I have come across “butter puff pastry” from high end companies on line, but haven’t seen one at the store.
I just made this and then realize puff pastry has dairy..frustrating
My husband and I love this meal! It turned out wonderfully. I was wondering if you can use chicken broth and chicken stock interchangeably in this recipe or if it needs to be chicken broth?
Hi Hannah, chicken stock should work great. Technically, stock is salt-free (though many store-bought brands now contain salt). If it is lower sodium than what you are using, I would taste test after adding the salt and pepper to ensure the salt levels are still right.
Can this be frozen? If so how would you go about it?
Definitely! You can simply wrap and freeze the cooked pot pie and reheat in the oven, or wrap an unbaked pot pie in foil and freeze for up to 3 months. Bake it from frozen in a 400°F oven for 30 or 35 minutes. It will need a little more time when baking from frozen.
Can this be made ahead and reheated?
Yes, it definitely can!
Do you do this in a 9×13 baking dish? I’m preparing to make it this week!
That size should work well.
I have a package of Tenderflake Puff Pastry 397g. It states on the box that dough may be broken into 2 blocks. Should I be using the whole package for this recipe?
I believe that is close to a standard-sized package, so you might want to use it all. I’d look at it in comparison to your pan.
I was wondering, when cooking the vegetables in the oven, do you need to thaw them first?
No, you don’t.
This was great! I absolutely loved the flavors and was super impressed with how the coconut milk tasted in the filling. This was such an easy recipe to follow along with too! Thanks for sharing ☺️
So glad you enjoyed it Brittany!
This was sooo good! A comfort food without the guilt.
That’s wonderful – thank you for the feedback Jillian!