Easy Chicken Pot Pie With A Tater-Tot Topping

I don’t know about you but I love some chicken pot pie, especially with tater-tots on top. I first made this many years ago when both of my children were all about tater-tots with everything. lol. It has been a hit ever since. Now I love the traditional chicken pot pie with the pie crust but this is just a spin on it and it is every bit as delicious.

The cream sauce pairs really well with the crispy tater-tots. Sometimes I sprinkle over some grated cheddar cheese onto the top of the tater-tots before baking… a game changer for sure. This is one of my kids’ favorite meals.

Here is what you will need.

INGREDIENTS:

1 small pkg. Unseasoned Tator-Tots
4 to 5 Cups. Frozen mixed vegetables- thawed
2 Medium sized potatoes – peeled and diced small
1/2 Onion – diced
1 Clove Garlic – minced
2 Cups. Chicken broth
3/4 Cup. Milk
4 Tbsp. Butter
1/4 Cup. Flour
1 Lb. Chicken-cubed ( I use chicken thighs)
Salt and pepper – to taste
1/2 Tsp. Thyme

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a large Oven safe Skillet ( I use cast iron) over medium-low heat add the butter, potatoes, onions, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine and cook until the onions are tender and translucent. About 5 to 7 minutes. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 425*.
2. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds or until fragrant.
3. Add the mixed veggies and the thyme and stir to combine. Let this cook for about 3 minutes.
4. Add the flour and stir to coat the vegetables. Let this cook for about 2 minutes.
5. Slowly add the chicken broth and stir to thicken. Add the milk and stir. Keep stirring until the sauce has thickened. This should take about 5 minutes or so.
6. Once the sauce has thickened add in the chicken and stir to combine. Cook for another 10 minutes stirring to prevent the sauce from burning and sticking to the bottom of the pan. Remove from the heat. Add more salt and pepper to taste and stir to combine.
7. Add the tater-tots to the top of the vegetable mixture. Season the tater-tots with salt and pepper. You can make them look pretty if you like just make sure they are all mostly level on top so they cook evenly. Place the pan onto a sheet tray OR place the sheet tray underneath the pan in the oven to catch any drippings from the pan while baking.
8. Bake at 425* for about 30 to 40 minutes or until the tater-tots are golden brown on top and cooked through. The sauce should be nice and bubbly. Carefully remove from the oven and let cool for about 10 minutes or so before serving.

• If you do not have an oven-safe skillet just make everything in a large skillet and transfer to a 9×13-inch greased baking dish.
• If you do not like tater-tots you can add an uncooked pie crust to the top of the mixture before baking. Cut a few slits into the top of the pie dough, season with salt and pepper if you like, and bake until the crust is nice and golden brown and cooked through. Remove and let cool for 10 minutes or so before serving.
• I typically serve this with a side salad but you can serve this however you like.
• If you use fresh vegetables add them when you add the onions and potatoes. 1 cup diced carrots, 3/4 cup peas, 1 1/3 cups green beans, 1 1/3 cups diced celery. Cook until all of the vegetables are tender. About 10 minutes or so. You can play around with the measurements for the vegetables and add more or less of what you like.
• I typically buy a large bag of tater-tots and use what I need out of the bag for this recipe and we will make the remaining tater-tots for lunches or dinners when our dinners are something that will go with the tater-tots. lol. Something along the lines of sandwiches, burgers, wraps, or by themselves for a snack/lunch.
• You can also make this a beef pot pie. Swap out the chicken broth and milk for beef broth and/or beef consomme. Swap the chicken for beef. Dice the beef into small chunks and bake as stated above. The same goes for Turkey. Keep the chicken broth and milk and swap the chicken for diced turkey. Cook as stated above. Meat-free? No problem. Just add more vegetables and remove the meat.
• Add some grated cheddar cheese to the top of the tater-tots before baking for a delicious cheesy topping.