Learn how to make Pennsylvania Dutch chicken pot pie which is not actually a pie at all but more like a soup or a stew. It includes delicious homemade noodles for the ultimate comfort food dinner everyone will love.
I was fortunate enough to marry a wonderful man who grew up near Pennsylvania Dutch country (Lancaster County) with an Italian mother, and a father who was a chef. Sadly both are now deceased but we are reminded of them through extended family and our own children. One of the many recipes I have learned from my mother-in-law was her Chicken Pot Pie dish.
Ingredients
- 1 chicken
- celery
- carrots
- onion
- flour
- salt
- black pepper
- baking soda
- eggs
- butter
- potatoes
- green beans
What's Pa Dutch Chicken Pot Pie?
I know it's not Italian but my mother-in-law, Millie, was such a great cook, she could make just about anything. Growing up in Pittsburgh, with my own mother of German descent, I had never had Chicken Pot Pie like this one.
You see it wasn't a pie. It's more like chicken and dumplings. There is no pie crust, but there are homemade noodles in the dish. It has the same flavor but the taste and texture is more like a stew, a delicious stew, sometimes referred to as "boiled pot pie."
It's not too difficult to make though a little time consuming but worth every minute, much like making chicken noodle soup from scratch.
This recipe uses parts of the chicken including breasts, thighs, legs, and wings. They are cooked with onions and carrots in water and then removed to cool. Once cooled the meat is pulled and shredded to be added back into the broth later.
Making Homemade Noodles
The noodles are made with flour, eggs, butter, and enough water to make a ball of dough. The dough ball is rolled out thinly on a flour covered surface and then cut into small pieces with a pizza cutter.
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To be honest I struggle with rolling out the dough. My impatience gets the better of me and it's usually a little too thick. Here's a pic of my husband doing a much better job.
Cooking Tip
When you add the dough pieces into the chicken broth I have been told that you need to drop them one by one into the bubbling area of the soup. This takes a little time but it's a great way to get the kids involved.
Over the years we've added green beans for color and a little healthy vegetable add-in. Fresh parsley works well here too.
On occasion, Millie would make a baked chicken pot pie. I never got her recipe but it seemed to be pretty much the same instead of boiling the dough in the shape of noodles, she would use the dough to top a 9 x 13-inch baking pan. I've since then made a similar chicken pot pie casserole and it was great, but mainly we stick to Millie's original soup version.
It's warm and hearty and many of my own siblings ask us to make it quite often. What about you? Do you have any special family recipes? Have you ever had Chicken Pot Pie served in a bowl with no pie shell?
More Pennsylvania Dutch Recipes:
Millie's Chicken Pot Pie
Ingredients
- 1 chicken cut into parts (I often just buy parts)
- 4-5 ribs of celery - chopped
- 3 carrots - chopped
- 1 medium onion - chopped
- 4 medium potatoes
- ½ bag frozen green beans
Homemade Noodles
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- pinch of black pepper
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 large eggs - slightly beaten
- 1 tablespoon softened butter
Instructions
- Saute celery, carrots, and onions in some vegetable oil in a large stockpot. Add chicken. Cover the chicken with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 1 - 2 hours or until the chicken is falling off the bone.
- Remove chicken from stock and let it cool. Skim the fat from the broth.
- Once the chicken has cooled remove it from bones and shred or chop it into bite-size pieces.
- Peel potatoes and chop them into 1-inch cubes.
- To make the noodles mix together flour, salt, pepper, and baking soda.
- Pour the flour mixture onto your counter. Make a well in the middle and add the eggs and butter into the well. Fold the mixture together and add enough warm water until you can make a non-sticky dough ball.
- Cut the dough in half and roll it out onto a floured surface until it is the size of a cookie sheet.
- Then cut the dough into 1-inch squares with a pizza cutter or knife.
- Bring the chicken stock back to a boil. Add the cut up potatoes.
- Then add the dough noodles one at a time, placing them where the bubbles are coming up. Stir in between.
- Cook for 1/2 hour. Then add in the shredded chicken and green beans. Simmer for about 10 minutes and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although attempts have been made to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
Lisa Heist
Hi Patti,
You are making me miss Millie's cooking but thanks for the idea of what to make this weekend! Hope your family is well.
Patti
Hi Lisa,
Everyone here is doing well. We miss Millie dearly and everyone on my side of the family loves her Pot Pie so I thought I'd share it. Hope you and yours are doing well too. Thanks for stopping by.
Patti
Barb Diffenderfer
Greetings from Manheim, Pa. Yes it's about to snow, ONE MORE TIME!!! Today was the first time I received all this fun through my email! Made chicken pot pie 2 weeks ago. Wonderful meal for this time of year. I always make and roll my own noodles. If you haven't tried this you must! Very easy to do, and a great way to save $$! The recipe I use is found in the Mennonite Cookbook, a book that is given as a wedding gift in these parts! This dough would not be good for top or bottom pie crust. Keep warm!
Patti
Hi Barb,
Love that you are using a Mennonite Cookbook recipe that you received as a wedding gift.
I'm not sure where my mother-in-law got her original recipe.
Thanks for stopping by and sharing the tip about crust too!
*Dottie
Here in the middle of PA Dutch country, Lancaster County, PA the version baked with a top crust is known as "chicken pie. " Love them both!
Patti
Thanks Dottie,
My husband's family is from York, PA. I used to love visiting the Central Market with all the great local merchants. I'll have to try your Chicken Pie version. Do you think the noodle dough would work or do you use more of a pie crust on top?
Dottie
Definitely a pie crust top! My grandmother made her's with nothing in side but chicken, gravy, sweet potatoes and white potatoes. I like to add carrots, peas and some onion and celery.
Patti
That's what I was thinking because the dough is basically an egg noodle but you never know. Better to ask someone with experience. Thanks for the tip. I'll try it next time.