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The Kitchn: How to make leftover Thanksgiving turkey pot pie

Christine Gallary, TheKitchn.com on

Regardless of the size of your Thanksgiving gathering, one thing is always true: There will be leftovers. Some people, like my husband’s family, like the leftovers almost as much as the dinner themselves and roast the largest turkey they can so that there can be days of turkey sandwiches. Me? I tire quickly of eating the same foods, but what I do enjoy is making them over into something new and equally delicious.

Turkey pot pie is one of those magical makeovers: If you made turkey, gravy, pie and anything with herbs and mirepoix, then you actually have all the ingredients you’ll need to make a fresh-tasting dinner that’s just as good as the Thanksgiving meal itself. Here’s how to make this American classic, plus some tips on saving time with the prep (because you’ll probably be burned out with cooking after turkey day).

How to make turkey pot pie

This version of turkey pot pie is baked in a cast iron skillet (or any straight-sided large skillet) so that you can cook the filling in the pan on the stovetop, then continue baking right in the same pan. If you don’t have an oven-safe skillet, you can make the filling in a frying pan and pour it into a baking dish before topping with the crust and baking.

The filling starts with sauteing carrots, onions and celery with a little thyme, then building a white sauce with some butter, flour and a combination of broth and milk. Cooked turkey and a big handful of frozen peas get stirred into the filling before it’s topped with a pie crust, and a few slits are cut into the crust to let some of the steam vent out. Since the filling is already cooked, the pot pie just needs to bake until bubbling and the crust is golden-brown, about 20 minutes.

Some tips for prepping turkey pot pie

 

My absolute favorite part of making turkey pot pie is that you don’t really have to buy any ingredients that you wouldn’t already be getting for Thanksgiving. It also means that if you have the time, you can prep a lot of the ingredients at the same time you’re already prepping for Thanksgiving dinner.

If you get all these components taken care of, it’s amazing how quickly turkey pot pie can get onto the dinner table. But even if you have to do some chopping and prepping, it’s worth it to turn all these Thanksgiving ingredients and leftovers into a warming dinner that everyone will look forward to. Who knows: They may even request turkey pot pie again when it’s nowhere close to Thanksgiving.

Leftover Thanksgiving Turkey Pot Pie

Serves 4

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