Chicken Shepherd’s Pie

This Chicken Shepherd’s Pie has juicy chicken and mixed vegetables smothered in a savory gravy filling and topped with creamy mashed potatoes. Use leftover chicken or mashed potatoes for an easy shortcut!

Be sure to serve this with my Buttermilk Biscuits or Cheddar Bay Biscuits. 

Chicken Shepherd’s Pie

When you have a craving for Shepherd’s Pie and Chicken Pot Pie at the same time, what else do you do but create the world’s best comfort food mashup?!

This is a great recipe if you have leftover chicken or mashed potatoes to use up, although nothing beats the homemade flavor of cooking fresh chicken in some chicken broth and reserving that broth for this savory filling. 

Pair this with some buttermilk biscuits and you’ll have your family licking their plates clean!

How to Make It

See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.

Gently boil the chicken in chicken broth for 15 minutes, or until cooked through. Shred the chicken and set aside. Reserve the chicken broth for the filling. 

Meanwhile, sauté onions in butter for 4 minutes. Add garlic and seasonings and cook for 1 minute. 

Add flour and stir continuously for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low and add 2/3 of the reserved chicken broth along with half and half in small splashes over low heat, stirring continuously.

Add the shredded chicken and simmer and reduce for 10-15 minutes. While it simmers, add additional splashes of the remaining chicken broth until desired consistency is obtained. (I add about 3/4 of the remaining cup.) Mix in the frozen vegetables and allow them to heat through, then remove from heat.

Let the filling cool slightly and transfer it to an oven/broil-safe baking dish if needed. Gently place scoops of warm mashed potatoes on top, close together. Then gently spread it with a silicone spatula, being careful not to press down too hard.

Use a fork to “rake” a design on the top if desired. Bake uncovered at 450° for 10 minutes, then broil at 550° for about 4 minutes. Garnish with parsley and let it sit for 5 minutes prior to serving with buttermilk biscuits! 

Make-Ahead Method

• Refrigerator: Assemble the filling and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Reheat the filling on the stove top or cover it and bake it in a 350° oven for 20 minutes. Top with warm mashed potatoes, and bake as instructed.
• Freezer: Assemble the filling and store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let it thaw for 24 hours in the refrigerator. Reheat the filling on the stove top or cover it and bake it in a 350° oven for 20 minutes. Top with warm mashed potatoes, and bake as instructed.

Pro Tips

• Chicken: 2 ½ lbs. bone-in chicken may also be used as that adds a great amount of flavor. Alternatively, you can use 3 cups leftover or rotisserie chicken. If using leftover chicken, no need to simmer it in chicken broth first.
• This is a great meal to serve with my easy Buttermilk Biscuits or Cheddar Bay Biscuits.
• Be sure to try my Easy Shepherd’s Pie and my Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuits next! 😉

Storage

• Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Tools For This Recipe

(Amazon affiliate links)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.

• 3.5 quart Braiser– This is the skillet I used that’s pictured in this recipe. It’s the perfect size for this and is what I use for many of my casseroles, pastas, and chicken dishes. 
• Food Storage Containers– These are what I use, they fit exactly 1 cup and are leak proof, microwave safe, stackable, and BPA free.
• Kitchen Scale: In case you need to weigh the chicken. (I use this all the time.)
• Measuring Spoons– To measure out the seasonings.
• Pinch Bowls– I measure out my seasonings ahead of time and add them to these small bowls so they’re ready to go when it’s time to add them.

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Chicken Shepherd's Pie

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

5 from 14 ratings

Servings: 6 people

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Chicken Shepherd's Pie is an easy dinner idea with chicken and vegetables smothered in a savory gravy filling and topped with mashed potatoes. This is a great recipe for leftover chicken or mashed potatoes.

Ingredients

US Customary - Metric

• ▢ 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs, see notes
• ▢ Salt/Pepper
• ▢ 3 cups chicken broth
• ▢ 4 Tablespoons butter
• ▢ ½ small yellow onion, finely diced
• ▢ 3 cloves garlic, minced
• ▢ ½ teaspoon EACH: Onion Powder, mustard powder, dried thyme, dried rosemary
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon EACH: Ground sage, black pepper
• ▢ 1/3 cup flour
• ▢ ½ cup Half and half
• ▢ 1 chicken bouillon cube , or 1 tsp better than bouillon
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• ▢ 2 cups frozen vegetables, (peas, carrots, corn)
• ▢ 5 cups warm mashed potatoes

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Instructions

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
• Pat the chicken dry and season with salt/pepper. Add 3 cups of chicken broth to a medium saucepan and add the chicken. Gradually bring it to a gentle boil. Let the chicken cook with the lid cracked for 15 minutes, or until cooked through. Don’t boil rapidly or the chicken will be tough. Remove the chicken and use forks to shred. Set aside and reserve the broth that the chicken cooked in.
• While the chicken cooks, melt 4 Tbsp. butter in a wide (12-inch) pan over medium heat. Add the onions and sauté them for 4 minutes. Add the garlic and seasonings. Toss to coat and cook for 1 more minute.
• Add the flour and toss to coat. Cook for 2 minutes or until you can no longer smell raw flour.
• Reduce heat to low. Add 2 cups of the reserved chicken broth in small splashes, stirring to incorporate. Add the half and half in the same manner. Adding the liquid too quickly will break the roux and interfere with the thickness of the gravy.
• Add chicken bouillon and 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce. Then add the shredded chicken and stir to combine.
• Increase heat to medium and continue to add splashes of the remaining 1 cup of chicken broth while letting the filling simmer, reduce, and concentrate for 10-15 minutes. I usually use ¾ of the remaining cup.
• Add the frozen vegetables and stir to combine and heat through. Remove from heat.
• Transfer filling to a lightly greased 9 x13-inch baking dish if your skillet isn’t oven/broil safe.
• Let the filling cool slightly, then carefully place scoops of warm potatoes on the top. Try to add several scoops that are all almost touching each other to eliminate the amount of spreading you’ll need to do. (See process shots in post above.)
• Use a silicone spatula to gently spread the warm potatoes in an even and smooth layer over the filling. Don't push down hard to ensure the potatoes stay on the top.
• If desired, use a fork to “rake” a design on the top. Place in the preheated oven and bake uncovered for 10 minutes.
• Set broiler to high (550 degrees), and let the top brown for about 4 minutes, watch it carefully during this time to ensure it doesn’t burn. Don’t do this with glass or Pyrex baking dishes.
• Remove and garnish with parsley. Let it sit for 5 minutes prior to serving.

Notes

Pro Tips:

• 2 ½ lbs. Bone-in chicken may also be used. Alternatively, you can use 3 cups leftover or rotisserie chicken. If using leftover chicken, no need to simmer it in chicken broth first.
• This is a great meal to serve with my easy Buttermilk Biscuits or Cheddar Bay Biscuits.
• Be sure to try my Easy Shepherd's Pie and my Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuits next! 😉

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Make-Ahead Method:

• Refrigerator: Assemble the filling and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Reheat the filling on the stove top or cover it and bake it in a 350° oven for 20 minutes. Top with warm mashed potatoes, and bake as instructed.
• Freezer: Assemble the filling and store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let it thaw for 24 hours in the refrigerator. Reheat the filling on the stove top or cover it and bake it in a 350° oven for 20 minutes. Top with warm mashed potatoes, and bake as instructed.

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Storage

• Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

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Nutritional facts are per serving. The number of servings are at the top of the recipe card in the middle, this recipe has 6 servings.

Nutrition

Calories: 522kcal, Carbohydrates: 57g, Protein: 41g, Fat: 15g, Saturated Fat: 7g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 124mg, Sodium: 931mg, Potassium: 1398mg, Fiber: 6g, Sugar: 2g, Vitamin A: 3441IU, Vitamin C: 58mg, Calcium: 76mg, Iron: 2mg

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Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Author: Stephanie