Here’s my favorite pot pie recipe – A rustic vegetarian pot pie loaded with hearty veggies coated in a creamy gravy, and tucked in between two crunchy flaky pie crusts. This vegetarian-friendly pot pie is just as good as the traditional chicken pot pie, without the meat!
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If you ever had a chicken pot pie before, this vegetarian version will amaze you. The recipe skips the chicken and features some delicious veggies that recreate all the flavors from the original recipe. Even non vegetarian won’t miss the chicken in the recipe. Under a flaky golden crust, you will find a warm, hearty filling and a creamy gravy.
Comforting, filling, and just perfect to cozy up on a relaxing week night or to serve for Thanksgiving dinner, this vegetarian pot pie recipe is a winner!
The veggies you need for a vegetarian pot pie:
A vegetarian pot pie could be made with many different veggies of your choice. I deliberately chose to use the same veggies you would have in a traditional chicken pot pie to stay as close as possible to the original recipe. So here’s what you need for a vegetarian pot pie:
- Onions + garlic. They are essential to the recipe, bringing sharp and strong flavors.
- Carrots. You can either chop or slice them. In any case, pre-cook them together with the potatoes to ensure they are soft.
- Potatoes. Yellow, Yukon-type potatoes will be perfect for vegetarian pot pie. Dice them into about 2-inch (5 cm) bites or so. I always precook them first, together with the carrots.
- Celery. I like to dice it thinly, about the same size as finely chopped onions.
- Frozen peas. Note that you will not need to defrost peas before using.
- Mushrooms. I recommend cremini mushrooms. They add a meaty texture that is just perfect for the vegetarian version of a pot pie.
Don’t pass on the herbs and the seasoning! Thyme is an important ingredient of vegetarian pot pie. It has earthy and floral hints that adds layers of flavors without being overwhelming. Also, make sure you use enough salt to the recipe, it may seem a lot but this is what you need to make flavors pop. My personal touch when I make pot pie is to add some nutmeg. I discovered the trick from a pie shop in Chicago years ago, and to me it really makes the difference between a good and a great pot pie!
How to make vegetarian pot pie?
- Prepare the pie crust, divide in two, and let chill for 2 hours. If you plan way in advance, I recommend to freeze it, I find that it makes the crust even flakier. So good!
- Pre-cook carrots and potatoes in some boiling water until tender.
- Prepare the gravy. Saute onions and garlic in melted butter, add mushrooms, then whisk in flour, salt, black pepper, thyme, vegetable broth and cream. When ready, add the pre-cooked vegetables.
- Roll out the first dough, place in the bottom of pie dish and top with the filling.
- Roll out the second dough and use it to cover the pie, sealing and crimping the edges.
- Make a few slits on top, brush with beaten eggs, and bake until golden brown.
Important notes about the crust
To make this vegetarian pot pie, you will need one crust for the top, one for the bottom. Note that there are two schools when it comes to the pot pie crust:
- You can use one crust for the bottom and one for the top as I did to make a double crust vegetarian pot pie.
- Or you can go for the top crust only, used as a shield. Both options work just fine.
- I recommend you homemade pie crust for outstanding results, but if you are short in time you can go for store-bought pastry crust or even puff pastry.
- With pie crust leftovers, make individual pot pies. They are so cute and equally delicious!
- Make sure you always make a few slits in the top crust to allow steam produced when the pie bakes to escape.
- For a perfect golden crust, make sure you brush with beaten eggs just before baking.
- Always monitor baking closely and cover the crust with a piece of foil to prevent from browning if needed.
Can I swap/add ingredients?
Absolutely! If you want to stay as close as possible to the traditional chicken pot pie without the chicken, then stick to the ingredients listed above. If however you don’t mind these flavors, then you can use many different veggies. I recommend to keep onions and garlic for their sharp flavors, and add other veggies of choice. Potatoes can be replaced with (pre-cooked/steamed) cauliflower florets, broccoli, asparagus or green beans for instance, mushrooms can be skipped, and frozen peas can be completed with corn. Try to not overload with veggies, or you may be short in gravy. You want to make sure you have enough sauce to coat and make the filling creamy and comforting.
What to serve with vegetarian pot pie?
This vegetarian pot pie is traditionally served as a main. Because it is earthy and very filling, I recommend a side of salad to bring a touch of freshness. Here are a few options you may consider:
- A side of lettuce with vinaigrette.
- Roasted Squash, Figs, Spinach and Goat Cheese Salad (my favorite!)
- Spinach, Berry and Goat Cheese Salad with Lemon Poppy Seed Vinaigrette
More vegetarian pie/quiche recipes:
- Chicago-Style Deep Dish Pizza
- Root Vegetable Tarte Tatin
- Spinach and Mushroom Quiche
- Goat Cheese and Red Onion Tarte Tatin
- Beetroot, Blue Cheese and Walnut Tart
Vegetarian Pot Pie
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Savory
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
This rustic vegetarian pot pie is loaded with a creamy and hearty vegetarian filling tucked in between two crunchy flaky pie crusts. The best vegetarian-friendly pot pie out there.
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Ingredients
For the pie crust*:
- 3 ½ cup (15 ounces/420g) all-purpose flour
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 cup + 4 Tablespoons (10 ounces/280g) unsalted butter, diced
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- ⅔ cup (5 ounces/150 ml) water, or more if needed
For the filling:
- ⅓ cup (80g) butter
- ½ medium yellow onion, finely chopped
- 3–4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup (1 large stalk/80g) celery, finely chopped
- 1 ½ cup (about 3 carrots, 200g) carrots, chopped or sliced
- 1 cup (100g) mushrooms, chopped
- 1 ½ cup (2 small potatoes/230g) yellow potatoes, chopped
- 1 cup (120g) frozen peas
- ⅓ cup (40g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black or white pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 Tablespoon fresh thyme
- 1 ¾ cup (420 ml) vegetable broth
- ⅔ cup (160 ml) heavy liquid cream
- 1 egg, beaten (for brushing)
Instructions
For the crust:
- In a medium-sized bowl, mix together the flour and salt. Dice the butter into small pieces and crumble it with the flour until lumps are the size of small peas. Add sugar and stir well. Pour in the ice cold water, little at a time, mixing with a fork. Finish by hand and shape into a ball.
- Flatten the dough a little bit, wrap into cling film and chill in the refrigerator for about 2 hours.
For the filling:
- Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Grease the bottom and sides of a 9-inch (23 cm) pie dish with butter and dust with flour.
- Place the carrots and potatoes in a pan with just enough water to cover them. Heat over medium heat until soft, about 15 minutes. Drain all the vegetables. Set aside.
- Melt butter in a large skillet placed over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic and celery and cook for about 3 minutes, until tender. Add mushrooms and cook for one more minute. Whisk in the flour, salt, pepper, nutmeg and thyme. Slowly add the broth and cream, stirring frequently until thick, about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the peas, and stir in the remaining veggies.
- Roll out the first pie crust into a large circle, about 12-inch (30 cm) in diameter. Carefully place over the pie dish, prick with a fork and pour the filling over.
- Roll out the second pie crust and use it to cover the pie. Trim the extra overhang off the sides. Seal the edges by crimping with your fingers. With a small sharp knife, make a few slits in the top crust for steam to escape.
- Brush with beaten egg and bake for about 30 minutes or until crust is golden. Check the pot pie after 15 minutes, and place a piece of foil loosely over the top if the top starts to brown, then continue baking. Allow to cool slightly and serve!
Notes
* Note that this pie crust recipe makes 2 crusts, one for the bottom, the other one for the top part. If you happen to have any leftovers, make one or two individual pot pies in extra.
Did you make this recipe?
Lastly, if you make this Vegetarian Pot Pie, be sure to leave a comment and give this recipe a rating, letting me know how you liked it. And of course, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Thank you and enjoy!
Trace
Made this last year and it was SO GOOD. I just found the link again in my notes and am inspired to bake it again. Thanks!!!
Martha
I score this dish a 10 out of 10!
I have alot of inspiration to use other veggies in this pot pie!
Delphine Fortin
Awesome, thanks a lot!
Sarah Katherine Pulvere
When my son was born over 8 years ago, a friend of mine made me a pie, and it was literally the best pie I’ve ever had. I asked for his recipe, and he said that it’s a made up one and changes every time, but offered me this saying it’s pretty close to how he makes his. I made your pie this weekend and it was delicious! I will definitely make it again and include corn kernels and green beans next time, as my kids love those. This time I substituted the heavy cream with sour cream as that’s what I had on hand and I’ll probably do that next time because it was so good. Thank you for this recipe.
Del’s Cooking Twist
Oh how sweet! I am glad you found my recipe and liked it! Thank you so much for sharing your feedback!
Kim
Not a bad recipe, although I think the temp of 425 is too high. Could use more color.
All in all pretty good.
Auburn Webb
This is amazing. New family favorite for sure! We omitted the mushrooms and it’s still so good. The crust is so flaky!
Kathleen Nolan
Made this a couple of times. I do use some different vegetables and substituted 1/2 and 1/2 rather than cream. I also only used 1 crust that I bought (I really like Pillsbury and they make a better one than I do!). I’m trying to reduce the calorie count at least a little bit. It’s very tasty and I ate the whole pie by myself fairly quickly even though I thought it would take me long enough that I needed to freeze. I followed the seasoning according to the recipe and you won’t miss the chicken!
Delphine Fortin
Such a pleasure to read that you loved the pie and that you even baked it several times. I like the idea of using half and half rather than cream! Thanks for sharing your feedback with us! Del
Ben
Can I premake this and put it in the oven the next day?
Delphine Fortin
Hi! I would advise against that, because the filling may soak the crust. What you can do however is storing the pie crusts and filling separately in the refrigerator, then assemble the pie on the day of baking. This will spare you some precious time and the pie will taste fresh and crusty, exactly how we like it. I hope this helps! Del
Kate
Hey, this looks great but the instructions seem to omit the thyme. Is it just for garnish? Thanks!
Delphine Fortin
Hi Kate! Oh, sorry about that, I’ll double check now! Del