Copycat Perkins Chicken Pot Pie (Flaky Crust, Creamy Filling)

This Copycat Perkins Chicken Pot Pie is the one you order on a cold night and eat straight from the crock: tender chunks of chicken, sweet peas, carrots, and potatoes swimming in a rich, creamy gravy, all tucked under a golden, flaky pastry crust. It tastes just like the Perkins classic and comes together in about an hour with simple ingredients.

Perkins has served this pot pie for decades, and it’s still one of the most-ordered dinners on the menu. What sets it apart from a frozen pot pie is the filling — it’s thick, savory, and seasoned with a little sage and thyme, not watery or bland. This copycat gets the gravy right first, then finishes with a buttery puff pastry top that shatters when you break into it.

If you love easy Copycat Perkins recipes, try my Perkins Mammoth Muffins, Copycat Perkins Restaurant Pancakes, or Perkins Potato Pancakes.

Why You Will Love This Recipe!

• Tastes just like Perkins — the same thick, creamy, herb-seasoned filling you get at the restaurant.
• Flaky golden crust — store-bought puff pastry gives you a bakery-style top with zero rolling.
• Real comfort food — warm, hearty, and filling. Perfect for chilly nights and Sunday dinners.
• Uses rotisserie chicken — a shortcut that saves 30 minutes and adds flavor.
• Freezer-friendly — make two and freeze one for a night you don’t feel like cooking.

What Is Perkins Chicken Pot Pie?

Perkins Restaurant & Bakery serves its chicken pot pie in an individual crock: slow-simmered chicken, vegetables, and gravy baked under a flaky pastry lid until bubbling and golden. It’s a full dinner on its own, usually served with a side salad or a Mammoth Muffin. This copycat recreates the crock-style version in individual ramekins, with directions for one large family-size pie too.

Perkins Chicken Pot Pie Ingredients

Full measurements are in the printable recipe card below.

For the filling:

• Cooked chicken — 3 cups shredded or diced. A rotisserie chicken is the easiest, or use leftover baked chicken breasts.
• Butter — the base of the gravy and the flavor of the whole dish.
• Onion, celery, and carrots — the classic pot pie trio, diced small so they soften evenly.
• Yukon Gold potato — one small potato, diced. Perkins’ filling has tender potato bits in it.
• Garlic — one clove, minced.
• All-purpose flour — thickens the gravy.
• Chicken broth — use a good-quality broth; it’s most of the flavor.
• Heavy cream — makes the gravy rich and creamy like the restaurant’s.
• Frozen peas — stirred in at the end so they stay bright and sweet.
• Dried thyme and rubbed sage — the seasonings that make it taste like Perkins.
• Kosher salt and black pepper — to taste.

For the crust:

• Puff pastry — one sheet, thawed. This gives the flaky, layered top Perkins is known for. Refrigerated pie crust works too.
• Egg — beaten with a splash of water for a shiny golden top.

How to Make Copycat Perkins Chicken Pot Pie

Step One: Sauté the vegetables. Preheat the oven to 400°F. In a large skillet or Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots, and potato and cook 6 to 8 minutes, stirring, until the onion is soft and the carrots have started to give. Add the garlic and cook 30 seconds more.

Step Two: Make the gravy. Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and stir constantly for 1 to 2 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste. Slowly pour in the chicken broth, whisking as you go, then add the cream. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook 5 minutes, until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Step Three: Add the chicken and seasonings. Stir in the chicken, peas, thyme, sage, salt, and pepper. Taste and adjust — the filling should be well-seasoned since the crust is plain. Remove from the heat.

Step Four: Fill the crocks. Divide the filling among four 12-ounce oven-safe ramekins or crocks (or pour it all into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate). Leave about ½ inch of space at the top.

Step Five: Top with pastry. Unfold the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface and cut it into four squares slightly larger than your ramekins. Drape one over each crock, pressing the edges against the rim to seal. Cut a small slit in the center of each for steam. Brush with the beaten egg.

Step Six: Bake. Place the crocks on a baking sheet and bake 20 to 25 minutes, until the pastry is puffed, deep golden, and the filling is bubbling at the edges. Let rest 5 minutes before serving — the filling is very hot.

Family-Size Version

Pour the filling into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate, top with a full sheet of puff pastry or a rolled pie crust, seal the edges, cut vents, and brush with egg. Bake at 400°F for 30 to 35 minutes.

Recipe Tips

• Cool the filling slightly before adding the pastry. Piping-hot filling melts the butter in puff pastry before it can puff. Five minutes off the heat is enough.
• Don’t skip the sage. It’s subtle, but it’s the flavor that makes this taste like Perkins rather than a generic pot pie.
• Dice the vegetables small. Perkins’ filling has small, even pieces so every spoonful has a bit of everything.
• Thicker is better. If your gravy looks thin, simmer it a few extra minutes. It should be thick enough to hold its shape on a spoon before it goes under the crust.
• Use the air fryer for a quick reheat. Individual crocks reheat beautifully at 320°F for 8 to 10 minutes and the crust re-crisps.
• Make it a Perkins night. Start with a warm Perkins Mammoth Muffin and serve the pot pie with a simple side salad.

What to Serve With Chicken Pot Pie

Pot pie is a full meal, so keep sides light:

• A crisp green salad with a simple vinaigrette
• Steamed green beans or roasted broccoli
• Warm dinner rolls or Jason’s Deli Sweet Cornbread
• A cup of Jason’s Deli French Onion Soup for a soup-and-pot-pie combo

Storing

• Storing: Cover leftover pot pies and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
• Freezing (unbaked): Assemble the crocks, wrap tightly in plastic and foil, and freeze up to 3 months. Bake from frozen at 400°F for 40 to 45 minutes, covering loosely with foil if the crust browns too fast.
• Freezing (baked): Cool completely, wrap, and freeze up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
• Reheating: Bake at 350°F for 15 to 20 minutes, or air fry at 320°F for 8 to 10 minutes. The microwave works but the crust will soften.

Copycat Perkins Chicken Pot Pie FAQs

Can I use pie crust instead of puff pastry? Yes. Refrigerated pie crust gives you a more traditional flaky top. Roll it slightly thinner than it comes, cut to size, and bake the same way. You can also line the crocks with a bottom crust if you like a double-crust pie.

Can I use canned chicken or leftover turkey? Both work. Leftover Thanksgiving turkey is especially good here — it’s a great way to use it up.

Can I make the filling ahead? Yes. The filling keeps in the fridge for 2 days. Reheat it gently on the stove until warm, then fill the crocks and top with pastry right before baking.

Why is my filling watery? The gravy needed a few more minutes to thicken before it went in the oven, or the vegetables released extra water. Simmer the filling until it’s thick and holds on a spoon.

Can I make this in the Instant Pot? You can make the filling in the Instant Pot using the sauté function for the vegetables and gravy, then finish the pies in the oven for the crust.

Can I make it dairy-free? Use dairy-free butter and swap the cream for full-fat oat milk or unsweetened coconut cream. Check that your puff pastry is dairy-free (many are).

More Copycat Restaurant Recipes

• Perkins Mammoth Muffins
• Copycat Perkins Restaurant Pancakes
• Perkins Potato Pancakes
• Denny’s Slow Cooked Pot Roast Bowl
• Copycat Outback Walkabout Soup
• Browse all my copycat recipes

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