The classic and ever-comforting chicken pot pie (one of my all time favorite fall dishes) meets chicken salad with this deliciously addicting recipe. I know that I should be thinking about warming soups and stews right now, but we’re having hot weather here in Los Angeles yet again, and so my brain is still in summer mode. The great thing about this Chicken Pot Pie Salad though is that you can make it all year long. It’s comforting, but light at the same time, thanks to the homemade tarragon dressing. Serve warm, room temperature or cold right from the fridge. Did I mention that biscuits are involved? It’s always a good day when biscuits are involved.
Let’s start with the chicken salad. Set a large skillet over medium heat with the butter. Once melted, add in the onion and garlic and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. We’re not looking to brown the onions, but rather just soften them up a bit.
Stir in the celery and carrots and season with a pinch of salt and pepper and the thyme. Cook, stirring often, until the vegetables have softened, about 5 to 8 minutes.
**Note: To ensure that the carrots don’t take forever to cook, while the rest of the veggies just turn to mush, I cut the carrots in half lengthwise, and then cut them into very thin half moon shapes. You want them as thin as possible!**
Add the shredded chicken and peas and cook for a minute or two just to warm through. Remove from the heat, transfer to a large bowl and set aside.
**Note: This is a great recipe to make when you have leftover chicken! But you can also use store-bought rotisserie chicken that you remove the skin and bones and then just shred. Or you an boil chicken breasts in chicken stock and then just shred!**
To make the dressing, whisk together the lemon zest, lemon juice dijon mustard, garlic, honey, and tarragon in a large measuring cup. Slowly stream in the oil while whisking until the dressing comes together in a homogenous mixture. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper according to your tastes.
**Note: You can make the dressing a couple days in advance and keep it in the fridge until ready to use. Just allow the dressing to thaw a bit before using.**
Pour half of the dressing over the chicken mixture and toss to evenly combine. Give it a taste and adjust the seasoning accordingly, adding more salt or pepper as needed.
Now, let’s talk about the biscuits. You can’t have pot pie without some kind of biscuit or pie crust, and so I like to serve this salad with a biscuit to bring out that classic pot pie flavor. I’m using everything bagel buttermilk biscuits for this recipe, but I’ve made so many biscuits on the site, I figured you didn’t need a step-by-step demo of that. If you do, you can check out this sandwich post for my biscuit recipe. The only difference is that I brushed the biscuits with egg wash before baking and sprinkled with everything bagel seasoning mix.
**Tip: You can most definitely use store-bought biscuits for this recipe, if you don’t want to make homemade biscuits from scratch. I want this to be as easy as possible.**
Arrange the butter lettuce onto a large platter or individual plates. Top with the chicken salad and drizzle each with some of the leftover dressing. Serve with a biscuit and enjoy!
The great thing about this recipe is that you can eat it warm, room temperature or even cold! Make it ahead of time and keep it in the fridge until ready to serve. It’s a great recipe to keep in the fridge for quick and simple lunches throughout the week.
I love the lightness of this recipe, because the dressing it olive oil based and doesn’t feel so heavy. With that being said though, if you want to make it a creamier chicken salad, you can cut the olive oil in the dressing in half and whisk in about 1/4 cup mayonnaise to it.
**Note: You’ll have leftover dressing which you can keep in the fridge for other purposes or to reinvigorate the salad if you make it early on, since it’ll dry out in the fridge.**
I hope you’ll give this recipe a try soon, especially if you’re craving classic comfort food like chicken pot pie but don’t want to go through all of the steps of making it or want it but don’t want something that heavy. This is one of my new favorite salads that transcends seasons and can really be made all year long. If you give it a try, let me know what you think below!
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 medium stalks of celery, thinly sliced
- 2 medium carrots, peeled, cut in half and thinly sliced
- Kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- 2 cups shredded chicken, both white and dark meat
- 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
- 16 ounces butter lettuce mix
- 6 biscuits (store-bought or homemade)
- Zest and juice of 1 large lemon
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1 garlic clove, grated
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ¾ cup olive oil or canola oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Set a large skillet over medium heat with the butter. Once melted, add in the onion and garlic and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Stir in the celery and carrots and season with a pinch of salt and pepper and the thyme. Cook, stirring often, until the vegetables have softened, about 5 to 8 minutes. Add the chicken and peas and cook for a minute or two just to warm through. Remove from the heat, transfer to a large bowl and set aside.
- To make the dressing, whisk together all of the ingredients (except for the oil) in a large measuring cup. Slowly stream in the oil while whisking until the dressing comes together in a homogenous mixture. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper according to your tastes. Pour half of the dressing over the chicken mixture and toss to combine. You'll have leftover dressing for topping later on or if you make ahead of time, you can add more to the salad, as it'll dry up a bit in the fridge.
- Arrange the butter lettuce onto a large platter or individual plates. Top with the chicken salad and drizzle each with some of the leftover dressing. Serve with the biscuits and enjoy!
This sounds (and looks) so good and so fun! I can’t wait to make it!
I hope you enjoy it! You’ll have to let me know what you think!