What potatoes go with chicken pie?
Mashed potato is the classic partner for chicken pie, soaking up the sauce without competing with the pastry. Buttered new potatoes are lighter, and roast potatoes suit a top-crust-only pie. Chips work in the pie-and-chips tradition, but two crisp starches on one plate is a rich combination.
By the chickenpie.net test kitchen · Published 10 July 2026
Why mash is the default
Pastry is dry-crisp and the filling is wet, so the best potato side bridges the two. Mash does exactly that: it catches escaping sauce, adds no extra crunch to fight the crust, and needs nothing but butter and seasoning.
Use a floury variety such as Maris Piper or King Edward, and keep the mash slightly loose. A very stiff mash next to a double-crust pie makes the plate heavy going.
Matching the potato to the pie
The more pastry on the pie, the lighter the potato should be. A full double-crust pie already delivers plenty of starch, while a skillet pie with only a lid leaves room for something more substantial.
| Pie style | Best potato | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Double crust | Buttered new potatoes | Light, and the pie provides the starch |
| Top crust only | Mash or roast potatoes | The plate can take more substance |
| Individual hand pies | Potato salad or none | Hand pies suit lighter, cooler sides |
| Pub-style with gravy | Chips | The pie, chips and gravy tradition |
Preparation notes
Time the potatoes around the pie, not the other way round. Mash holds happily in a warm pan for 20 minutes with a knob of butter on top, which covers the pie's resting time.
Roast potatoes are trickier because they want the oven at 200C (400F) or hotter, the same shelf space your pie needs. Either roast them first and reheat for the final ten minutes, or choose boiled new potatoes and dress them with butter, salt and chives just before serving.
Portion sizes stay modest because the pie brings starch of its own. Around 150g of potato per person is plenty next to a double-crust slice, rising to 250g alongside a top-crust pie. Leftover mash is no loss either, since it fries into potato cakes the next morning.