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With just a handful of everyday ingredients, this filling and simple chicken stew recipe is a soul-warming meal on a chilly day! It requires only 15 minutes of prep.
You may also want to try my Crockpot Chicken Stew or easy Hamburger Stew next.
Why you’ll love it
On a brisk day or when you’re under the weather, a piping hot bowl of this hearty chicken stew is one of the only things that will do the trick. It’s got plenty of vegetables, tender chicken, and a richly flavored broth. Total comfort in a bowl in just an hour.
What makes my chicken stew stand out from others is the delicate hint of cream. It’s the ideal way to give this simple chicken stew a velvety quality without being heavy. I definitely recommend trying it as the perfect way to enhance this tasty stew!
What you’ll need
- Olive oil and butter – for sautéing
- Onion, celery, and carrots – a classic base for many soups and stews. I prefer Vidalia onions.
- Garlic – for more savory flavor
- Flour – to thicken up the broth
- Chicken broth – the base of the broth. Chicken stock works equally well.
- Heavy cream – just a little bit for that light, creamy touch
- Italian seasoning – I enjoy this versatile herb blend in a variety of my recipes
- Mushrooms – use either white or cremini
- Potatoes – Russets are a great pick for soups and stews
- Chicken – we’re using chicken breasts, and they cook right in the stew for ease
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- I like to make soups and stews in my 5.5 qt Dutch oven.
- The easiest way to never overcook or undercook chicken is using an inexpensive instant read thermometer. Chicken is done at 165F.
- A classic chef’s knife makes prepping the veggies a breeze.
How to make chicken stew
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Sauté the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic in a soup pot or Dutch oven in the butter and olive oil. Once softened, add in the flour and cook for a minute or so. Stir in the broth and make sure the flour is dissolved.
Pour in the cream, and add the Italian seasoning, chicken, potatoes, and mushrooms. Bring to a gentle boil, then decrease the heat and simmer, giving the occasional stir. Once the chicken is cooked, take it out and cut it up. Season with salt & pepper, and enjoy.
Substitutions and variations
- The cream in here keeps the chicken moist and gives the stew a slightly richer texture and flavor, but if you can’t have dairy, it should be ok to leave it out. I personally would keep it in if possible. It’s only 1/2 cup among six portions so not a big calorie concern. With milk or half-and-half, there’s a chance it’ll curdle due to the high heat and length of cooking time.
- If you’re not a fan of mushrooms, feel free to leave them out.
- You can easily make it a chicken thigh stew. Bonus: chicken thighs are less likely to dry out!
What to serve with chicken stew
- My favorite thing to serve with it is a freshly baked baguette, or choose your favorite kind of bread or a dinner roll. Garlic Bread is always a good idea.
- For a salad pairing, go for something comforting as well like a Classic Ranch Dressing or my personal favorite, this 10 Minute Caesar Dressing.
Leftovers and storage
- This is one of those stews that, in my opinion, tastes even better the next day after it thickens up a bit more and the flavors meld together. Store in the fridge for 3-4 days in an airtight container.
- Simply reheat in a saucepan on a low heat until warmed through.
- This chicken stew can be frozen since there’s only a small amount of cream in it.
More cozy soups and stews
If the blog post didn’t answer your questions about this homemade chicken stew recipe, ask below. Please leave a star rating and a review if you made it! As always, you can find me on Instagram.
Easy Chicken Stew
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 2 sticks celery chopped
- 3 medium carrots peeled & sliced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 3 cups chicken broth/stock
- 1/2 cup heavy/whipping cream
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 8 ounces mushrooms (use white or cremini) sliced
- 2 large Russet potatoes peeled & diced
- 1.5 pounds uncooked chicken breasts
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the oil, butter, onion, celery, carrots, and garlic to a Dutch oven or soup pot. Sauté over medium-high heat for 5-7 minutes.
- Stir in the flour and let it cook for about a minute.
- Stir in the chicken broth and ensure the flour has dissolved, then add in the cream, Italian seasoning, mushrooms, potatoes, and chicken.
- Increase the heat to high and bring the stew to a gentle boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer with the lid slightly open for 25 minutes. You may want to stir it a couple of times to ensure nothing is sticking to the bottom of the pot as it cooks.
- Take the chicken out of the pot and cut it up. Add it back in, then season the stew with salt & pepper to taste, and serve.
Notes
- This isn’t a super thick stew. It’s got quite a soupy texture (especially day 1). For leftovers it definitely thickens up a bit.
- I used 3 medium-to-large chicken breasts weighing around 1.5 pounds (anything in that ballpark is fine). Feel free to use chicken thighs. The meat is more likely to stay tender, especially after reheating.
- You don’t need to be exact with the potato weight. My two potatoes weighed 1.3 pounds total.
- This recipe is also in the soups chapter of the Salt & Lavender: Everyday Essentials cookbook.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
© Salt & Lavender Inc. Content and photographs are copyrighted. Sharing this blog post is much appreciated, but copying and pasting full recipes without authorization to social media is strictly prohibited.
This recipe was originally published on January 12, 2020. It’s been updated with new photos and better instructions but is the same great recipe!
Sounds yum ie! I use to make my version of chicken stew in the oven with whole pieces of chicken with basically the same ingredients. I haven’t made it in many years but yours is intriguing and it is one out in the stove! Thank you!
Let me know if you try it! 🙂
I added a jalapeno, chopped, and doubled the onion and garlic. I used skim milk since that is what I had on hand. Used 1 T of italian seasoning. Fantastic. Still creamy enough for me and my family.
Wonderful!!
DELISH!!
Wonderful! Thank you!
Cold rainy day on Vancouver Island, so nice to find you and your recipes! I added frozen peas and a bit of cornstarch near the end to thicken it a bit. Following you on insta now! Thanks, from Doreen
I’m so happy you enjoyed it! Hello from Alberta! Thanks for following along. 🙂
This one’s a keeper. I did a few things differently – didn’t have the cream, so I omitted it, used boneless thighs, garlic salt (instead of minced garlic/salt) and granulated onion powder. Lots of freshly ground black pepper. I had both beef and chicken broth on hand, so used them both. Added the flour in a slurry made with chicken broth towards the end, as I forgot to cook the flour early on. Also, a handful of frozen green peas towards the end adds to the color and nutritive content, and I just like green peas in a stew. Delicious recipe. Thanks!
I’m so glad it worked out!
I tricked my stew out with a lil more flare and added a whole jalapeño, diced and omg AMAZING!!! Tasted like green chilie soup and it was amazing. Thanks for the recipe!!
That’s great!! Love that idea.
Are boneless skinless thighs ok to use?
Hi Laura! Yes… they sure are. I even recommend them in the blog post since they’re more likely to stay tender. 🙂 They’re my personal preference too, but I know people often prefer chicken breasts.
This looks amazing. I found the chicken soup recipe first. I thoroughly read it because I’ve never added raw chicken to a soup before but it looks like that’s how you did it. Thanks for the comfort food recipes. I always make my grandmas chicken and noodles as comfort food but the soup and stew I plan to do soon.
Hi! Yes, I added raw chicken. If I may ask, how would you normally do it? Use already cooked or rotisserie chicken? Chicken doesn’t take too long to cook, and I really dislike overcooked chicken, so that’s why I do it this way in some recipes, haha. No need to double cook it unless you’re trying to use up leftover chicken or want a shortcut (I sometimes buy rotisserie chicken to save time). Let me know if you make the recipes and how you like them. 🙂
It was amazing! I omitted the Italian seasoning (my mom doesn’t like those spices) but it was still awesome. I have a cold and it made me feel so much better. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Ann! Hope your cold goes away soon. 🙂 XO
I made this and it was amazing!! Awesome flavors that remind me of my childhood at grandmas house!
Aww that’s so nice to hear! 🙂