Dutch Oven Creamy Chicken Stew

Creamy chicken stew on the stove is delicious. Use fresh or leftover rotisserie chicken, carrots and potatoes to make this easy one pot meal. If you loved our Dutch Oven stew with beef you are going to love this version with poultry too.

Southern Creamy Chicken Stew

We will show you how to make this with fresh meat cut into bite size cubes. If yours is precooked then you’d add that later as you’d just be warming those pieces. You’ll want to simmer those veggies to tender first so it all melds together in your pot at the same time. Breasts or chicken thighs work well for this.

We first made Instant Pot chicken stew at home and that was fabulous. BUT as always I want to share how to make stew on the stovetop too so you could choose which you prefer. As for the veggies fresh is best but you could use frozen without the potatoes for a quicker cook.

Ingredients

• Chicken boneless, cubed, thighs used
• Salt and pepper are basics
• 8-10 slices bacon
• 1 onion diced or sliced thin
• Mushrooms sliced, I like portabella
• Celery diced
• Minced garlic
• 3/4 tbsp thyme
• 4 c chicken broth
• 3 tbsp butter or vegan based dairy free stick
• Soy sauce, yes seriously or aminos are gluten free
• 1/3 c all purpose flour to thicken
• Red potatoes cubed into bite size pieces
• 4 carrots peeled and cut into dials, some love halved fresh green beans too

Can you make stew with frozen chicken?

You could make this with frozen chicken thighs instead but I’d choose small sizes and will take longer to cook to proper internal temperature of 165 F. The main thing to remember is to separate them from one another first so they can get tender as they boil in the sauce.

Dairy Free Option

This is easier to make dairy free than our Instant Pot creamy chicken is since that one uses canned condensed soup that is hard to mimic. Since this is from scratch you can make many more substitutions and plant based vegan butters and milks work well.

Can you substitute frozen vegetables for fresh?

If you wanted to make it easy prep you could use bagged frozen veggies. I would use larger pieces so they still stay somewhat firm in the 30 minutes or so it cooks. You really could tweak this in a number of different ways like that, yes.

Can you cook chicken and beef together?

You could add another protein like beef stew meat or or make a Venison Stew Recipe like this with your chunks of chicken together. You may want to swap out the broth to a deeper flavor in this case.

Can you use coconut milk instead of regular milk?

Just like with our Crockpot Chicken and Gravy you can use lactose free dairy products like coconut milk if you like. There isn’t really a difference in that regard other than this canned version is sweeter. I have used a vegan plant based butter product before too which tastes almost the same.

How to Make Chicken Stew in Dutch Oven

• Arrange chicken in a bowl and season with salt and pepper.
• Set aside. In a large pot, cook chopped bacon over medium heat for about 7 – 8 minutes or until bacon is cooked.
• Using a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to a plate lined with paper towel. Leave grease in pot.
• Add mushrooms, onion, celery, garlic and thyme to pot.
• Cook, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes. Increase heat to high and add 1 cup broth and soy sauce. Make sure to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of pot.
• Bring ingredients to a boil. Stir occasionally while cooking until liquid evaporates and vegetables begin to sizzle This will take about 15 minutes. Add butter and melt.
• Sprinkle flour all over vegetables and stir until coated.
• Slowly whisk in remaining broth until consistency is smooth. Add bacon, potatoes, and carrots. Stir until blended. Cook, uncovered for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Turn stove up to high. Using a wooden spoon, scrape down sides while stirring. Add chicken, and bring to a simmer. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally for about 45 minutes more.

If making as a pre cooked chicken recipe it wouldn’t take nearly as long as this to get tender chicken and veggies. Serve seasoned with salt and pepper to taste.

This is a simple process and can be done using various methods. Here are some common techniques to do this well. You can;

How to thicken stew

Use a Flour or Cornstarch Slurry: Mix 1-2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour or cornstarch with an equal amount of cold water to create a smooth paste or slurry. Gradually whisk the slurry into the simmering stew, stirring constantly. Continue to simmer and stir for a few minutes until the stew thickens to your desired consistency.

Use a roux which is a mixture of fat (usually butter or oil) and flour that’s used to thicken sauces and stews. In a separate pan, melt 2-3 tablespoons of butter or heat an equal amount of oil over medium heat. Add an equal amount of all-purpose flour to the melted fat and whisk continuously. Cook for a few minutes until it turns a light golden color.

• Gradually add the roux to the simmering stew while stirring. Be careful not to add it all at once to avoid lumps.
• Simmer the stew for a few minutes to cook out the raw flour taste and allow it to thicken.

What can you use to thicken chicken stew other than cornstarch?

You can use instant potato flakes or leftover mashed potatoes to thicken soups and stews as well. Simply sprinkle potato flakes into the simmering pot while stirring until it reaches the desired thickness. If using mashed potatoes, whisk them into the stew to incorporate and thicken it.

Fresh or dried bread crumbs can be used as a thickening agent as well. Crushed crusty bread works, croutons mashed, or canned crumbs. Add them gradually to the simmering stew, stirring continuously until the desired thickness is achieved.

Sometimes, you can simply simmer uncovered for an extended period to allow excess liquid to evaporate and naturally thicken it, or add less chicken stock initially.

Slow Cooker Chicken Stew option

If you instead wanted to use your Crock pot to make this you could. Low and slow is a great option and makes it so that you don’t have to watch it for over an hour on the stove. You would basically follow the same timing as our Slow Cooker Beef Stew with Onion Soup Mix which is adding all the ingredients for 6-8 hours.

No need to brown the meat because it will cook in the liquid over the entire day. Follow instructions and jump to recipe card below to get started friends!! If you have some left you can store leftovers once cooled in airtight containers in the fridge. Reheat in the microwave for about 1 minute stirring halfway thru.