Let’s clear this up right off the bat biscuit: This is not a recipe for chicken and dumplings.
No part of the instructions requires you to hover over the stovetop dolloping spoonfuls of sticky dough into a simmering pot bubbling with broth.
If at some point in your life you’ve witnessed your own grandma performing this delicious act, congratulations! I’d guess you’re probably from the south, and that’s where I currently reside. But my grandma hails from New Jersey, and boy, can she unwrap a parchment paper package of smoked salmon in no time at all…
Grandmas aside, all of this is to say the adventure you’re about to embark on (if you dare to keep reading) may be a chicken stew with biscuits, but it’s not a chicken and dumpling stew. Any confusion herein likely stems from wondering where exactly the biscuits go.
And isn’t pondering, “Where do the biscuits go?” one of life’s most perplexing conundrums? No? Just me?
Moving on…
At its core, this is a recipe for a rich, hearty, veggie-laden stew that’s served with buttery biscuits.
Whether you choose classic buttermilk made from scratch or popped out of a can, go a little crazy with your bad self and whip up some cheddar garlic biscuits from scratch, or even swing into the nearest fried chicken shop for your flaky sidecars, there’s no way to do this incorrectly.
Some days I like to plop my biscuits directly on top of the dish, while I prefer to place the carby counterparts on the side at other times. As pertains to the latter, they tend to reach their ultimate destiny when they’re used to swipe up the diced potatoes that have undoubtedly dropped off of my spoon and onto my shirt.
It’s the aromatic and fresh veggie and herb base that really brings down the house when it comes to this chicken stew. And the beauty is that it’s truly built from scratch, as the whole thing is composed in your Dutch oven, from the bird up.
Speaking of birds, if you’ve skipped ahead and skimmed the recipe, I can already feel you tapping on my shoulder wondering about the following: can I swap in pre-cooked chicken (maybe shredded, from a rotisserie bird) to make my life a little easier?
Here are my thoughts.
When you construct a dish in one pot, you’re building flavor. The first step of this recipe is to brown the chicken, and that serves two purposes.
One: all of those yummy, crispy brown bits coat the bottom of the Dutch oven and ultimately, add a layer of flavor to the entire dish.
And two: browning a protein and then allowing it to finish its cooking journey in liquid is the best way to guarantee a tender, moist result. Though you could certainly fold in fully cooked chicken along with the peas and herbs (to avoid overcooking them), think about the following –
That initial sear on the chicken helped all of its juices to become trapped inside. So when you chomp into the succulent morsels, you’ll sense that they’re not only perfectly juicy, but that they have collected all of the remaining flavors in the pot as well, since they simmered their way to the finish line in the broth.
Still wanna talk about pre-cooked chicken? Not to get too Forrest Gump on you, but that’s all I have to say about that.
Moving on to the veggies. Though I absolutely recommend using creamy little Yukon Gold potatoes and parsnips to add even more thickness to the stew, the final veg selection can include whatever you prefer.
I have a hard time imagining anything chicken stew-related coming together without the trusty trio of onions, celery, and carrots, but maybe that’s just me. Golden beets or even butternut squash can add some sweetness and color.
Mushrooms bring earthiness, and you can get as wild as you want with them – like subbing in shiitakes for a bite that’s especially meaty.
Hate peas? My dad does, too. Leave them out. It’s your stew, after all.
And remember, whether you drop the biscuits directly on top, serve them steaming hot inside a linen-lined basket, or wear them on your head, it’s whatever floats your boat.
Or, biscuit, in this case.
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Chicken Stew with Biscuits
- Total Time: 1 hour, 5 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 servings 1x
Description
Flaky biscuits take this comforting chicken and veggie stew to the next level, while fresh parsley and thyme brighten everything up.
Ingredients
- 6–8 large biscuits (store-bought or homemade)
- 2 cups cubed chicken breast
- 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt, divided, plus more to taste
- 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided, plus more to taste
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup sliced white button or cremini mushrooms, trimmed with stems on
- 1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed and diced
- 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
- 2 parsnips, peeled and diced
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 2–4 cups low-sodium chicken stock
- 1 cup peas (fresh or frozen)
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
- 2–4 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2–4 tablespoons cold water
Instructions
- Bake the biscuits, if you haven’t already.
- Season the chicken with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. In a large Dutch oven, melt 1 tablespoon butter and heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and brown it on all sides, about 5 minutes total. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken to a plate.
- Add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter to the Dutch oven and reduce the heat to medium. Working in batches, saute the onions, mushrooms, potatoes, carrots, parsnips, and celery for about 10-15 minutes total. Stir occasionally, and saute until the onions are soft and translucent, and the other veggies have some color. Season with the remaining salt and pepper.
- Return the chicken and its juices to the pan and then pour in the stock, using less if you want a thicker finished product. Turn the heat up to high, and bring the liquid to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Cover the Dutch oven and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 15-20 minutes.
- Uncover the Dutch oven and stir in the peas, parsley, and thyme. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- In a small bowl, make a cornstarch slurry by whisking even amounts of the cornstarch and water until thoroughly combined, using 3 tablespoons of each for a thinner stew and 4 for a thicker consistency per 4 cups of stock. Turn the heat up to high and bring the stew back to a boil. Slowly pour the slurry into the stew in a thin stream, stirring constantly as you pour, and continue stirring until the broth has thickened, about 2 minutes.
- Reduce the heat and simmer for a few more minutes, until you can no longer taste the cornstarch. Serve the immediately with the warm biscuits.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Stew
- Method: Baking/Stovetop
- Cuisine: Comfort Food
Keywords: chicken, stew, biscuits
Cooking By the Numbers…
Step 1 – Make the Biscuits and Prep the Veggies
Bake the biscuits, if you haven’t already. Pre-baked biscuits can be warmed in the oven just before serving.
Chop the onion, slice the mushrooms, and dice the potatoes, carrots, parsnips, and celery. Chop the parsley and thyme.
Step 2 – Prep and Sear the Chicken
Cut the chicken into bite-size cubes and season it with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. I prefer to use freshly ground for the best flavor.
In a large Dutch oven, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter and warm up the olive oil over medium-high heat. The butter adds some richness, while the oil allows you to get a darker color on the outside of the chicken without the fat in the pan browning too quickly.
Add the chicken and brown it on all sides. This should take about 5 minutes total.
Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken to a plate. Reserve any remaining chicken juices that are in the pan as well, to add flavor to the stew when you add it back in.
Step 3 – Saute the Veggies
Add the remaining butter to the Dutch oven and reduce the heat to medium.
Adding a few handfuls of the vegetables at a time, either with each vegetable in its own batch or dividing a combination of all of the veggies into a few batches, saute the onions, mushrooms, potatoes, carrots, parsnips, and celery.
Be sure to stir occasionally, and avoid overcrowding the pan with raw ingredients. This should take about 10 to 15 minutes total. You want the onions to be soft and translucent, and the other veggies should take on some golden-brown color.
Adding these in batches is important, since it will allow you to saute the vegetables instead of steaming them, helping them to gain some color and texture.
Season the vegetables with the remaining salt and pepper.
Step 4 – Add the Chicken, Stock, and Herbs
Return the chicken and all of its juices that have collected on the plate to the pan, and pour in the stock.
You can choose to use 2 to 4 cups of liquid here, depending on how thick you like your stew. Just make sure the vegetables are covered, so they will cook through. You’ll have another chance to thicken up the finished product in the next step as well.
Turn the heat to high, and bring the liquid to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cover the Dutch oven and simmer the stew until the potatoes are tender. This should take about 15 to 20 minutes.
Uncover the Dutch oven and stir in the peas, parsley, and thyme. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Step 5 – Thicken and Serve
In a small bowl, make a cornstarch slurry by whisking even amounts of the cornstarch and water together until thoroughly blended. Use 3 tablespoons of cornstarch and water for a thinner stew if you started with 4 cups of stock, or 4 tablespoons for a thicker consistency.
Turn the heat back up to high and bring the stew back to a boil. Stream the slurry into the stew, stirring constantly as you pour, and continue stirring for about 1 to 2 minutes until the broth has thickened.
The liquid has to be brought to a boil in order to activate the cornstarch, and you want to make sure you pour the slurry in slowly rather than adding it all at once.
As a general rule of thumb, I like to use about 1 tablespoon of cornstarch per cup of stock for a medium-thick stew that’s thick, but not overly viscous. Thicken yours to your desired consistency.
Simmer for several minutes, tasting to make sure any starchy flavor from the cornstarch has cooked out. Serve the stew with the warm biscuits.
The Birds and the Biscuits
The cornstarch slurry and starch-heavy veggies thicken the broth and elevate this dish, making it more of a stew than a soup (not to mention the cooking process, and the quantity of liquid that’s used…). But remember: the final consistency is entirely in your hands.
Or technically, your whisk.
This recipe is great to add to your meal prep list for the week. When preparing this dish as a make-ahead meal (since most comfort food tastes better the second day, after the flavors have melded), I always keep some extra stock on hand to thin out the broth if necessary.
BTW, you might as well take your time making a killer homemade slow cooker chicken stock to start, since you’re already planning on hanging out in the kitchen.
Craving even more comforting stews to keep you warm? Cozy up to these recipes next:
I gotta know – where did your biscuits end up? Bobbing on top of the broth, or straight into your hand for scooping up every last bite? Share your carb-related comments below! And don’t forget to give this recipe a five-star rating if you loved it.
Photos by Fanny Slater, © Ask the Experts, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for more details. Originally published by Lorna Kring on April 22, 2015. Last updated on November 11, 2021.
Nutritional information derived from a database of known generic and branded foods and ingredients and was not compiled by a registered dietitian or submitted for lab testing. It should be viewed as an approximation.
About Fanny Slater
Fanny Slater is a home-taught food enthusiast based in Wilmington, North Carolina who won the “Rachael Ray Show” Great American Cookbook Competition in 2014, and published her cookbook “Orange, Lavender & Figs” in 2016. Fanny is a food and beverage writer, recipe developer, and social media influencer. She was a co-host on the Food Network series “Kitchen Sink,” was featured on Cooking Channel’s longtime popular series “The Best Thing I Ever Ate,” and continues to appear regularly on the “Rachael Ray Show.”
The pictures say it all! It just looks so delicious to me. Biscuits are my heartstrings! I am a vegan and will adjust the meat to sietan and this will be such a treat. Thank you for sharing this down home recipe.
I’m a real biscuit girl too as my Mum used to make them a lot, such a comfort food. Let us know how your vegan version turns out.
The stew part of this recipe is really reminiscent of a chicken pot pie filling. It reminded me of such but as opposed to a biscuit bottom there’s a biscuit top. Super simple & clearly filling recipe. I would probably double up on the veggies for mine though. I try to get em in when they fit in.
Very similar to a chicken pot pie Joan, I find the biscuits on the top aren’t quite so ‘doughy’. And I’m sure this recipe could take many more veggies.
Looks scrumptious, what can I say? Whenever I see; “Serving: 8 people” I just think of myself if I can eat all that by myself. Most of the time, I can, but I don’t think I can do this one. Also, I’ve never heard of putting biscuits into a stew, is this something new chefs came up new or I’m just late to the party?
It’s a pretty filling dish xSentaru… I think the biscuits on the top is an ‘old country’ thing. My Mum and Gramma both did it, so I do too!
Oh man this post screams GET IN MY BELLY AND MAKE ME FAT!!! I absolutely LOVE chicken stew and I made it out of a crockpot not too long ago and I completely forgot how yummy and hearty it is. This recipe looks pretty simple and very yummy, and I love how you can see the vegetables instead of assuming that there are vegetables in the stew 🙂
Thank you for the recipe, I’ll definitely add it to my winter-eatery box 🙂
Yummy and hearty, and doesn’t the aroma of it cooking just make you feel cozy all over?! If you like chicken stew, you’ll love this recipe… enjoy!
We’re having a cold day in Ohio today, and looking at this makes me feel warm. I think I just figured out what to cook for supper tonight! I like the use of bechamel for this, it adds a bit of richness to a simple and filling dish. I plan to add some parsnips and a bit of rutabaga into the stew for some added texture.
Perfect for a cold day, and the bechamel with the veggie water does add extra flavor MissySedai. I think any root veggies would be great in this recipe… let us know how it turns out for you.
Cool idea to top the stew with the biscuits. I agree with the commenter earlier that this looks a lot like a chicken pot pie (not a bad thing since I love those). I think it’s good to make more biscuits than stew because that way, you can dip them…or eat some for breakfast the next day 😉
Agreed qb, they’re great for dipping or split them open and pour some of the gravy over top…. wonderful!
Sounds so good to me too.
One question, if you please. Can I use a substitute for the shortening? I just never use the stuff. Maybe that’s why my biscuits aren’t as good as they used to be, lol, but I keep hearing how bad shortening is for us health wise.
Can I use butter, or would you recommend something else?
I like how detailed this recipe is, it doesn’t leave me with questions, and being able to prepare it ahead of time will cut down on weeknight meal preparations. I haven’t had a dish like this in quite a while, so I’m adding the ingredients to my shopping list, and am looking forward to trying this out.
Thanks Diane, glad you find it comprehensive. And using it as a make ahead meal for week nights works great – I love the convenience of one pot meals. Hope you enjoy it.
Heck yeah, this just screams Comfort Food! What a perfect dish for a cold, rainy, dreary day like today. This should warm everyone right up. I often make soups or stews on days like this, but with the biscuits on top? Perfection.
The sauce looks delish. I enjoy creamy sauces.
I was thinking the same thing Zyni… too wet and cold to get out in the garden, might as well have fun in the kitchen and take solace in stew and biscuits!
Joan took the words out of my mouth, I was going to say this recipe reminded me of a reverse chicken pot pie. Looks nice and hearty. Perfect for the rainy season we’re having in my area right now. I’d definitely consider trying out a vegan version as well.
Perfect for a rain day indeed Leopard. What type of protein would you use for a vegan version?
The name of this dish really threw me at first because in my country, biscuits are basically small cookies! We’d refer to a dish like this as a “cobbler”. It looks fantastic though – although the weather is starting to improve, there have still been a few cold and rainy days and this would be perfect for the last of these.
Interesting how words will change meaning as they mingle with new influences. Thank goodness a picture is worth a thousand words!
@Lorna Kring….never let me be your apprentice in the kitchen…its has finally dawned on me that if ever i was, i’d be eating… ‘stuffed mouthfuls’ instead of helping and learning 😀 …your dishes are extra-amazing, they inspire me… i want to be a better cook…of which am far off by a long-shot…oh well, a journey of a thousand ‘cooking’ miles starts with a simple recipe…and i make magic like above 😉
LOL, thanks for the kind comments diane. Inspired cooking, is there any other way?! Enjoy your cooking journey, I know I enjoy mine.
This meal looks perfect for any southern home cooked meal! The chicken stew looks so delicious, and the biscuits make an excellent color contrast. All those savory flavors and those golden biscuits definitely make my mouth water!
Me too! Down south or up north, it’s good cooking!
What a delicious dish. I wish this was in my kitchen. Biscuits are one of my weak spots and I love them.
Me too, especially hot out of the oven!
This looks delicious and relatively easy to cook. This recipe reminds me of my grandmothers chicken pot pie. yummm. I would personally exclude the mushrooms because no one in my family eats them however the rest looks great! I wonder if it would still be good made with canned biscuits? Every time I try to make biscuits from scratch I somehow mess them up. I guess I should keep practicing lol
I’m sure they’d work fine with refrigerator biscuit dough michwest. Until you develop your ‘biscuit hand’ that is!
Oh my goodness I had to check this one out as soon as I saw the fluffy baked biscuits sitting on the top! It looks so good! I must try this my husband would love it! It’s got quite a bit of ingredients, but I think I’ll manage. This one is worth it.
There are a few ingredients and steps, but you’re right, absolutely worth it! And make a double batch of biscuits, because you know they won’t last…
We have had far too many cold and rainy days lately, leaving me not knowing what to cook! This sounds delicious and I do like the biscuits on top. I have never heard of this and will certainly try it. It looks like something my family are going to enjoy.
Perfect for a rainy day om, hope you and your family enjoy it.
This recipe is simply to die for! I had never seen chicken stew made this way before. I had always seen it and eaten it as a more stock based dish, never milky. I love this milky twist. It looks so tasty. I also love the addition of the biscuits. It kind of makes it looks like a simpler version of the chicken pot pie. Can’t wait to try it!
It is a rich version Michelle, and very similar to a cpp – the biscuits are just a twist on the pastry. Enjoy!
This looks great , like a combination of a chicken pot pie and chicken and dumplings. Two of my favorite comfort food dishes! I cannot wait to try this out.
If you like comfort food, you’ll like this recipe Nikole88! It’s the best of many worlds.
That looks so good, and easy as well. I absolutely love chicken pot pie. That use to be one of my favorite dishes growing up. I must admit I’m not a big chicken eater, but when it’s a pot pie I don’t mind one bit. This would be an excellent easy to do meal for nice winter day entertaining guest.
It’s great for a winter meal kk. And ideal for entertaining as it can be made ahead with just the biscuits to pop on when the stew’s nice and hot!
This recipe looks perfect! I have some family coming over and was looking for something that wasn’t too difficult to prepare and that I could use the leftovers for. This is prime.
This stew is perfect for company Summertime, hope it went over well!
Holy cow, this looks delicious. I can’t wait to make some for myself. Just a question, as someone who doesn’t like turnips, should I replace them with anything or just leave them out of the recipe? Thanks.
Either/or pamphleteer, there’s plenty of veggies already so no need to replace the turnip unless you want to – it won’t change the consistency.
Well I think officially it is that time of year. The weather is getting colder and there is just that scent in the air, and that means more soups and stews for me. This looks like a big winner too, and anytime it is chicken anything, as long as the broth is there, I am usually on board. This one looks particularly filling, too, which is always nice. Thanks for sharing and happy Fall.
Oh this is great! My fiance has requested a chicken pot pie for dinner tomorrow right. However, the kids don’t want that, though, by looking at this, I can guarentee they would eat this! It sounds very similar to a chicken pot pie, so my fiance wont mind!
Very similar in taste and texture Ashley… and personally, I find the biscuits easier than a pie crust! Hope you enjoy.
I saw a version on this with crescent roll dough when I was younger. It looks like a nice fall or winter meal, and great for when you have a cold! I like how easy it is to make this vegetarian. You can substitute the chicken stock for vegetable stock, and either add in soy chicken or leave it out altogether. I’ll have to try this when the days get colder. Thanks!
It’s perfect for cold days, or when you have a cold! Let us know how your vegetarian version turns out HK.