Chicken a la King is one of those Classic American dishes that many of us grew up on. Warm and comforting, saucy and hearty, this recipe has all the elements you are seeking on a cold evening. Served on rice, buttered noodles, or biscuits, this recipe is fast and simple.
Pieces of moist chicken mixed with your favorite veggies, all in a velvety smooth flavorful chicken gravy is the epitome of comfort. Your family will be happy you made this warm savory dish.
If this is your kinda dinner dish, I hope you’ll check out our cream of mushroom chicken, creamy lemon chicken, chicken alfredo, or turkey a la king when you have leftover turkey!
CHICKEN A LA KING INGREDIENTS
- Oil: Vegetable or Olive Oil
- Chicken: Cooked chicken – leftover, pre-cooked rotisserie or cook your own chicken breasts (Step 2)
- Salt + Black Pepper: Table salt and fresh cracked black pepper
- Unsalted butter:
- White wine: I use a nice drinking wine.
- Onion: Brown onion
- Red bell pepper: A really nice accent in addition to the other veggies. Use red, green, or yellow bell pepper.
- Celery: An aromatic that is part of the base for the gravy.
- Carrot: Another part of the base for the gravy.
- Mushrooms: White, cremini, or any other common mushroom.
- Thyme leaves: Fresh thyme adds an earthy, lemony flavor.
- All-purpose flour: For the roux, cook it in fat, then add liquid!
- Low-sodium chicken stock: A flavorful stock for the gravy.
- Better Than Bouillon (chicken flavor): This particular item adds great depth and flavor to stews and soups.
- Heavy cream: Adds a velvety smooth texture to the gravy.
- Peas: Frozen peas add fiber to the dish and color.
- Dry sherry: This fortified wine makes such a difference to the gravy; it complements the chicken and brings out the depth of flavor. Substitutions include Vermouth or a dry white wine.
- Tabasco: A little heat makes the dish more interesting. This is, of course, optional.
- Parsley: Greenery simply makes food fresher and appears more appetizing.
TIPS
- Rotisserie Chicken: If you use rotisserie chicken, the time to prepare this dish will go faster. Just a little shortcut is nice on a busy day. During Step 7, just warm up the chicken since it is already fully cooked.
- More or Less: Add or omit veggies to your liking. You can use canned mushrooms instead of fresh, and frozen bell peppers already cut up. Add pimentos or any other veggies that your family prefers.
STORING + FREEZING + MAKE-AHEAD
- How Long Can You Keep This in The Fridge? Once made, your chicken a la king will last up to four days in the fridge.
- Can You Freeze This? It is not recommended to freeze because of the cream. It may not freeze well.
- Make-Ahead: Make this ahead! This dish can be warmed up. Warm it up gently, do not overheat.
- Food Safety: If you’d like more info on food safety check out this link.
SERVING RECOMMENDATIONS
Serve this with cooked rice, buttered egg noodles, or biscuits like 7-Up biscuits, Bisquick biscuits, butter swim biscuits, and, cathead biscuits.
HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN A LA KING
- Cook the chicken pieces and set aside.
- Saute the veggies.
- Stir in the mushroom and thyme and saute.
- Sprinkle flour over the veggies.
- Stir until vegetables are evenly coated.
- Slowly stir in the chicken stock, and add the bouillon, salt and pepper.
- Pour in the heavy cream and simmer.
- Stir in the partially cooked chicken and simmer. Add the peas, sherry, and Tabasco sauce.
- Serve.
***See the full instructions below.
MORE ONE-PAN CHICKEN RECIPES
- Lemon Pepper Chicken
- Monterey Chicken
- Blackened Chicken
- Parmesan Crusted Chicken
- Pesto Chicken
- Chicken Francaise
- Chicken Lazone
- Balsamic Chicken
- Italian Chicken
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Chicken a la King
This Chicken a la King has moist chicken and veggies in a flavorful gravy, and can be served on rice, noodles, or biscuits, making it a saucy and hearty dish.
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon oil
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- salt + black pepper
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup onion minced
- 1/4 cup red bell pepper finely chopped (optional)
- 2 stalks celery finely chopped
- 1 carrot peeled and finely chopped
- 8 ounces mushrooms sliced
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken stock
- 1 teaspoon Better Than Bouillon (chicken flavor)
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup frozen peas thawed and well drained
- 2 tablespoons dry sherry
- 1 teaspoon Tabasco
- 1 tablespoon parsley finely chopped
Instructions
- Remove any surface moisture on chicken by patting it dry with paper towels. Sprinkle chicken cubes with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper tossing to evenly coat
- Heat oil over medium heat until it shimmers. Add cubed chicken and cook on both each side for 3 minutes. (Chicken will not be completely cooked through ~thats okay.) Transfer chicken to a plate; set aside. Remove any oil from the pan, leaving brown bits.
- Melt butter (4 tablespoons) over medium heat. Add onion (1/2 cup), red bell pepper (1/4 cup), celery (2 stalks), and carrots (1) then cook, stirring frequently and digging down to the bottom of the pan to loosen up any brown bits, until the vegetables are very tender, about 8 minutes.
- Stir the mushrooms (8 ounces), and thyme leaves (2 teaspoons), into the skillet and continue to cook, stirring often, until the mushrooms are tender, about 3-5 minutes.
- Sprinkle flour (1/4 cup) over cooked vegetables then stir until vegetables are evenly coated. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, for 1-2 minutes or so to cook out flour taste.
- Slowly stir in the chicken stock (1 cup), stirring down to the bottom of the skillet to lift up any brown bits. Add 1/2 teaspoons salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, the Better Than Bouillon and stir, until bouillon is dissolved. Pour in heavy cream (1 cup) and simmer, stirring often, until sauce thickens, about 3-5 minutes.
- Stir in the partially cooked chicken and gently simmer for about 6 minutes.
- Add the green peas (1 cup), sherry (2 tablespoons), and Tabasco sauce (1 teaspoon). Cook on low for another 2 minutes. Chicken should be completely cooked at this point. Taste and adjust salt and pepper. Sprinkle with fresh parsley (1 tablespoon) and serve over rice, biscuits, or buttered noodles.
Fans Also Made:
Notes
- Rotisserie Chicken: If you use rotisserie chicken, the time to prepare this dish will go faster. Just a little shortcut is nice on a busy day. During Step 7, just warm up the chicken since it is already fully cooked.
- More or Less: Add or omit veggies to your liking. You can use canned mushrooms instead of fresh, and frozen bell peppers already cut up. Add pimentos or any other veggies that your family prefers.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 842kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Protein: 40g | Fat: 66g | Saturated Fat: 29g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 9g | Monounsaturated Fat: 24g | Cholesterol: 225mg | Sodium: 334mg | Potassium: 881mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 4803IU | Vitamin C: 37mg | Calcium: 101mg | Iron: 3mg
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I love your recipies. I check your recipies before anyone else. I usually end up printing 2-3 !!!
Oh Carmen, you made my day!! Thanks so much for reaching out. I’m so happy your part of our community!
This recipe looks delicious and I’m going to try it soon. I noticed that your ingredient list calls for 1 tablespoon of dry sherry while the instructions in stepk 8 says to add 3 tablespoons. Can you clarify? Thanks.
Hi Vicky. Just checked my notes and I ultimately use 2 tablespoons! Thanks so much for asking!