This Slow Cooker Chicken Stew is the perfect family dinner for a cool evening. It’s full of tender chicken with potatoes, carrots, and celery and goes wonderfully with hot buttered biscuits.
A few years ago, the General Mills Company asked me to create an entree recipe for them that would be good served with buttermilk biscuits. I knew immediately that it should be a stew. Definitely a chicken stew. I just can’t think of anything more welcome during cool weather than warm, buttered biscuits and stew.
I also wanted the recipe to be really easy to put together and one that the whole family would enjoy. So that’s how this Slow Cooker Chicken Stew came to be.
You can prep all the ingredients for this recipe in just a few minutes. Then pop everything into your slow cooker, set it, and forget it. When you arrive home from work or after a day of running errands, this hearty chicken stew will be waiting for you. All you need to do is cook up a few biscuits or a pan of cornbread, and dinner is ready!
Recipe Snapshot
Cuisine: American
Cooking Method: Slow Cooker
Total Time: 4 Hours, 10 Minutes
Servings: 4
Primary Ingredient(s): Chicken, potatoes, celery, carrots, onion, cream of chicken soup
Skill Level: Easy
What You’ll Like About This Recipe
- It’s easy! Chop the veggies, brown the chicken, and let the slow cooker do the rest.
- Good old, comfort food – what’s better on a cool night than warm stew with biscuits?
- It’s quite economical – No expensive ingredients are required.
Ingredient Notes
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- Chicken – Choose whatever you like or the least expensive cut at the grocery store. Boneless, skinless chicken parts are very convenient, but they come at a premium cost. Remove the bones and skin yourself and save loads of money! Both white and dark meat work well for this recipe.
- Potatoes – I like Yukon gold potatoes for this recipe. They hold up better to the long cooking time than floury potatoes like Russets.
- Cream of Chicken Soup – A can of cream of chicken soup gives a bit of creamy richness to the finished stew.
- Poultry Seasoning – I always have this on hand, but if you don’t, just leave it out or substitute something else. It does give great flavor to the chicken, but I’m not sure it’s worth buying a whole container for one recipe.
- Fresh Parsley – Substitute dried if you like. Remember herbs substitute at 1/3 dried for fresh. So, for this recipe, you’d use about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dried parsley in place of the 1/4 cup of fresh.
The complete ingredient list with detailed measurements is included in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
How I Make Slow Cooker Chicken Stew
- Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces, about ¾-inch each. Sprinkle on some poultry seasoning, salt, and pepper to your liking. Then, give the seasoned pieces a good toss in flour so they’re lightly coated.
- Heat up the oil in a skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Once it’s hot, add the chicken in batches (you don’t want to crowd the pan) and cook until it’s lightly browned on all sides.
- Transfer the browned chicken to the slow cooker.
👉 PRO TIP: Take care when handling raw chicken. I use a plastic cutting board that can go directly into the dishwasher to be sanitized.
- Dice the potatoes and celery into roughly ¾-inch pieces. Peel and slice the carrots and onion to a similar size. Roughly chop the parsley. Place all the fresh veggies into the slow cooker with the chicken.
- In a small bowl, stir together the cream of chicken soup, water, a pinch of salt and pepper, and a sprinkle of thyme. Pour this creamy mixture over the chicken and veggies in the slow cooker.
- Pop the lid on and set the slow cooker to high. Cook for 4-5 hours until everything is tender and flavorful.
- Spoon the hearty stew into bowls and serve it with warm, buttery biscuits on the side. Enjoy every bite!
Storage and Reheating
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and use within three days. Freezing is not recommended because frozen potatoes become too soft and grainy textured.
Options and Variations
- To make a richer, creamy chicken stew, add 4 tablespoons butter and 1/4 cup heavy cream during the last 30 minutes in the crockpot.
- Vary the herbs and seasoning to suit your own tastes. Simple salt and pepper is perfectly fine. If you enjoy a specific herb with poultry, go for it!
More Recipes You’ll Like
Questions About Slow Cooker Chicken Stew
To make the stew on the stovetop, use a large, heavy pot such as a Dutch oven. Brown the chicken in the pot and add the remaining ingredients. Cover and cook until the potatoes and carrots are cooked through (about 45 minutes to 1 hour).
It’s best to use thawed chicken to ensure even cooking. If using frozen chicken, thaw it completely in the refrigerator overnight.
Have a question or thought to share?
If you have a question about the recipe or if you’ve made it and want to share how it turned out, I would truly enjoy hearing from you. Just scroll down to leave a comment or add your star rating.
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Recipe
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Slow Cooker Chicken Stew
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
- ¼ teaspoon poultry seasoning
- Salt and pepper
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 4 medium Yukon gold potatoes
- 2 rib celery
- 4 medium carrots
- 1 medium yellow onion
- ¼ cup fresh parsley
- 10.5 ounces cream of chicken soup
- 1 soup can water
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
Instructions
- Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces (roughly 3/4”). Sprinkle with poultry seasoning, salt, and pepper to taste. Toss the seasoned chicken pieces with the flour.
- Heat the oil in a pan over medium to medium-high heat. Add the chicken, working in batches if necessary to avoid crowding the pan, and cook until lightly browned on all sides.
- Place the chicken in a slow cooker.
- Cut the potatoes and celery into roughly 3/4” inch pieces and add to the cooker. Peel the carrots and cut them into similarly sized pieces. Do the same with the onion. Roughly chop the parsley and add it into the slow cooker with all the vegetables and the chicken.
- In a small bowl, combine the cream of chicken soup with water, salt, pepper, and thyme. Pour over chicken and vegetables in the cooker.
- Cover and cook on high for 4-5 hours.
- Serve with a side of biscuits.
Notes
- I like to use Yukon gold potatoes. Their skin is so tender that no peeling is necessary.
- Substitute fresh herbs for dried. Dried herbs are more potent, so when using fresh, use about three times more than dried.
- Boneless, skinless thighs also work very well in this recipe. Use whatever you have on hand!
- This recipe easily doubles to accommodate larger families.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information is calculated by software based on the ingredients in each recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes. You should consult your healthcare provider or a registered dietitian if precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.
— This post was originally sponsored by General Mills and published on October 16, 2012. It has been updated with new photos and additional information.
I’m Lana Stuart, an award-winning cookbook author, food blogger, and lifelong cook raised deep in Southwest Georgia. I started Lana’s Cooking in 2009 to share the tried-and-true recipes I grew up with. Around here, the food is full of flavor, the traditions run deep, and there’s always room at the table.
I have made this great stew many times now. After a few times I stopped cutting the meat off the bones, I just skin the chicken thighs and proceed from there, every scrap of meat comes off during the cooking and nothing is wasted. Serve with home made whole wheat buns!
Good idea. Glad you enjoy the recipe!