Chicken a la King Recipe
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This easy Chicken a la King recipe combines tender chicken in a creamy sauce with mushrooms, bell peppers and peas.
When I heard Chicken à la King, I always thought “oooh, that sounds fancy.” You know, like something a king would eat? Or make I guess. And that fancy accented “á” makes it seem all French and high-end for sure. Turns out that’s a big “no sirree.” Chicken a la King is just good old comfort food. The name means “King-style Chicken,” because it’s so dang indulgent and rich. I’ve read a few stories about where the recipe originated. It seems to be debatable. But whoever melded this delicious dish together should be knighted. Hail, hail to Chicken à la King!
Chicken a la King is tender chicken in a creamy sauce with mushrooms, bell peppers and peas. Can you say satisfying comfort food? It’s usually served over rice, pasta or toast. The sauce is delicious and an excellent combination with your favorite noodles or rice.
One of the things I like about this Chicken a la King recipe is that it is so quick and easy to prepare, which makes it perfect for any weeknight meal. Of course it is a superb choice to serve to your favorite king or queen for any special occasion too.
To begin this easy dish, melt butter in a large skillet or saucepan. Then add mushrooms and bell pepper and sauté for a few minutes. Transfer sautéed mushrooms and bell peppers to a plate. Melt more butter in the pan, then whisk in flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper and cook, stirring constantly, until smooth. Continue by whisking in milk and chicken stock. Bring to a low simmer, stir and until mixture thickens and flour taste cooks out. Stir in sautéed mushrooms and bell peppers, as well as cut up chicken, peas and pimientos. Cook until warmed through. That’s it! Once prepped, Chicken a la King can be ready in about 20-30 minutes. Also, this recipe is perfect for a rotisserie chicken, which is another reason this is an excellent dish for a quick weeknight meal. Speaking of quick weeknight meals, check out this recipe for easy Skillet Creamy Garlic Chicken from Best Recipe Box.
A few side dish options to enjoy with Chicken a la King:
- Easy Roasted Asparagus Recipe
- Roasted Broccoli Recipe
- Easy Garlic Lemon Green Beans Recipe
- Shaved Asparagus Salad Recipe
- Easy Layered Salad Recipe
Chicken a la King Recipe
Chicken a la King Recipe
This easy Chicken a la King is tender chicken in a creamy sauce with mushrooms, bell peppers and peas.
Ingredients
- 4 ounces butter, divided
- 1/2 cup diced red or yellow bell pepper
- 8 ounces (weight) sliced mushrooms
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper, plus more to taste
- 1 cup whole milk or cream
- 2 1/2 cups chicken stock, plus extra as needed
- 3-4 cups bite-sized pieces of cooked chicken*
- 1/2 cup frozen green peas
- 1/4 cup (2 ounces) jarred diced pimientos
Instructions
- Heat a large saucepan or skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of butter; allow to melt.
- Add mushrooms and bell pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer mushrooms and bell peppers to a bowl/plate. Set aside. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add remaining butter to pan; allow to melt.
- Whisk in flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Whisk in milk and chicken stock. Bring to a low simmer, stir and cook for 5 minutes. Mixture will thicken and flour taste should cook out. If mixture gets too thick, whisk in a little bit of chicken stock at a time.
- Stir in cooked mushrooms and bell peppers, as well as chicken, peas and pimientos. Cook until warmed through. Again, if sauce is too thick, add a little bit of stock at a time to desired consistency. Salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve warm over pasta, rice or toast.
Notes
*Rotisserie chicken works great for this recipe.
Good also with a few mixed vegetables, garden peas, corn and chopped carrots cooked in it served over rice , biscuits, toast or over noodles……….
Love the recipe except for bell pepper…bell pepper is such a “loud” flavor…but, I did add sauteed onions, and added a dollop of sour cream and about 2 teaspoons lemon juice. Sounds kind weird but mix g up tangy flavors is fun!
Plus you use fresh garlic ?
Add a little Lawry’s seasoning salt and some crushed red pepper flake and this dish is absolutely Delicious!! Then crushed red pepper give it more flavor it was a little Bland at first but it’s a great dish and very tasty. Oh and I use biscuits.
So good like this. Thanks for the hint.
I’ve been looking for a good basic recipe for Chicken a la King and this one looks PERFECT!!
A new favorite in our house! Thanks for the great recipe!
I used 1/3 cup gluten free flour blend, homemade broth and only 2/3 cup cream because the consistency varies with the flours. Didn’t have pimentos so used red pepper for sweetness and a cup of frozen mixed vegetables is what I had on hand! Great recipe!
I’ve never had this and can’t wait to try it now!
How would i make this dish more flavorful? I found it too bland.
I added chicken better than bouillon and that helped.
I have made this for many years. We use to boil a chicken but now roast it. I do not use any green pepper because I think it is too strong. I also add a quarter cup of shcrry .
I like to serve it over baking powder biscuits or noodles.
Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe. It tastes not only great but is also comforting. I made one change and that is, I used canned mushrooms instead of fresh ones. The reason being that I can use the juice from the cans and increase the mushroom flavor a few notches
You might want to cook the chicken first, right?
They are starting with cooked chicken
I’ve made this for decades and love it. I use green peppers only, no peas or pimentos please, I also add some sherry but the big difference is I serve it in Pepperidge farm pastry shells… yum!
Why are people complaining about green pepper when there is none listed in the ingredients. Making this tomorrow, so I will give my review. I plan to add some sherry, so it won’t be exactly the same, but this looks like a really good recipe.
Must have sherry. It really makes a difference
I made this for supper tonight and my husband and I loved it! Using heavy cream was definitely the way to go. The sauce was so rich and delicious. The only addition I made was adding a little onion to the sauted veggies. We had it with noodles. Great recipe.
For how many people is this recipe made for?
It makes 4 servings.
Granddaughter has a problem with dairy. What would be your recommendation to substitute?
I would substitute the dairy with more chicken stock.
I am allergic to dairy, too. We have used oatmilk as a substitute in other recipes, and it was fine!
For years we only had canned chicken a la king because my mom said it was too hard to make. Ha! This was so easy. As for taste, well there is no comparison. This recipe warms the soul and delights the tongue.
I served it over rice instead of toast and with a chopped hard boiled egg on top. There were no left-overs.
I liked this but it was a bit bland. Added some spices from my Canadian spice rack. Wasn’t fussy serving it over rice, much prefer serving it over Pastry shells and adding a few more veggies to it, but definitely no pimentos. Nice recipe and froze my leftovers.
I had read in the comments that this was bland. I amped it up by doubling the garlic and pepper. I also added onion powder, porcini mushroom powder, and crushed red pepper flakes.
I roasted the chicken breast with salt, pepper, garlic, and onion powders.
I got a little rushed and scooped the flour instead of spooning it to measure. My mix was kinda thick but a extra 1/2 cup of stock helped.
Will be making this again, maybe with pastry shell next time.
Your chicken a la king recipe Is the best my family has ver had. We love love love this recipe. Perfect as is, no changes needed. I make this at least once a month.