This easy chicken a la king recipe is made from tender chicken chunks, red peppers and mushrooms in a creamy sauce. It's on the table in 30 minutes - start to finish. What's more, you can even make it using leftovers from a roast or rotisserie chicken.
Who doesn't love a hearty plate of chicken a la king? Deliciously tender chunks of chicken, juicy mushrooms and pops of colour from diced red peppers, all mixed together in a creamy sauce. Serve it over a bed of fluffy white rice (or even a bowl of your favourite pasta) and you will have a meal that is fit for a king.
I love it so much I've even created a seafood a la king version that you might like to try.
Chicken a la king is one of those classic dishes that has stood the test of time and remained reasonably true to the original recipe which was made using green peppers. My version calls for red peppers rather than green because I like the hint of sweetness the red peppers provide. I also like to add peas for little pops of additional colour and flavour.
Because this dish is made with leftovers, it is super quick to make. You just fry up the vegetables, whip up a sauce, combine it with the chicken and your dish is ready. On the table in less than 30 minutes. What could be easier?
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Ingredients
This recipe will easily serve 4 people.
**You can get the exact ingredient measurements on the printable recipe card at the end of this post**
- Chicken breast - you can make this dish with leftover chicken, or even shredded rotisserie chicken. However, if you don't have leftover chicken in the fridge, you can easily poach some fresh chicken breasts. I've included instructions on how to do this below.
- Red pepper - you can use any colour capsicum that you prefer. I like the sweetness and colour provided by the red pepper.
- Onions - peeled and cut into 1cm or ½ inch chunks.
- Mushrooms - white mushrooms are preferable as they won't darken the sauce. However, you could use chestnut mushrooms or even chopped-up portobello mushrooms.
- Frozen peas - a handful of peas provides sweetness and colour.
- For the sauce, you will need butter, milk, cornflour (cornstarch) and single cream. It doesn't matter whether you use full-fat or semi-skimmed milk.
- And finally, you will need a small amount of sunflower oil for frying the vegetables, and freshly chopped parsley for garnish. For seasoning you will need salt and black pepper.
Instructions
The first three steps are for poaching fresh chicken. If you are using leftover chicken simply shred the chicken, and skip these steps.
Poach the chicken
Step 1: Place the chicken breasts in a saucepan, along with half a teaspoon of salt and a few black peppercorns. Add sufficient water to cover the chicken, cover the pan with a lid and bring to a boil. As soon as the water is boiling remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool.
Step 2: Once cool, remove the chicken from the water. It should be completely white on the inside, but don't worry if it is still slightly pink. It will continue cooking once it goes into the sauce.
Step 3: Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces and set aside while you cook the vegetables and make the sauce.
If you don't have peppercorns you can add half a teaspoon of black pepper instead.
Cook the vegetables
Remove the seeds and membranes from the capsicum and cut it into half-inch pieces. Peel the onion and cut it into similar sizes. Wipe the mushrooms with a damp cloth to remove any bits of dirt and cut them into quarters or slices.
Step 4: Heat the oil in a frying pan then add the red pepper and onion and fry over medium heat for 5 minutes until the onions have turned translucent.
Step 5: Add the mushrooms and continue to fry for another 3 to 4 minutes until the mushrooms have softened and released their moisture.
Make the sauce
Step 6: Add the butter and let it melt. Then remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cornflour. Stir well to remove any lumps.
Step 7: Pour in the milk and allow it to come to a boil, stirring continuously until the mixture thickens.
Step 8: Add the peas and return the chicken to the pan. Turn the heat to low and allow the sauce to simmer for 5 minutes.
Step 9: This is the consistency you are looking for. The sauce will be thick enough when it leaves a trail as you draw a spoon through it.
Step 10: Taste for seasoning and add salt and black pepper to your own taste. Finally, stir in the cream and transfer to a serving dish. Serve hot with a dish of white rice or pasta.
Tips for a perfect outcome
Here are my top tips to ensure your chicken a la king turns out perfectly:
- When poaching the chicken remove it from the heat immediately it start to boil. Do not remove the lid from the pan. Allow the chicken to cool in the covered pan. The residual heat in the boiling water will be sufficient to ensure the chicken cooks through.
- Don't allow the capsicum and onions to turn brown - if they do start to brown, turn the heat to very low. Brown onions will turn the sauce brown, and we want the sauce to remain a nice white colour.
- If you find the sauce doesn't thicken sufficiently, make a slurry with a teaspoon of cornflour and 2 tablespoons of milk or water. Drizzle it into the sauce over moderate heat and stir until the desired consistency is reached.
Save time and money
Have you ever made a roast chicken and ended up throwing the carcass away, even though there was still a lot of meat left on it? You probably intended to put it on sandwiches, but never got around to it and there wasn't quite enough left over to make a full meal.
Here are some handy tips to make sure you save both time and money
- Next time you make a roast chicken, just shred and freeze the leftover meat. By the time you've frozen the meat from 2 or 3 leftover chickens, you'll have enough meat to combine into a delicious chicken a la king.
- If you are like me, you always end up cooking far too much rice. Each time you end up with leftover rice, don't throw it in the bin, just let it cool and then pop it into a large ziploc bag and freeze. Top up the bag each time you have leftover rice, and in no time you will have enough cooked frozen rice for a complete meal. Just defrost and heat it in the microwave and serve covered with the delicious chicken a la king.
Equipment
If you are going to be poaching the chicken you will need a small saucepan with a lid.
For making the sauce, I like to use a large saute pan (with a lid) but you could use a large saucepan instead.
You will also need a spatula (for stirring) and a sharp knife and a chopping board for cutting up the vegetables.
FAQ
Chicken a la king can be cooled and then frozen in a suitable freezer container for up to 2 months.
To use, allow it to defrost in the refrigerator and then reheat in a saucepan or in the microwave until piping hot.
I wouldn't advise freezing this dish if you have made it with cooked chicken that has been previously frozen (ie with leftover chicken).
Yes, you can make this dish up to 3 days in advance and store it in a covered container in the refrigerator. Reheat in a saucepan or in the microwave.
If you are making this dish with leftover or rotisserie chicken, it is not advisable to make it in advance. Rather make and eat it on the same day.
Save for later
If you would like to make this recipe, why not save it to one of your Pinterest boards so you can find it easily? Just click on the image below.
Alternatively, you can save the recipe by clicking on the floating heart icon on the right-hand side of the screen.
Related recipes
If you enjoyed this chicken a la king, you may also like to try some of my other chicken and poultry recipes:
📋The recipe
Easy Chicken a la king
(Click the stars to rate this recipe)
Equipment
- Frying pan with lid
- Saucepan
- Sharp Knife
- Chopping Board
- Spatula
Ingredients
Chicken mixture
- 1 large red pepper or capsicum diced
- 1 large onion diced
- ¼ pound / 115 grams mushrooms diced or quartered depending on size
- ½ cup frozen peas defroste
- 14 ounces / 400 grams cooked chicken shredded (please see notes below)
Sauce
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 cups / 480 ml milk
- 2 - 3 tablespoons cornflour (or cornstarch)
- ½ cup / 120 ml single cream
Other
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Remove the seeds and membranes from the capsicum and cut it into half-inch pieces. Peel the onion and cut it into similar sizes. Wipe the mushrooms with a damp cloth to remove any bits of dirt and cut them into quarters or slices.1 large red pepper or capsicum, 1 large onion, ¼ pound / 115 grams mushrooms
- Heat the olive oil in a pan2 tablespoons olive oil
- Add the chopped onions and red pepper and saute gently until soft. (About 5 minutes)
- Add the chopped mushrooms and cook for a further 3 minutes, or until the mushrooms have softened.
- Add the butter and let it melt, then remove from the heat and stir in the cornflour.2 tablespoons butter, 2 - 3 tablespoons cornflour (or cornstarch)
- Pour in the milk and bring to the boil. Then turn down the heat and stir until the mixture thickens.2 cups / 480 ml milk
- Add the peas and chicken, turn the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes.½ cup frozen peas, 14 ounces / 400 grams cooked chicken
- Stir in the cream and allow to heat through.½ cup / 120 ml single cream
- Season with salt and pepper (optional)Salt and pepper to taste
- Serve on a bed of rice with a leafy green salad on the side
Notes
- Don't allow the capsicum and onions to turn brown - if they do start to brown, turn the heat to very low. Brown onions will turn the sauce brown, and we want the sauce to remain a nice white colour.
- If you find the sauce doesn't thicken sufficiently, make a slurry with a teaspoon of cornflour and 2 tablespoons of milk or water. Drizzle it into the sauce over moderate heat and stir until the desired consistency is reached.
- Place the chicken breasts in a saucepan, along with a teaspoon of salt and a few black peppercorns if you have them. If you don’t have whole black peppercorns, just add a generous grinding of black pepper.
- At just enough water to cover the chicken, then cover with a lid and bring to the boil.
- As soon as the water is boiling rapidly, remove the pan from the heat and set it aside to cool. The heat from the water will continue to cook the chicken.
- Once cool, remove the chicken from the water. The chicken should be quite white on the inside. Don’t worry if the chicken is still slightly pink. It will continue to cook once you add it to the sauce.
- Slice the cooled chicken into bite-sized chunks before adding to the sauce.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.
Jayne Atkinson
Hi VJ, really want to try this as I fins your recipes excellent. How many grams of chicken would it be please. Thanks so much.
VJ
Hi Jayne, I'm pleased you like my recipes. But I feel I should apologise for the old measurements in the recipe. I've now updated it to take out the reference to cups. If you are using cooked (or leftover) chicken you should allow 100 grams per person (or 400 grams for 4 people). If using fresh chicken that you poach yourself you should allow 450 grams or one pound of raw chicken to allow for shrinkage. Hope this helps!
John
Made this dish many times from this recipe. Always found it really good and easy to make although I have adjusted very slightly. I tend to find creamy chicken dishes a little bland, so now I sprinkle some chilli flakes into the food towards the end of cooking. This may not be traditional but I think it lifts the dish. I don’t overdo this, I’m not seeking a hot dish, purely for flavour.
VJ
I'm with you on that one - a sprinkle of chilli flakes does add a ton of flavour. Glad you enoyed my chicken a la king (with or without the chilli 🙂 !
Nonhlanhla
First time making the dish and WoW it’s delicious 🤤🤤🤤
VJ
So glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Elbie
Easy, fast and great tastinf!!
Larry
Excellent!
VJ
Oh thank you so much. Glad you enjoyed it. This post is right at the top of my list for new photos 🙂
Mel Pohler
Very tasty and easy quick meal. I substituted 1 cup of milk for 1 cup of chicken broth. Also added quarter teaspoon of fresh origanum.
VJ
Thank you Mel. Glad you enjoyed it. I always think that's what cooking is all about - using a base recipe and then tweaking to suit yourself.