This creamy, easy Chicken a la King recipe is a comforting classic.
Cooked chicken is simmered in a creamy white sauce with mushrooms, peas, and pimentos in a single pan that goes right to the table from the stovetop.
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Holly’s Chicken à la King Highlights
- Flavor: This recipe has tender chicken in a pimento mushroom cream sauce.
- Skill level: Simple steps and ready-made ingredients make this dish a cinch.
- Time-Saving Tip: Buy sliced mushrooms or swap them for drained canned mushrooms. Rotisserie chicken or leftovers keep this recipe quick.
- Serving suggestions: It’s delish over rice, garlic mashed potatoes, biscuits, or homemade egg noodles.
Ingredient Tips for Chicken a la King
- Chicken: Any cooked chicken works in this recipe; I use rotisserie chicken. If you don’t have cooked chicken, check the recipe notes.
- Vegetables: Mushrooms, peas, and pimentos add earthy flavor and a pop of color to chicken a la King, but any combination of veggies works. Try celery, carrots, green beans, or spinach.
- Sauce: This easy sauce is made with stock, half-and-half, and a few basics from the spice cupboard. Feel free to swap out the sauce for a can of cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup. Add a pinch of cayenne or red pepper flakes for a little heat.
Leftovers and Storage
- Keep leftover chicken a la King covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days and reheat portions on the stovetop or in the microwave with a little milk mixed in to loosen the sauce.
- Freeze portions in freezer-safe containers for up to one month. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
- Leftovers can be added to a casserole dish, topped with crispy breadcrumbs, and baked until heated through for a whole new meal!
More Quick Chicken Recipes
Did you make this Chicken a la King? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter unsalted
- 8 ounces white mushrooms sliced
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt or to taste
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup half and half
- 1 cup frozen petite peas
- ½ cup pimentos drained and chopped
- 3 cups cooked shredded chicken or shredded rotisserie chicken
Instructions
- In a large 12-inch skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and onions and cook until they start to soften, about 5 minutes.
- Season with garlic powder, black pepper, and kosher salt.
- Sprinkle in the flour and stir until a paste is formed. Cook for 2 minutes.
- While stirring, slowly pour in the chicken stock and half and half. Stir to make sure no chunks of flour remain.
- Turn the heat to low and stir until the sauce has thickened, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the peas, chopped pimentos, and rotisserie chicken. Cook until heated through, about 3 minutes more.
- Serve over pasta, rice, or biscuits.
Notes
To Cook Chicken Quickly: You can quickly boil chicken while preparing the other ingredients for this recipe. Add 2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts to a saucepan and cover with chicken broth. Cook on a low boil for 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Shred it for use in recipes and the broth will be extra flavorful to use in this recipe (or reserve for another use).
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Reheat in microwave or on stovetop and serve over rice or pasta.
To freeze, ladle Chicken ala King into zippered bags or an airtight container with the date on it and freeze flat. Thaw out and reheat using steps above.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 438 | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Cholesterol: 87mg | Sodium: 699mg | Potassium: 554mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 1838IU | Vitamin C: 38mg | Calcium: 87mg | Iron: 2mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Chicken, Dinner, Entree, Main Course
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
I’ve been using this basic recipe, with the addition of Thyme, and white wine for most of my life. I love it! I’m in my 80’s, and It’s one of my staple’s, especially since food prices have gone through the roof. I find, for just me, that buying a rotisserie chicken twice a month, provides me with 5-6 meals, which is HUGE! I use the meat for this recipe, chicken Divan, chicken soup (back, bits of meat & bones), Chicken & dumplings, baked chicken, the list is endless! It’s one of the best bargains I know of!
I’ve made this several times and my whole family loves it. This has a delicious appealing taste. I cook for many different tastes and this works for everyone.
This recipe was a hit at my house. So easy and tasty. I did make some changes like decreasing the amount of butter to 3 tablespoons and I added about 3 tablespoons of avocado oil to compensate for the less amount of butter I used. i also put in 1/3 cup of flour instead of 1/2 cup cause i feared it would be too thick and I’m glad I did that cause it was perfect. I also didn’t have any mushrooms so i left it out and it was still good. I’ll be keeping this recipe and adding it to my weekly rotation. I also used store bought rotisserie chicken which made the recipe even more wonderful and easier. Overall a 10 out of 10 recipe!
Irene, I’m a retired chef and 80+ years old, and this is the recipe I’ve been using for most of my life. Regarding the missing mushrooms, I cook just for me and my freezer, and I’ve found that if I use canned (GASP!!!!) mushrooms, but sauté them first, they work pretty well! I never a mushroom I didn’t LOVE! Also, I keep small cans of evaporated milk (condensed, UN-sweetened) on hand when milk products are needed. Hope this helps!!!!
This recipe right here. If o could take a pic and show it to you I would. So delicious. Thank you so much!
We would love to see your finished dish! Feel free to tag us on instagram @spendpennies.
Can this be made pimento free??
Corinne, yes this can be made without the pimentos but it might lack a little flavor.
I love your recipes and this looks really good but I can’t find pimentos
what would you recommend instead please.
I would recommend roasted red peppers in a jar, chop them very finely.
Thank you so much for this recipe. I will enjoy it. It is an oldie but goodies that I have not seen around for many many moons. Thank you so much. I love all of you that put these wonderful recipes on here for us old timers. I am definitely an old timer on June 6 of this year I will be 83 and very proud of it. I’ve made it this far and not in bad shape. I will say that good health. But I’m sending this mostly to thank you for all the wonderful recipes that you sent out to the rest of us. I don’t know if I can get this to go through or not. I always have trouble sending either the wrong thing or the wrong password or whatever and never been able to get through to those that I love to thank for their kindness so say a prayer that I will be able to get through with the password and everything otherwise I cannot get through to you
Thank you for your kind words, it means so much to me. I love these older recipes too, so good and cozy. I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed the recipes Maxine!
Very good I remember my mom making this in the 60’s, perfect to remember her Mother’s Day weekend.
Delicious!!! I mixed it with rice and topped it with Ritz crackers and butter! Yum!!!