Chicken à la King takes me back to the kind of cozy family dinners that made everyone linger a little longer at the table. This creamy, one-skillet classic is easy enough for a weeknight dinner thanks to rotisserie chicken, and I love serving it over warm homemade biscuits to soak up every bit of the savory sauce.
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Holly’s Recipe Highlights: Chicken a la King
- Flavor: Rich, creamy, and savory, with tender chicken, earthy mushrooms, sweet peas, and a subtle tang from the pimentos.
- Skill Level: Easy enough for a weeknight, with a simple homemade roux-based sauce that comes together right in the skillet.
- Quick Serving: Using cooked or rotisserie chicken keeps prep simple, while the creamy filling can be spooned over oven baked rice, egg noodles, or toast for an easy, comforting meal.
Total Time: 40 Mins Servings: 4 Cooking Method: Stovetop
- Total Time:
- 40 mins
- Serves:
- 4 servings
- Rating:
- 5.0/5
Ingredient Notes
- Mushrooms: White mushrooms are a classic choice. Swap with cremini mushrooms for a slightly deeper, earthier flavor.
- Flour: The flour combines with the butter to create a roux that thickens the creamy sauce. Cook it for the full 2 minutes before gradually adding the liquid to help prevent lumps.
- Half and Half: Use store-bought or homemade half-and-half. Replace with whole milk for a slightly lighter finished sauce.
- Frozen Petite Peas: Add them straight from frozen, no thawing needed.
- Pimentos: These mild, sweet red peppers bring bright color and a subtle sweetness without much heat. Drained roasted red peppers make an easy substitute.
- Cooked Chicken: Use leftover rotisserie chicken, roasted chicken, or poached chicken. Shred it before adding and allow an extra minute or two if adding cold.
How to Make Chicken a la King
- Cook mushrooms and onions in a skillet. Sprinkle in the flour, and add the chicken stock and cream.
- Stir in the peas, chicken, and pimentos, and cook (full recipe below).
Spoon over oven-baked rice, egg noodles, or homemade biscuits to soak up the creamy sauce.
Save It for Later
- Keep leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days and in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Reheat on the stovetop over low heat, adding a splash of chicken stock, milk, or half and half if the sauce has thickened.
More Creamy Chicken Dishes
Did you enjoy this Chicken a la King Recipe? Leave a comment and rating below.
Chicken a la King
Chicken a la King has tender chicken, mushrooms, peas, and pimentos in a rich and creamy homemade sauce. Serve it over biscuits, rice, or pasta for an easy comfort food dinner.
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 to 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 a microwave or on the stovetop and serve over rice or pasta.
- To freeze, ladle Chicken a la King into zippered bags or an airtight container with the date on it and freeze flat. Thaw out and reheat using the 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.
This is a great recipe. The seasonings are perfect and it comes together quickly. Everyone loved it and I will making this frequently. Thanks for the recipe
I am so happy to hear this recipe was a hit Dean!
delicious and so easy. I substituted sweet red pepper for pimento and sautéed it with onions and mushrooms. served over rice and ended up making a second time the next week because I enjoyed it so much the first time. Using my Air fryer for chicken breast allowed me to do everything else while it was cooking. this recipe is a keeper
I made something similar. I used my home made canned chicken stew and I added the mushrooms, red peppers and cream to the stew. Once it was heated through, I had the same Chicken a la King. worked and tasted great and it was really quick to make too
A family favorite! I didn’t have peas on hand, so I used corn, and my kids said they’d prefer corn anyway, so that was a win/win. We served it over biscuits, and it was plate-clearing good.
Yay! I am so happy to hear this recipe was a hit Alexandrina!
I made this recipe from You a couple times..I Love it.
this time the sauce came out heavier,what is the best way to thin it out more.
Hi Judy, I’m so happy to hear that you love this chicken dish! You can add up to 1 more cup of additional chicken broth or milk to thin it out to the desired consistency.
Would it be OK if I left the mushrooms out or substitute something else?
You can leave out the mushrooms if you prefer and add in extra peas or mixed veggies if you prefer. Enjoy!
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.
was really good…
.
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!!!