Chicken stew is the perfect comfort food on dreary days, and celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has created his own take on the traditional favourite.
This “not-too-fussy” recipe warms the cockles, combining chicken thighs with root vegetables, bacon and thyme for a delicious, hearty stew that’s on the table in just 90 minutes.
The family-friendly recipe, which the chef calls ‘Jools Simple Chicken and Veg Stew’, adds a touch of Marmite to give the broth a rich, savory flavor that goes perfectly with fresh crusty bread.
A great way to use up all the vegetables you have around the house, Jamie said: “I’ve used celery and parsnip in my recipe, but you can use any root vegetables you have lying around in the fridge – turnips, squash and potatoes work really well.”
Packed with goodness, Jamie’s Chicken Casserole has 25.8 grams of protein per serving and only 420 calories. Serve with mashed potatoes and enjoy a warming kick to soothe the soul.
Ingredients
- Two medium leeks
- Two carrots
- Two sticks of celery
- Two cloves of garlic
- Three sprigs of fresh thyme
- Three rasheras of high quality smoked streaky bacon
- Olive oil
- 200 g of celery
- Two parsnips
- Six new potatoes
- Eight free-range chicken thighs, skin removed, bone removed
- One heaped teaspoon of Marmite
- 600 ml organic vegetable broth
Jamie said of her ingredient choices: “I don’t really like onions in my cooking, so I always leave them out of my stews – I prefer to use leeks. My kids also like sweetcorn, which I stir in frozen right after the stew comes out of the oven.”
Method
Preheat the oven to 180 ºC/350 ºC/gas 5.
Cut, wash and slice the leek 1 cm thick, grate and cut the carrots into rough pieces and finely slice the celery. Peel and slice the garlic, pick the thyme leaves, remove the stems and finely slice the bacon.
Heat a splash of oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and add the bacon. Sprinkle in the thyme leaves and fry for a few minutes or until the bacon is golden brown.
Next, add the leek, carrot, celery and garlic and cook, stirring regularly, for about 10 minutes or until the leeks begin to soften. Meanwhile, peel and roughly chop the celery and parsnips and roughly chop the potatoes.
Add the chicken, celery, parsnips and potatoes to the pan. Stir in the Marmite, add a pinch of black pepper and stir to coat.
Pour in the hot stock, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat. Crumple and moisten a piece of greaseproof paper, then unfold it and place it on top of the stew. Cover and bake in the oven for 1 hour or until the chicken is very tender.
When the time is up, carefully break up the chicken into the stew and then serve in bowls. I like to serve this with broccoli. Sometimes I put puff pastry on top or mix it through the pasta for a really tasty sauce.
