Crockpot Chicken Fricassee Recipe

If chicken fricassee sounds a little old-fashioned to you, you're not wrong. It's a classic French stew that dates back to the medieval era, and it's been said that chicken fricassee was a favorite of President Abraham Lincoln. If the words "traditional" and "French" in a recipe scare you off, however, don't be alarmed! This Crockpot chicken fricassee recipe from recipe developer and chef Julianne De Witt is straightforward and does not require any advanced cooking skills. If you want a dinner recipe for a night when you need to multitask, remember that you don't need to watch the Crockpot once you've closed the lid.

If you do have some experience with French cooking, you might be surprised to see a beurre manié and not a roux in this recipe. "Beurre manié is essentially an uncooked roux," De Witt says. "Made with equal parts softened butter and flour, it's the perfect thickener for the Crockpot."

To make this Crockpot chicken fricassee, you'll need avocado oil, diced onion, carrots, celery, garlic, assorted mushrooms, chicken stock, white wine, fresh thyme, softened butter, heavy cream, all-purpose flour, salt, fresh ground black pepper, frozen pearl onions, and bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs.

Place the avocado oil in a saute pan over high heat.

Season chicken thighs with 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper.

Working in batches, sear the chicken on both sides until browned, approximately 2 minutes per side.

Once browned, add the chicken to a Crockpot.

Add onions, carrots, celery, and garlic to the same pan you cooked the chicken in and saute for 2 minutes.

Add mushrooms and cook for 1 minute.

Add the contents of the saute pan to the Crockpot.

Next, pour in chicken stock and white wine.

Add thyme sprigs and bay leaves. Stir.

Cook on high for 2 hours 30 minutes.

While the chicken cooks, create a beurre manié by combining the softened butter and flour together to form a paste.

After cooking, remove the chicken thighs from the Crockpot and set aside.

Add the beurre manié to the Crockpot and whisk.

Add heavy cream. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Return the chicken to the Crockpot and add the pearl onions.

Stir, cover, and cook on low for 30 minutes, until the sauce has thickened and the chicken has reached a minimum of 165 F.

Garnish with minced parsley to serve.

Chicken fricassee is a hearty, comforting dish, and De Witt recommends serving this recipe with hearty, comforting sides. "I like to serve chicken fricassee with mashed potatoes, steamed green beans, and some crusty bread for soaking up all the delicious sauce," De Witt says. She also notes that this Crockpot chicken fricassee is a great dinner option during the colder months of the year.

This Crockpot chicken fricassee should last 3–4 days in the refrigerator, and, according to De Witt, should taste even better after one day in the fridge. You can also keep this dish in the freezer for up to 3 months. As with any frozen dish that involves chicken and liquid, be mindful about how you thaw and reheat. "Reheat by thawing in the fridge and then reheating gently in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally," De Witt says.

Chicken fricassee is traditionally made with a whole chicken. In fact, this dish became popular in the South during the Great Depression because a single chicken in a stew could feed a large family. In this recipe, however, De Witt uses bone-in chicken thighs. "Traditionally, fricassee is made from a whole chicken cut into pieces, but I use chicken thighs here to save time," De Witt says. "I recommend using bone-in chicken for the flavor. You could substitute boneless chicken thighs, but watch the cooking time, as boneless meat tends to fall apart if cooked too long in the Crockpot."

De Witt uses another time-saver ingredient in this recipe: frozen pearl onions. "Fresh pearl onions can be used instead, but they'll take longer to cook," De Witt says. If you do use fresh pearl onions, add them to the Crockpot once you begin cooking and not at the end, as is written in the recipe.