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Home » Recipes » Main Dish Recipes

Apple Chicken Stew Recipe

Published: Nov 10, 2017 · Modified: Jun 7, 2021 by Colleen 20 Comments

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This Apple Chicken Stew with Rutabaga, Carrots, and Parsnips is an easy, healthy and delicious dinner. Root veggies are available for most of the year, and they add an earthy flavour to the tart sweetness of the apples. The creamy gravy is from apple juice and chicken stock. And the whole thing is a hearty, comforting bowl of goodness.

Apple Chicken Stew

This is a very autumn tasting dish, but I think it makes a cozy winter meal, too. I've said it before, but I love one-pot meals. Especially stews. It's so nice to throw ingredients into a pot together and let all of the ingredients simmer together until it's time to eat. And the clean up is pretty nice, too.

Food on a blue plate, chicken and Rutabaga

Apples in a Stew?

You don't usually see apples in a chicken stew, but they work really well with the flavours of sage, rosemary and chicken. I love rutabaga. It's one veggie that needs more attention, because, in spite of it's not so pretty appearance, it's a really versatile ingredient. People sometimes confuse turnips with rutabaga, but they aren't the same. Although closely related, they are different veggies.

 
Food on a blue plate, with  Chicken

Rutabaga vs Turnip: What's the Difference?

The difference? Rutabaga is bigger and yellow, and the turnip, which is white and purple, is smaller. Rutabaga is sweeter and milder than the turnip. When you cook rutabaga, it has a mellow sweetness and they are delicious mashed or in casseroles, soups, and stews, like this apple chicken stew. You may also know them as swedes. 1 medium rutabaga (although you're probably not likely to set down and eat a whole one unless you want to, and really, why not?) has 161% of your daily requirement for vitamin C. Besides 38% dietary fibre, 18% calcium, and 11% iron. Fun rutabaga fact: you know that neon coloured candied fruit for making fruit cakes? A good portion of it is actually rutabaga!

A bowl of food on a blue plate, with Apple and chicken

Rutabaga is a star in this stew along with another underused root vegetable, parsnips, as well as carrots. Any apple variety will work. I had some Spartans, so that's what I used, but I think a more tart Granny Smith would be especially good.

And you can do this in the slow cooker, too. I have included instructions in the recipe notes.

For more delicious root vegetable recipes, you may like Ginger Carrot Lentil Soup or Creamy Parsnip Puree.

A bowl of food on a blue plate, on a wooden cutting board

Recipe

A bowl of food on a blue plate

Apple Chicken Stew Recipe

Apple Chicken Stew with Root Vegetables is simmered in apple juice and herbs for a flavour packed fall meal.
5 from 2 votes
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Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 266kcal
Author: Colleen Milne

Ingredients

  • 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into 1" cubes
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 medium onion diced
  • 2 stalks celery chopped
  • 2 tablespoon fresh sage chopped
  • 1 " fresh ginger peeled and minced
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • 2 cups rutabaga peeled and cubed
  • 1 cup parsnip peeled and diced
  • 1 cup peeled and diced carrot peeled and diced
  • 4 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups unsweetened apple juice
  • 1 cup chicken stock
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
  • 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary chopped
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 apples peeled, cored, and sliced
  • 2 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Heat oil over medium-high in a large pot or dutch oven.
  • Season chicken with salt and pepper
  • Brown chicken on all sides, in batches, and remove to a plate. (About 5 minutes per batch)
  • Reduce heat to medium-low and add onions, sage, ginger and garlic to the pan.
  • Cook stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes
  • Turn heat up to medium and add rutabaga, parsnips, and carrots to the pan
  • Cook 2 minutes, stirring occasionally
  • Sprinkle the veggies with flour and stir to coat, cooking for 1 minute
  • Stir in apple juice and stock, continuing to stir until thickened and smooth.
  • Stir in thyme, rosemary, bay leaf, and chicken
  • Reduce heat and allow it to simmer until vegetables are tender about 30 minutes.
  • Add apple slices and cook for a further 5 minutes
  • Taste and adjust salt & pepper if required
  • Remove from heat and serve hot, garnished with parsley

Notes

Boneless, skinless chicken thighs can be used in place of the chicken breast, and you could also substitute cubed pork loin in this recipe.
This recipe is using sodium reduced chicken stock. If you use a higher salt stock, you may not want to add more salt.
Slow Cooker Version: Omit the oil. Put all ingredients except flour, apple juice and stock in the slow cooker and cook on low 5-8 hours, depending on your slow cooker. Reduce stock to ½ cup.At the end of cooking time, whisk together flour, apple juice and stock until smooth. Stir gravy into chicken & vegetable mixture, and heat on high until gravy has thickened.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 266kcal | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 37mg | Sodium: 549mg | Potassium: 775mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 3875IU | Vitamin C: 26.6mg | Calcium: 75mg | Iron: 1.6mg
Tried this Recipe? Pin it for Later!Mention @TheFoodBlog or tag #thefoodblog!
Chicken and vegetables on a blue plate with a silver fork.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. debi at Life Currents

    November 18, 2017 at 2:46 pm

    This sounds like a hearty and delicious family meal with all kinds of fall flavors going on! Nice work.

    Reply
    • Colleen

      November 18, 2017 at 3:04 pm

      Hi Debi, thank you, it's a favorite at our house this time of year!

      Reply
  2. Gloria @ Homemade & Yummy

    November 15, 2017 at 9:19 am

    Lots of great flavours in this seasonal stew. Perfect comfort food for the upcoming cold weather.

    Reply
    • Colleen

      November 15, 2017 at 12:03 pm

      Thanks Gloria! This is a great dish when the weather gets cold!

      Reply
  3. Sam | Ahead of Thyme

    November 13, 2017 at 10:05 pm

    I love homemade soups. So interesting that this has apples, it looks delicious!!

    Reply
    • Colleen

      November 13, 2017 at 10:58 pm

      Hi Sam it really is a delicious stew and the apples are what makes it special, for sure!

      Reply
  4. Tiffany

    November 13, 2017 at 1:51 pm

    This looks delicious and so healthy too! I love the the combination of chicken and apples and root veggies. I have to make this!

    Reply
    • Colleen

      November 13, 2017 at 2:08 pm

      Thanks Tiffany! I hope you love it as much as we do! 🙂

      Reply
  5. Jane

    November 13, 2017 at 6:32 am

    Oh these flavours sound just perfect together, especially since the temperature has definitely dropped!

    Reply
    • Colleen

      November 13, 2017 at 10:58 am

      Hi Jane! These flavours are perfect for fall, I agree. 🙂

      Reply
  6. Carmy @ carmyy.com

    November 10, 2017 at 3:06 pm

    This looks delicious! I never even thought of adding apple to my chicken stew. Gotta give it a go next time!

    Reply
    • Colleen

      November 10, 2017 at 4:53 pm

      Hi Carmy! I hope you give it a try, it was really delicious!

      Reply
  7. maria

    November 10, 2017 at 9:51 am

    I also love one pot dinners and this one looks like a winner. I really love root vegetables and I think the addition of apples is brilliant! Thanks for sharing Colleen ♥

    Reply
    • Colleen

      November 10, 2017 at 6:23 pm

      Thanks, Maria! One pot is my go to for fall & winter 🙂

      Reply
  8. Sharon

    November 10, 2017 at 9:16 am

    What a creative and delicious sounding stew! I really am intrigued by the apples. They are such a great pairing with chicken. And would you believe I've never had a rutabega? Time to remedy that. ☺Thanks for sharing the recipe!

    Reply
    • Colleen

      November 10, 2017 at 6:22 pm

      Thanks so much, Sharon! You need to have a rutabega! 🙂

      Reply
  9. MDIVADOMESTICA

    November 10, 2017 at 8:45 am

    Your stew looks so tasty & is definitely hearty enough for winter. I don't usually make chicken stew but will have to give this a try.

    Reply
    • Colleen

      November 10, 2017 at 10:14 am

      Thanks Melissa, I know, I don't usually make stew with chicken, but this one is a winner!

      Reply
  10. Cathy

    November 10, 2017 at 8:30 am

    I'm sure that apple must be very good in here! I have a recipe for beef stew with apple that I keep going back to. I also like to see parsnips being used and plan to cook with them more often.

    Reply
    • Colleen

      November 10, 2017 at 10:13 am

      Thanks Cathy! We love parsnips and use them a lot. I like the sound of your beef and apple stew 🙂

      Reply

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185 shares