Grandma’s Chicken Soupy Stew Recipe | Comforting and Delicious

This comforting and delicious chicken stew recipe has been passed down through the generations and my family loves Grandma’s Chicken soupy stew recipe. The clear chicken broth tastes amazing and is a total comfort food in our home.

This is my Mum’s recipe and it is a family favorite with both the boys and even better it is frugal too as it uses up the chicken carcass for making the stock.  You could make it suitable for vegetarians by using vegetable stock and removing the chicken.   If you do not have much chicken then a broth pack is a great way of bulking it out and I have to say I love adding pearl barley to mine.

It reminds me of dinner round the table when I was growing up and there was always a fight for the extra dumplings my mum made!

5 from 4 votes

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Grandma’s Chicken Soupy Stew

Prep Time 20 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

• Chicken Carcass
• Leftover roast chicken
• Vegetables
• Suet
• Self raising flour

Instructions

1. Place the chicken carcass in a slow cooker and cover with boiling water.
2. If you have any leek or carrot tops then add them too and cook on low overnight.
3. Strain the liquid and if you want pick off any meat from the bones.
4. Allow the stock to cool and remove fat from the top.
5. Place the stock in to the slow cooker and add chopped up vegetables. This one had carrots, swede, parsnip, leeks and onions.
6. Add chicken.
7. Cook for 4 hours on high in a slow cooker or 8 hours on low.
8. For the Dumplings (this makes 8)
9. g of vegetable suet and 200g of self raising floor in a bowl.
10. Make a well in the middle and add water, mixing with a butter knife until it comes together.
11. Form loosely into 8 portions
12. For a crispy top cook in the oven uncovered for 20 minutes.
13. For a soft top leave on high in the slow cooker for 30 minutes.

Perfect for cold winter evenings.  I guarantee empty bowls for this meal!  It also freezes well and is great warmed up and you can blend the leftovers to make a smooth soup perfect for flasks.

There are numerous ways to make this chicken soup, but the best stock and broth is made by cooking the chicken carcass. I do this in the instant pot overnight more often than not at the moment. This way you get a really clear chicken stock and then I strip all the chicken meat off. If there isn’t a lot of meat on the chicken, then add additional chicken breasts or chicken thighs to the pot (but bone-in does create the most flavour). As you are double cooking the tender chicken is amazing. There is a reason why chicken soup is the ultimate comfort food.

This type of stew is great for adding potatoes, but I prefer waxy ones, as I don’t like them to break up and cloud the broth, so simmer the soup and do not allow it to come to a rolling boil. This is a watery soup/stew, we don’t add flour as again this will cloud the stock. I serve it with crispy dumplings or crusty bread.