Brunswick Stew
You just don’t get much more Southern than this thick, rich, and hearty traditional Brunswick Stew recipe, and not only is it my favorite stew in the whole world, but anyone who’s tried this recipe agrees that it simply is the Best Brunswick Stew on the planet!
I love this stew, and I’ve worked on it for YEARS to perfect it. I love it for lunch or dinner, and it’s so hearty and stick-to-your-ribs that it’s practically a meal all on its own. I have some pairing suggestions for what to serve with it, so be sure to check out what to serve with Brunswich Stew below. Plus, this is an easy Brunswick Stew recipe! You make it all one big pot, and you can even get it started a day or two ahead of time. Don’t worry, I’ll tell you how to do that.
What Is Brunswick Stew?
Originating from Brunswick, Georgia, this Southern stew can be made with pork, beef, or chicken, though back in the very late 1800s, it was made with squirrel, rabbit, or opossum. It has a tomato base loaded with beans, veggies, and big chunks of meat. It is slow-cooked goodness!
Ingredients
- Whole chicken – You’ll need a 3-4 pound chicken.
- Onions – Yellow or white onions are fine.
- Bell pepper
- Vegetable oil
- Canned diced tomatoes – You’ll need 3 of the 16-ounce cans; juice and all.
- Canned tomato sauce – Just an 8-ounce can.
- Sugar
- White vinegar
- Worcestershire sauce
- All-purpose flour – You can omit the flour to make this a gluten-free Brunswick Stew.
- Chicken stock – Reserved from cooking the chicken in step 1.
- Potatoes – About a pound, peeled and cubed.
- Canned baked beans – 1 16-ounce can.
- Hot sauce – Use your favorite hot sauce.
- Salt and pepper
- Canned corn
- Canned lima beans
- BBQ sauce – Use your favorite BBQ sauce.
How To Make The Best Brunswick Stew Ever!
- Add the chicken to a large pot of water and simmer it for 45 minutes with the lid on.
- Remove the chicken from the pot and set it aside to cool. Reserve 1 cup of the chicken stock and freeze the rest.
- Remove the skin and bones from the chicken when it is cool enough to handle, then chop the chicken meat and set it aside.
- Saute the onion and bell peppers in oil in the pot until tender.
- Add the chopped chicken, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, sugar, white vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce. Mix well.
- Combine the all-purpose flour with 1 cup of the cooled chicken stock and whisk it until smooth. Stir this into the chicken and tomato mixture.
- Add the potatoes, canned beans, hot sauce, and salt and pepper to taste.
- Cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and simmer for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the drained corn and lima beans and cook an additional 10 minutes.
- Add the BBQ sauce, starting with ½ cup and taste it, adjusting the salt and pepper and adding more sauce if you like.
- Serve and enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Save the rest of the chicken stock for other tasty chicken soups or stews. Freeze it in containers and use up all that deliciousness!
- You can make this recipe with bought chicken broth and leftover rotisserie chicken, but this from-scratch method is sooo much tastier!
- Use your favorite BBQ sauce and add more as needed for flavor.
- This stew is even better the next day, so don’t worry if you have leftovers!
How To Make Brunswick Stew Ahead Of Time
You can certainly do parts of this recipe ahead of time. For example, you can cook the chicken and remove the meat. Pop the cut-up chicken meat and reserved broth into the fridge, and freeze the rest of the broth all ahead of time.You can also cook the stew hours or even a day before. I would cook it as suggested reserving the potatoes, canned corn, and canned lima beans until you’re ready to reheat the stew. When ready to reheat it, add the potatoes, corn, and lima beans and simmer until the potatoes are tender.
Serving Suggestions
This is a meat and potatoes kind of stew, complete with veggies, so you don’t really need to add much to the meal. I love serving this chicken Brunswick Stew with homemade biscuits and pickles. You could also serve it along with a salad if you need more leafy greens in your day.
Storage
You can store any leftover Brunswick Stew in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. It tastes even better reheated! Yum! Check out how to freeze individual servings for later.  This freezes GREAT!)
{Best Ever} Brunswick Stew
Ingredients
- 1 – 4 pound whole chicken
- 1.5 cups chopped onion
- 1 cup chopped bell pepper
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 3 – 16oz cans diced tomatoes
- 1 – 8oz can tomato sauce
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons white vinegar
- 5 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 cup chicken stock reserved from boiling the chicken
- 1 pound potatoes peeled & cubed
- 1 – 16oz can baked beans
- 2 tablespoons hot sauce
- 1.5 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 – 16oz can corn
- 1 – 16oz can lima beans
- 1/2 cup – 1 cup bbq sauce depending on your tastes…I add 1 cup to mine, sometimes a little more
Instructions
- Cook chicken in a large stockpot of boiling water for 45 minutes with the lid on.
- Remove chicken from liquid to cool. Reserve 1 cup of the chicken stock & freeze the rest. Please don’t throw it away – that’s good stuff! Skin, bone, & chop chicken.
- Saute onion & bell pepper in hot oil in your large stockpot until tender. Add chopped chicken, tomato, & next 4 ingredients.
- Combine flour & 1 cup of reserved chicken stock, whisking until smooth. Stir into chicken mixture. Add potato & next 5 ingredients.
- Cover & cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 40 minutes. Add corn and lima beans. Cook for 10 additional minutes. Add in the bbq sauce, starting with 1/2 cup. Taste & add more depending on your tastes.
Looks divine!
Blessings
http://bit.ly/odzYCI
I love Brunswick Stew but have never made it myself! I am adding this to my try list!! Thanks for sharing, stopping by from Tasty Tuesday at BB&B.
Wow this looks so yummy and hardy love that. Soups are my favorite because of leftovers!!
Looks tasty! I’m a fan of Brunswick Stew, but I’ve never tried it. From the sounds of it, your recipe is a great place to start!
This look amazing! I haven’t had Brunswick stew in years-I’m definitely going to try this.
I have never had the chance to tasty Brunswick Stew. I just bookmarked your page. I can not wait to try your recipe. It sounds amazing.
I’ve never heard of Brunswick Stew!! I’m going to have to try this!
My husband loves brunswick stew. We used to have it all the time when we lived in GA, but I had forgotten about it. I’ll have to make this for him soon – I have almost all the ingredients already =)
I had never heard of Brunswick stew before so I sure am glad you shared this recipe! It looks and sounds delicious, as well as really good for you too. Thank you for linking it up with the Hearth and Soul hop.
Hi Crystal,
What a great way to welcome fall. I can almost smell this great stew as it cooks. It is a very delicious recipe. Thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday and have a great week end!
Come Back Soon,
Miz Helen
Given the rave reviews you stew has received, I’ve printed it! It does look delicious.
This looks amazing! I’ll be trying it at my house very soon : )
Visiting from Made by You Mondays
What a hearty and delicious meal, thanks for sharing with the Hearth and Soul.
We don’t eat stew very often in general, much less Brunswick stew…I can’t wait to try this!
I never knew exactly what Brunswick Stew was until a friend in FL emailed his recipe to me. His is great but not like yours at all. I will definitely be trying it your way. It has to be delicious! Your blog is great and I’m glad I found it.
Thank you so much!
I’m so glad that you posted this! I’ve been looking for something tasty to do with my leftover turkey.
We made a crockpot full of your stew Friday, for our bonfire party, which went over so well there were no leftovers for us! Making a second batch as we speak. We did leave out the bell pepper and swapped the lima beans for cannellini beans, due to taste preferences but, WOW, everyone absolutely loved it. My Mom said it was possibly the best Brunswick Stew she’s ever had! Just wanted to pass along the compliments to the actual chef as I only boiled some chicken, cut up some onions and opened some cans! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe with us. It will surely be a new go-to stew for us! Well done!
I absolutely love Brunswick Stew. I always make a point to order it at any BBQ restaurant I go to so I’ve eaten a lot of it over the years. I will say that I made this stew last night and can concur that it is the best I’ve ever had or at least right up there near the top of the list. Excellent recipe.
Oh, that makes my heart so happy – thank you for coming back & sharing that! I’m just thrilled that you love it as much as my family & I do! 🙂
As the weather is getting colder in Southern California I was searching for an excellent recipe for beef and chicken stew. After reviewing all comments THIS is the one I decided to try your guarantee that we’re going to love it. I love confidence in Chef’s that gear me more into trying the recipe. I will be going to the grocery store to purchase items that are not in my cabinet but however would like to know what alternative vegetable I can substitute for lima beans? Only certain beans I like and unfortunately Lima Beans isn’t one of them. Please advise or can I just omit period. Again, thanks so much for sharing your recipes and look forward to hearing back from you!. Sincerely,
MAKING THIS RECIPE TOMARROW……STAY TUNED!!
I’ve made this several times for our quilt gatherings. I use Costco chicken and it’s so quick to make. We absolutely love it. Perfect cold weather stew.
Is it really a 14 lb chicken or is that a typo.
No, that’s one 4 pound chicken!