Easy Chicken and Biscuits

By
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Southern-cuisine expert and cookbook author Diana Rattray has created more than 5,000 recipes and articles in her 20 years as a food writer.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 09/18/23
Two biscuits resting in a bowl of soup

The Spruce Eats

Prep: 30 mins
Cook: 45 mins
Total: 75 mins
Servings: 4 servings

Chicken and biscuits is a quintessential American dish that sums up what comfort food is all about: creamy, rich, and filling. Our take on it is all about the classic recipe, with homemade biscuits to top a chunky mixture of chicken and vegetables cooked in a creamy sauce. Don't be fooled by the long list of ingredients, as most are staples in your pantry. And despite their large number, the cooking instructions are pretty straightforward. Serve with a green salad if you'd like, but as is the dish is a complete and hearty meal.

Chicken breasts are best for the recipe, but darker meat is also be very flavorful. Our recipe is very forgiving, so if what you have is leftover chicken or turkey breasts, use that instead. Peas and carrots are the classic vegetable addition, but there's room for any other vegetable you'd like. Simply chop it very finely and substitute it. Don't add too many more veggies, as the filling might come out too thick and might dry out in the oven. Unless you're adding leafy greens, which will considerably shrink when cooking, keep the veggies at the suggested 1 to 1 1/2 cups.

Our recipe for the biscuits yields more than you'll need, which isn't a bad thing, as you can freeze them for another meal or leave for the day after to serve with breakfast or brunch.

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Ingredients

For the Chicken:

  • 2 large chicken breast halves, bone-in

  • 3 cups chicken broth

  • 1 small onion, chopped

  • 1/2 teaspoon dried leaf thyme

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

  • 1 1/2 cups frozen peas, cooked; or peas and carrots

For the Sauce:

  • 4 tablespoons butter

  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

  • 1/4 to 1/2 cup heavy cream, or whipping cream

  • 1 dash salt, or to taste

  • 1 dash pepper, or to taste

For the Biscuits:

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour

  • 1 tablespoon baking powder

  • 3/4 teaspoon salt

  • 2 teaspoons sugar, optional

  • 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream, or whipping cream

Steps to Make It

Prepare the Chicken

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Ingredients for chicken and homemade biscuits recipe gathered

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  2. In a large saucepan, add the chicken, chicken broth, onion, thyme, and pepper. Bring to a boil.

    Chicken in a large saucepan with the chicken broth, onion, thyme, and pepper

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  3. Reduce heat to low, cover, and continue cooking at a low simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and no longer pink in the center.

    Chicken cooking in a broth in a pot

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  4. Remove the chicken from the broth. Reserve the broth. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones and chop coarsely or shred.

    Chopped chicken resting on a cutting board

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  5. Preheat the oven to 375 F. Grease an 8- or 9-inch baking dish or spray it with nonstick cooking spray. Place the chicken in the baking dish.

    Chopped chicken added to a greased baking dish

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  6. Sprinkle the cooked peas or peas and carrots over the chicken in the baking dish.

    Add peas over chicken in baking dish

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Make the Sauce and Assemble the Filling

  1. In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter.

    Melted butter in a saucepan

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  2. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes.

    Flour added to melted butter

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  3. Gradually add 3 cups of the reserved chicken broth and continue cooking until thickened, stirring frequently. Add the heavy cream to the sauce, starting with 1/4 cup. Depending on how thick or thin you'd like it to be, add the remaining heavy cream or leave it as is. Add salt and pepper to taste.

    Add chicken broth and heavy cream to broth and butter

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  4. Pour the sauce over the chicken and vegetables in the baking dish. Reserve.

    Pour sauce over chicken and vegetables

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Prepare the Biscuits

  1. In a large bowl, thoroughly whisk the flour with the baking powder, 3/4 teaspoon of salt, sugar if using, and parsley.

    Flour being whisked with the baking powder, salt, sugar, and parsley in a bowl

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  2. With a fork, stir in the heavy cream until moistened. Turn the dough mixture onto a floured surface and knead 3 or 4 times with floured hands just until the dough holds together.

    Stir heavy cream in dough

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  3. Pat the dough into a circle about 1/2 inch thick and cut out disks of 1 3/4 to 2 inches in diameter with biscuit cutters. Arrange the biscuits over the chicken mixture in the baking dish. Gather the dough scraps together and cut out more biscuits until you've used all the dough. Either place the extra biscuits on the chicken mixture or bake on a baking sheet. Alternatively, freeze the extra raw, cut-out biscuits.

    Arrange biscuits over chicken

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  4. Bake the chicken and biscuits and, if desired, the plain extra biscuits, until browned, about 20 to 24 minutes. Serve hot.

    Finished homemade chicken and biscuits

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  5. Enjoy!

Bolder Chicken Flavor

To add more flavor to your chicken broth, add a teaspoon of chicken bouillon granules or chicken base, or use part condensed chicken broth in the cooking liquid. Don't add salt until the sauce has thickened; taste and season if needed.

Shortcut Chicken and Biscuits

If you don't have enough time to make the biscuit dough from scratch, use packaged biscuit mix. Although the result won't be quite the same, it will still be delicious. Simply make the chicken filling and prepare the biscuits according to the manufacturer's instructions. Cut the biscuits and place them on the filling. Bake until the biscuits are golden brown, or according to the package instructions.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
929 Calories
58g Fat
69g Carbs
34g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories 929
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 58g 74%
Saturated Fat 35g 177%
Cholesterol 220mg 73%
Sodium 1708mg 74%
Total Carbohydrate 69g 25%
Dietary Fiber 5g 18%
Total Sugars 8g
Protein 34g
Vitamin C 10mg 51%
Calcium 333mg 26%
Iron 6mg 31%
Potassium 484mg 10%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)