Chicken · Slow cooker adaptation

Slow Cooker Chicken Stew with Cream of Chicken Soup

Fifteen minutes and a pressure cooker stand between you and a proper, chunky chicken stew, no browning, no faffing, just raw chicken and veg straight into the pot. The kind of thing you'd normally leave simmering for hours suddenly happens in a flash.

R By Richard · Adapted from YouTube · Published 28 May 2026
⏱Prep 10 min
🍲Slow cook 6 hr (Low) / 3 hr (High)
🍽Serves 4
Belting 15 Minute Chicken Stew In The Pressure Cooker

Source video by YouTube on YouTube. This recipe was adapted with strict source-fidelity rules and is marked for human review.

This is a one-pot chicken stew originally cooked in a pressure cooker in 15 minutes, adapted here for the slow cooker. Everything goes in raw: diced chicken breast, potatoes, carrots, leek and onion, with a tin of cream of chicken soup standing in as a cheat stock. Season with chicken seasoning, salt and black pepper, then leave the slow cooker to do the work. Thicken at the end with a little arrowroot or cornflour slurry if you like, and serve with thick crusty bread and butter.

Slow cooker notes: Original recipe was cooked for 15 minutes in a Cosori pressure cooker. For the slow cooker, cook on Low 6 hours or High 3 hours so the chicken stays in chunks rather than shredding (the cook warns that chicken can go stringy after long slow cooking). The cream of chicken soup is added straight from the tin as in the original; a splash of cold water swirled in the tin (as shown) keeps the liquid level honest. Thickening with arrowroot or cornflour slurry at the end is taken directly from the video.

Editor's note: Source is a pressure cooker recipe, adapted to slow cooker timings. Tin size of cream of chicken soup not stated (assumed standard ~400g tin but left as 1 tin). Potato, onion, leek and carrot sizes not stated. Chicken seasoning brand/blend not specified. Arrowroot quantity stated as 'a heaped teaspoon' with a splash of water. Salt and pepper to taste. | Second-pass critique flagged 8 fabricated and 2 quantified issues. See critique.issues for detail.

Ingredients

Main
  • 4 wholechicken breasts, diced into chunky pieces
  • 1 tincream of chicken soup
  • 3 wholepotatoes, cut into quarters
  • 1 wholeleek, sliced
  • 2 wholecarrots, chopped
  • 1 wholeonion, chopped
Seasoning
  • 1 tspchicken seasoning
  • salt
  • black pepper, freshly ground
To thicken (optional)
  • 1 tsparrowroot powder, heaped, mixed with a splash of cold water (add late)
Optional
  • single cream (add late)
  • tarragon

Method

  1. Add the diced chicken breast to the slow cooker. No need to brown or sear.

    ~2 min

  2. Add the quartered potatoes, sliced leek, chopped carrots and chopped onion on top of the chicken.

    ~3 min

  3. Pour in the tin of cream of chicken soup. Swirl a splash of cold water in the empty tin to get the last of the soup out, then add that to the pot too.

    ~2 min

  4. Sprinkle over the teaspoon of chicken seasoning and season generously with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir everything together so the chicken and vegetables are coated.

    ~2 min

  5. Put the lid on and cook on Low for 6 hours or High for 3 hours, until the chicken is cooked through (75C or above) and the potatoes are tender.

    ~360 min

  6. If you want a thicker sauce, mix a heaped teaspoon of arrowroot (or cornflour) with a splash of cold water to a smooth slurry. Stir it through the bubbling stew at the end of cooking until thickened.

    ~3 min

  7. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Ladle into bowls and serve with thick crusty bread and butter.

    ~2 min

Frequently asked

Do I need to brown the chicken first?
No. As in the original video, the chicken goes in raw along with everything else. The slow cooker brings it up to temperature gently and it stays in tender chunks.
Can I use chicken thighs instead of breast?
Yes. Boneless, skinless thighs work very well in a slow cooker stew and stay juicier than breast over longer cooks. Dice them to a similar size.
How do I thicken the sauce?
Stir in a slurry of arrowroot or cornflour mixed with a little cold water at the end of cooking, while the stew is hot and bubbling. It thickens almost instantly.
Can I add dumplings?
Yes. Drop suet dumplings on top for the final 45 minutes to 1 hour of cooking on High, with the lid on, until risen and cooked through.
Can I freeze the leftovers?
Yes. Cool quickly, then freeze in portions for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge and reheat thoroughly until piping hot. You can also blitz leftovers into a soup.
Extraction notes (transparency): Source is a pressure cooker recipe, adapted to slow cooker timings. Tin size of cream of chicken soup not stated (assumed standard ~400g tin but left as 1 tin). Potato, onion, leek and carrot sizes not stated. Chicken seasoning brand/blend not specified. Arrowroot quantity stated as 'a heaped teaspoon' with a splash of water. Salt and pepper to taste. | Second-pass critique flagged 8 fabricated and 2 quantified issues. See critique.issues for detail.