Modern Virginia-Style Brunswick Stew
A chicken-and-butter-bean kettle stew thickened by mashed potato and long cooking, not by bottled sauce. Cooked down until a spoon leaves a track.
Stew, Main CourseAmericanTotal 2 hr 45 minYield 2 servingsScaled Quarter — ¼×
Stew, Main CourseAmericanTotal 2 hr 45 minYield 2 ⅔ servingsScaled Third — ⅓×
Stew, Main CourseAmericanTotal 2 hr 45 minYield 4 servingsScaled Half — ½×
Stew, Main CourseAmericanTotal 2 hr 45 minYield 8 servingsScaled Original — 1×
Stew, Main CourseAmericanTotal 2 hr 45 minYield 16 servingsScaled Double — 2×
Stew, Main CourseAmericanTotal 2 hr 45 minYield 24 servingsScaled Triple — 3×
Stew, Main CourseAmericanTotal 2 hr 45 minYield 32 servingsScaled Quadruple — 4×
Ingredients
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Instructions
- Render the pork: In a heavy 7- to 8-quart Dutch oven over medium heat, cook the bacon or salt pork until the fat has rendered and the pieces are crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Lift the pork out with a slotted spoon and set it aside, leaving the fat in the pot.
- Brown the chicken: Pat the chicken thighs dry and season lightly. Brown in the pork fat in two batches, skin side down first, about 5 minutes per side, until deeply colored. Transfer to a plate. Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of fat.
- Sweat the onion: Add the onion to the pot and cook over medium heat, scraping up the browned bits, until soft and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes.
- Build the pot: Add the chicken stock, crushed tomatoes, potatoes, bay leaf, salt, and black pepper. Return the chicken and any juices to the pot, along with the reserved pork. Bring to a boil, then drop to a bare simmer, partly covered -- the lid resting askew with a gap of an inch or two.
- Simmer the chicken: Cook at a lazy simmer for 45 minutes, until the chicken is falling off the bone and the potatoes are completely tender.
- Shred and thicken: Remove the chicken to a board. Fish out most of the potato chunks, mash them smooth with a fork or a splash of the broth, and stir them back in -- this is what gives the stew its body. Discard the bay leaf. Pull the chicken meat off the bones in coarse shreds, discarding skin and bone, and return the meat to the pot. You should have roughly 1 1/2 pounds of meat.
- Cook down with the beans: Add the lima or butter beans. Simmer uncovered for 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so and scraping the bottom, until the stew has visibly tightened and the beans are starting to break down at the edges.
- Add the corn last: Stir in the corn and simmer uncovered for another 20 to 25 minutes. The stew is ready when a spoon dragged across the bottom leaves a track that closes slowly.
- Finish and season: Off the heat, stir in the butter, Worcestershire sauce, cider vinegar, brown sugar, and cayenne pepper. Taste and correct with salt and a little more vinegar -- it should read savory and faintly sweet, not sauced. Rest 15 minutes before serving.
Ingredients
Tap one to check it off
Instructions
- Render the pork: In a heavy 7- to 8-quart Dutch oven over medium heat, cook the bacon or salt pork until the fat has rendered and the pieces are crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Lift the pork out with a slotted spoon and set it aside, leaving the fat in the pot.
- Brown the chicken: Pat the chicken thighs dry and season lightly. Brown in the pork fat in two batches, skin side down first, about 5 minutes per side, until deeply colored. Transfer to a plate. Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of fat.
- Sweat the onion: Add the onion to the pot and cook over medium heat, scraping up the browned bits, until soft and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes.
- Build the pot: Add the chicken stock, crushed tomatoes, potatoes, bay leaf, salt, and black pepper. Return the chicken and any juices to the pot, along with the reserved pork. Bring to a boil, then drop to a bare simmer, partly covered -- the lid resting askew with a gap of an inch or two.
- Simmer the chicken: Cook at a lazy simmer for 45 minutes, until the chicken is falling off the bone and the potatoes are completely tender.
- Shred and thicken: Remove the chicken to a board. Fish out most of the potato chunks, mash them smooth with a fork or a splash of the broth, and stir them back in -- this is what gives the stew its body. Discard the bay leaf. Pull the chicken meat off the bones in coarse shreds, discarding skin and bone, and return the meat to the pot. You should have roughly 1 1/2 pounds of meat.
- Cook down with the beans: Add the lima or butter beans. Simmer uncovered for 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so and scraping the bottom, until the stew has visibly tightened and the beans are starting to break down at the edges.
- Add the corn last: Stir in the corn and simmer uncovered for another 20 to 25 minutes. The stew is ready when a spoon dragged across the bottom leaves a track that closes slowly.
- Finish and season: Off the heat, stir in the butter, Worcestershire sauce, cider vinegar, brown sugar, and cayenne pepper. Taste and correct with salt and a little more vinegar -- it should read savory and faintly sweet, not sauced. Rest 15 minutes before serving.
Ingredients
Tap one to check it off
Instructions
- Render the pork: In a heavy 7- to 8-quart Dutch oven over medium heat, cook the bacon or salt pork until the fat has rendered and the pieces are crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Lift the pork out with a slotted spoon and set it aside, leaving the fat in the pot.
- Brown the chicken: Pat the chicken thighs dry and season lightly. Brown in the pork fat in two batches, skin side down first, about 5 minutes per side, until deeply colored. Transfer to a plate. Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of fat.
- Sweat the onion: Add the onion to the pot and cook over medium heat, scraping up the browned bits, until soft and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes.
- Build the pot: Add the chicken stock, crushed tomatoes, potatoes, bay leaf, salt, and black pepper. Return the chicken and any juices to the pot, along with the reserved pork. Bring to a boil, then drop to a bare simmer, partly covered -- the lid resting askew with a gap of an inch or two.
- Simmer the chicken: Cook at a lazy simmer for 45 minutes, until the chicken is falling off the bone and the potatoes are completely tender.
- Shred and thicken: Remove the chicken to a board. Fish out most of the potato chunks, mash them smooth with a fork or a splash of the broth, and stir them back in -- this is what gives the stew its body. Discard the bay leaf. Pull the chicken meat off the bones in coarse shreds, discarding skin and bone, and return the meat to the pot. You should have roughly 1 1/2 pounds of meat.
- Cook down with the beans: Add the lima or butter beans. Simmer uncovered for 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so and scraping the bottom, until the stew has visibly tightened and the beans are starting to break down at the edges.
- Add the corn last: Stir in the corn and simmer uncovered for another 20 to 25 minutes. The stew is ready when a spoon dragged across the bottom leaves a track that closes slowly.
- Finish and season: Off the heat, stir in the butter, Worcestershire sauce, cider vinegar, brown sugar, and cayenne pepper. Taste and correct with salt and a little more vinegar -- it should read savory and faintly sweet, not sauced. Rest 15 minutes before serving.
Ingredients
Tap one to check it off
Instructions
- Render the pork: In a heavy 7- to 8-quart Dutch oven over medium heat, cook the bacon or salt pork until the fat has rendered and the pieces are crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Lift the pork out with a slotted spoon and set it aside, leaving the fat in the pot.
- Brown the chicken: Pat the chicken thighs dry and season lightly. Brown in the pork fat in two batches, skin side down first, about 5 minutes per side, until deeply colored. Transfer to a plate. Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of fat.
- Sweat the onion: Add the onion to the pot and cook over medium heat, scraping up the browned bits, until soft and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes.
- Build the pot: Add the chicken stock, crushed tomatoes, potatoes, bay leaf, salt, and black pepper. Return the chicken and any juices to the pot, along with the reserved pork. Bring to a boil, then drop to a bare simmer, partly covered -- the lid resting askew with a gap of an inch or two.
- Simmer the chicken: Cook at a lazy simmer for 45 minutes, until the chicken is falling off the bone and the potatoes are completely tender.
- Shred and thicken: Remove the chicken to a board. Fish out most of the potato chunks, mash them smooth with a fork or a splash of the broth, and stir them back in -- this is what gives the stew its body. Discard the bay leaf. Pull the chicken meat off the bones in coarse shreds, discarding skin and bone, and return the meat to the pot. You should have roughly 1 1/2 pounds of meat.
- Cook down with the beans: Add the lima or butter beans. Simmer uncovered for 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so and scraping the bottom, until the stew has visibly tightened and the beans are starting to break down at the edges.
- Add the corn last: Stir in the corn and simmer uncovered for another 20 to 25 minutes. The stew is ready when a spoon dragged across the bottom leaves a track that closes slowly.
- Finish and season: Off the heat, stir in the butter, Worcestershire sauce, cider vinegar, brown sugar, and cayenne pepper. Taste and correct with salt and a little more vinegar -- it should read savory and faintly sweet, not sauced. Rest 15 minutes before serving.
Ingredients
Tap one to check it off
Instructions
- Render the pork: In a heavy 7- to 8-quart Dutch oven over medium heat, cook the bacon or salt pork until the fat has rendered and the pieces are crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Lift the pork out with a slotted spoon and set it aside, leaving the fat in the pot.
- Brown the chicken: Pat the chicken thighs dry and season lightly. Brown in the pork fat in two batches, skin side down first, about 5 minutes per side, until deeply colored. Transfer to a plate. Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of fat.
- Sweat the onion: Add the onion to the pot and cook over medium heat, scraping up the browned bits, until soft and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes.
- Build the pot: Add the chicken stock, crushed tomatoes, potatoes, bay leaf, salt, and black pepper. Return the chicken and any juices to the pot, along with the reserved pork. Bring to a boil, then drop to a bare simmer, partly covered -- the lid resting askew with a gap of an inch or two.
- Simmer the chicken: Cook at a lazy simmer for 45 minutes, until the chicken is falling off the bone and the potatoes are completely tender.
- Shred and thicken: Remove the chicken to a board. Fish out most of the potato chunks, mash them smooth with a fork or a splash of the broth, and stir them back in -- this is what gives the stew its body. Discard the bay leaf. Pull the chicken meat off the bones in coarse shreds, discarding skin and bone, and return the meat to the pot. You should have roughly 1 1/2 pounds of meat.
- Cook down with the beans: Add the lima or butter beans. Simmer uncovered for 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so and scraping the bottom, until the stew has visibly tightened and the beans are starting to break down at the edges.
- Add the corn last: Stir in the corn and simmer uncovered for another 20 to 25 minutes. The stew is ready when a spoon dragged across the bottom leaves a track that closes slowly.
- Finish and season: Off the heat, stir in the butter, Worcestershire sauce, cider vinegar, brown sugar, and cayenne pepper. Taste and correct with salt and a little more vinegar -- it should read savory and faintly sweet, not sauced. Rest 15 minutes before serving.
Ingredients
Tap one to check it off
Instructions
- Render the pork: In a heavy 7- to 8-quart Dutch oven over medium heat, cook the bacon or salt pork until the fat has rendered and the pieces are crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Lift the pork out with a slotted spoon and set it aside, leaving the fat in the pot.
- Brown the chicken: Pat the chicken thighs dry and season lightly. Brown in the pork fat in two batches, skin side down first, about 5 minutes per side, until deeply colored. Transfer to a plate. Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of fat.
- Sweat the onion: Add the onion to the pot and cook over medium heat, scraping up the browned bits, until soft and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes.
- Build the pot: Add the chicken stock, crushed tomatoes, potatoes, bay leaf, salt, and black pepper. Return the chicken and any juices to the pot, along with the reserved pork. Bring to a boil, then drop to a bare simmer, partly covered -- the lid resting askew with a gap of an inch or two.
- Simmer the chicken: Cook at a lazy simmer for 45 minutes, until the chicken is falling off the bone and the potatoes are completely tender.
- Shred and thicken: Remove the chicken to a board. Fish out most of the potato chunks, mash them smooth with a fork or a splash of the broth, and stir them back in -- this is what gives the stew its body. Discard the bay leaf. Pull the chicken meat off the bones in coarse shreds, discarding skin and bone, and return the meat to the pot. You should have roughly 1 1/2 pounds of meat.
- Cook down with the beans: Add the lima or butter beans. Simmer uncovered for 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so and scraping the bottom, until the stew has visibly tightened and the beans are starting to break down at the edges.
- Add the corn last: Stir in the corn and simmer uncovered for another 20 to 25 minutes. The stew is ready when a spoon dragged across the bottom leaves a track that closes slowly.
- Finish and season: Off the heat, stir in the butter, Worcestershire sauce, cider vinegar, brown sugar, and cayenne pepper. Taste and correct with salt and a little more vinegar -- it should read savory and faintly sweet, not sauced. Rest 15 minutes before serving.
Ingredients
Tap one to check it off
Instructions
- Render the pork: In a heavy 7- to 8-quart Dutch oven over medium heat, cook the bacon or salt pork until the fat has rendered and the pieces are crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Lift the pork out with a slotted spoon and set it aside, leaving the fat in the pot.
- Brown the chicken: Pat the chicken thighs dry and season lightly. Brown in the pork fat in two batches, skin side down first, about 5 minutes per side, until deeply colored. Transfer to a plate. Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of fat.
- Sweat the onion: Add the onion to the pot and cook over medium heat, scraping up the browned bits, until soft and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes.
- Build the pot: Add the chicken stock, crushed tomatoes, potatoes, bay leaf, salt, and black pepper. Return the chicken and any juices to the pot, along with the reserved pork. Bring to a boil, then drop to a bare simmer, partly covered -- the lid resting askew with a gap of an inch or two.
- Simmer the chicken: Cook at a lazy simmer for 45 minutes, until the chicken is falling off the bone and the potatoes are completely tender.
- Shred and thicken: Remove the chicken to a board. Fish out most of the potato chunks, mash them smooth with a fork or a splash of the broth, and stir them back in -- this is what gives the stew its body. Discard the bay leaf. Pull the chicken meat off the bones in coarse shreds, discarding skin and bone, and return the meat to the pot. You should have roughly 1 1/2 pounds of meat.
- Cook down with the beans: Add the lima or butter beans. Simmer uncovered for 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so and scraping the bottom, until the stew has visibly tightened and the beans are starting to break down at the edges.
- Add the corn last: Stir in the corn and simmer uncovered for another 20 to 25 minutes. The stew is ready when a spoon dragged across the bottom leaves a track that closes slowly.
- Finish and season: Off the heat, stir in the butter, Worcestershire sauce, cider vinegar, brown sugar, and cayenne pepper. Taste and correct with salt and a little more vinegar -- it should read savory and faintly sweet, not sauced. Rest 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
Do not skip the cook-down: the defining trait for the Virginia style is a long-cooked, homogeneous texture where the vegetables partly disintegrate, not a brothy soup with discrete cubes. Better on day two. Freezes well, though the potatoes soften further. If you substitute canned butter beans for the frozen, add them at step 8 with the corn rather than at step 7, or they will dissolve over the longer simmer; fresh corn cut from the cob needs only the last few minutes. To lean Georgia/barbecue instead, replace half the chicken with 1 lb chopped smoked pork shoulder, swap 8 oz of the corn for cream-style, and add 1/3 cup ketchup or tomato-based barbecue sauce at step 7. For a heritage version, substitute squirrel or rabbit for the chicken and parboil it 20 minutes before browning.