Creamy Chicken Cobbler with Mushrooms

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Hi Bold Bakers!

WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS RECIPE: Delectable Creamy Chicken Cobbler with Mushrooms is comfort food at its finest. Savory, fragrant chicken and mushroom stew topped with a golden-brown biscuit topping is delightfully nostalgic and homey but special enough for a dinner party. This recipe takes a little time, but the steps are easy, and when you pull that bubbling casserole out of the oven, you’ll know this is a winner! 

• Liquid gold! Get ready for stock with an incomparably rich flavor. It’s also hands-off—just let it simmer and enjoy the amazing aroma.
• Bountiful filling: Tender chicken, savory mushrooms, and sweet carrots are enveloped in a creamy sauce. Homemade makes the difference—no rotisserie chicken, cream of chicken soup, or chicken seasoning packet here!
• Everyone loves a cobbler! This chicken filling is fabulous, and when you add crumbly, buttery biscuit topping, dinner doesn’t get any better!

I don’t think I’m alone when I say that I adore savory pies, rolls, cobblers...anything topped with lovely biscuit dough or wrapped in pastry! They’re hearty, warm, and satisfying, and you’ll love our other Bigger Bolder Baking soul-comforting dinner and snack options like  Chorizo Hand Pies, Mushroom, Thyme, and Mascarpone Parcels, Irish Sausage Rolls, and Tomato and Ricotta Galette.

After making this dish countless times for my family, I’ve learned an essential tip: ensure your filling is saucy and has enough liquid. Unlike chicken pie with a pastry crust, the biscuit topping absorbs some of the liquid as it bakes. To avoid a dry cobbler, err on the side of a creamier filling by adding extra stock or milk if needed. Trust me, a little extra liquid goes a long way in delivering that perfect balance of tender, juicy filling and crumbly, golden biscuit topping.

Table of Contents

What is Creamy Chicken Cobbler with Mushrooms?

• Creamy Chicken and Mushroom Cobbler is a casserole featuring a rich and savory filling topped with perfectly tender biscuits. Homemade stock, with its unparalleled depth of flavor, elevates the filling.
• This all-in-one homemade meal is high in protein, has a healthy dose of veggies, and is creamy and buttery. It’s both nutritious and indulgent and a total crowd-pleaser. Plus, it’s customizable. Swap out the veggies or change up the seasonings to accommodate your tastes or your guests’ preferences.
• Throughout history, savory cobblers were less common than fruit cobblers, but meat pie dates back to ancient Greece and Rome. The appeal was mainly practical–the crust wasn’t meant to be eaten but used to help preserve the meat inside. Chicken pot pie became common in England in the 1600s, and transplants to the American colonies brought the tradition with them.

Key Ingredients and Why

Carrots

• Carrots flavor the stock and add texture and color to the cobbler.
• This root vegetable contains a lot of natural sugar, and when it’s used to make stock, it adds color, depth, and sweetness.
• Be sure to peel the carrots, as they will be used in the pie filling as well as in the stock pot

Celery

• Celery adds its bright, vegetal taste to the chicken broth.
• Celery stalks are the most popular part of the plant, but the leaves, seeds, and root are also edible. The center, thin, leafy stalks are actually what I suggest using when making a stock, so you can save the bigger stalks for snacking on.
• Celery, combined with leeks, onions, and carrots, makes a mirepoix, a classic flavor base for many soups and stews.

Onion

• Onion gives this dish depth.
• Onions come in many varieties. The most common are red, yellow, and white.
• For this chicken cobbler, I recommend using yellow onions, but white onions can be substituted (I don’t recommend using sweet onions).

Bay leaves

• Bay leaves provide a subtle flavor similar to oregano or thyme.
• Be sure not to consume the leaves, as the stems stay rigid after cooking and could become a choking hazard.

Parsley

• Parsley provides fresh flavor and bright color to this chicken cobbler recipe.

Whole black peppercorns

• Whole peppercorns permeate the stock with the perfect level of warm spiciness.
• I recommend using black peppercorns (they are also pink or white varieties, but they have very different flavors).

Whole raw chicken

• Chicken is the prime ingredient and flavor of this cobbler. The better the chicken, the better the taste and quality of your cobbler, so keep that in mind when shopping.
• Before cooking, check the cavity of the chicken for a parchment bag with the neck and innards. Remove it, and if you like, roast the innards off for your family or the dog. (The chicken neck was usually reserved for my dad in our house!) Failing that, the organ meats are very nutritious for pets (but not the neck!)
• To clean the chicken, please wipe the interior and exterior of the carcass with disposable kitchen towels. Refrain from ‘washing’ the raw chicken under a running tap, as it’s not necessary and will splash the raw juices far and wide around your sink.

Water

• To make the stock, you’ll need 12 cups (3 liters/3 quarts) of water.

Butter

• Butter is used to sauté the mushroom and in the biscuits.
• Butter adds flavor, softness, and moisture to baked goods.
• It also creates steam when baking, which aids in rising, and it is what creates the flakiness in biscuits.

White button mushrooms

• Mushrooms are considered vegetables, but they’re technically not a plant–they’re part of the fungi family.
• In this recipe, we use white button mushrooms, but feel free to explore other mushroom varieties in this recipe if you wish! Crimini mushrooms also work very well.

All-purpose flour

• All-purpose flour typically has a protein content of 8-11%, perfect for this biscuit topping.

Whole milk

• Milk adds richness to the filling.
• Be sure to use whole milk for the best flavor and texture.

Heavy cream

• In this recipe, heavy cream provides moisture and rich flavor and gives a velvety texture to the filling.

Baking powder

• Baking powder helps the biscuits rise.
• Baking powder is a combination of baking soda and an acid (usually tartaric acid).

Baking soda

• Baking soda is a chemical leavener.
• Unlike baking powder, it does not contain any acid, so an acidic ingredient (like the buttermilk in this recipe) is needed to activate it.

Buttermilk

• Buttermilk gives the biscuits a pleasing tang.
• Additionally, its acidic nature keeps the gluten bonds in flour from tightening, resulting in more tender baked goods.
• If you don’t have any on hand, you can easily make your own using my Buttermilk Substitute Recipe.

Egg wash

• Brushing egg wash on the unbaked biscuit tops ensures that they’ll come out of the oven golden brown and shiny.
• Make an egg wash by beating one egg with a tablespoon of water or milk.

Salt and ground pepper

• Use salt and ground pepper to season the filling to taste.

How to Make Creamy Chicken Cobbler

Make the chicken stock

1. In a large, 8-quart heavy bottomed saucepan add the carrots, celery, onion, bay leaves, pepper and parsley. Place the whole chicken on top. (See my note about cleaning the chicken). Pour over the water before placing a lid on the pot.

2. On high heat, bring the stock to a boil. Skim away any scum that floats to the top of the pot.

3. Reduce the heat to medium low and let the stock simmer gently for about 90 minutes.

1. Carefully remove the chicken and carrots from the pot and set aside to cool down for 20 minutes. Strain the stock through a sieve and set aside 3 cups (24 floz/720 ml) of stock for later. Discard the remaining cooked vegetables and spices.

2. Pick all the meat from the chicken and chop to bite size pieces. Slice the carrots and pop them into a bowl with the chicken and place into the fridge.

Make the chicken and mushroom filling

3. Wipe the mushrooms clean with a paper towel before chopping them into small pieces.
4. In a large saucepan over medium heat, add the butter and allow to sizzle before adding in your mushrooms.
5. Sautée the mushroom for 2 to 3 minutes before lowering the heat and adding the flour. Cook this ‘roux’ for roughly 2 minutes to cook the flour.
6. While mixing, slowly pour in reserved chicken stock, followed by the milk and cream. Stir vigorously to incorporate the liquid to your roux. Turn up the heat to medium and simmer for 3 to 5 minutes, or until thickened.
7. Mix in the cooked chicken, carrots and salt and pepper. Taste and add more seasoning if needed.
8. Transfer your cobbler filling into a large baking dish, roughly 9 x 13-inches. Once cool, cover and place in the fridge until needed. This filling can be made up to 24 hours in advance.

Make the biscuit topping and bake

9. Preheat the oven to 375ºF (190ºC). In a large bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and parsley.
10. Toss in the cold butter and rub in with your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs.
11. Add the buttermilk and stir until the dough leaves the sides of the bowl. Turn out onto a floured surface and form into a ball. Pat out into a circle that is about 1-inch thick. Cut with a 3-inch round biscuit cutter. Gather and reroll any scraps.
12. Place the biscuits side by side on top of the cold filling. Brush the tops with egg wash.

13. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until golden brown.
14. Allow to cool for 20 minutes before serving. Store any leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days. It also freezes really well for up to 8 weeks.

Gemma’s Pro Chef Tips

• It may seem like a lot of steps to make your own stock and cook a whole chicken if this isn’t what you are used to doing, but a lot of this is hands-off time. Nothing compares to fresh, homemade chicken, and you will taste the difference.
• There are a few simple steps to prepping a whole chicken:
  • First, check the cavity for a parchment bag filled with innards and the neck that’s sometimes included with a whole chicken. You can cook them, or they can be discarded.
  • Next, trim away any loose or excess skin or fat. Finally, check the chicken for any remaining feathers. These can be pulled off with your hands or a pair of tweezers.
  • There is no need to wash the chicken, as the boiling stock water will remove germs.
  • But do make sure to wash your hands and any work surfaces thoroughly after handling raw meat!
• If you’re worried about any potential mess from the cobbler bubbling over, place the backing pan on a baking sheet.

Make Ahead and Storage Instructions

Make ahead tips

• The filling can be made 24 hours in advance and held in the refrigerator.
• Also, the entire cobbler, biscuits and all, can be assembled and put into the fridge to be baked off within 24 hours.

How to store leftovers

• Store leftovers in an airtight container or covered tightly with plastic wrap in the fridge for up to three days.
• For more extended storage, put leftovers in an airtight container and store in the freezer for up to eight weeks.

FAQs

Can I make this if I don’t have buttermilk?

My biscuits are browned but still seem raw in the center. What do I do?

• Cover the cobbler with aluminum foil to prevent over-browning, and continue to bake until the topping is baked through.

Can I use other vegetables and seasonings in this Chicken Cobbler?

• Of course! If you want to add green vegetables, stir in 1 to 2 cups of blanched chopped green beans, peas, or slivered baby spinach to this chicken casserole.
• For robust flavor, add sautéed garlic or garlic powder, chopped chives, or a teaspoon or two of red pepper flakes to the filling.
• You can add 1/2 cup of grated cheese (cheddar cheese and Parmesan cheese are great choices) to the biscuit batter if you wish.

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