Classic Brunswick Stew With Pork and Chicken

Brunswick Stew with Pork and Chicken
Diana Rattray
  • 60 mins
  • Prep: 15 mins,
  • Cook: 45 mins
  • Yield: Serves 8
Ratings (46)

By Diana Rattray

Updated 12/15/17

Early Brunswick stews were often made with squirrel, rabbit, even opossum, but these days pork, chicken, and beef are common.

This Brunswick stew is made with cooked pork shoulder or leftover pulled pork, along with shredded or chopped cooked chicken thighs and vegetables. The barbecue sauce and a touch of cayenne pepper flavor the classic stew. 

I cooked the chicken thighs the day before and used some leftover pulled pork, so prepping and cooking the stew was a breeze. You could easily use frozen prepared pulled pork in this dish as well.

Serve this Brunswick stew with cornbread, pickles, and coleslaw or a salad on the side.

What You'll Need

  • 6 tablespoons butter
  • 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 3 or 4 cloves of garlic, minced)
  • 3 cups diced potatoes
  • 1 1/2 cups frozen baby lima beans
  • 2 cups frozen corn kernels
  • 3 cups
  • chicken stock
  • 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes
  • 1 1/2 cups
  • barbecue sauce*
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar, optional
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
  • 2 cups shredded or chopped cooked chicken thighs
  • 2 cups shredded cooked pork shoulder or leftover pulled pork

How to Make It

  1. Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is translucent.
  2. Add the garlic and cook, stirring for 2 minutes longer. Add the potatoes, lima beans, corn, chicken stock, and tomatoes. Bring to a boil. 
  3. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for about 25 minutes, ​or until the vegetables are tender. Add the barbecue sauce, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, salt, black and cayenne peppers, chicken, and pork. 
  1. Simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes.
  2. Serve with cornbread or biscuits, along with coleslaw on the side.

*If using prepared pulled pork with barbecue sauce, use about 1 to 1 1/4 cups of barbecue sauce. Use your favorite barbecue sauce.

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Want to know more about Brunswick Stew? Take a look at this article, "The Origin Myth(s) of Brunswick Stew," on the Southern Foodways Alliance blog.