Chuckwagon Recipe #34: Trail Country Creamy Chicken & Wild Rice Stew

 Chuckwagon Recipe #34: Trail Country Creamy Chicken & Wild Rice Stew

Serves: 6–8Prep Time: 10 minutesCook Time: 45 minutes

A thick, creamy, rustic stew that feels like a warm hug from the prairie. Cowboys loved rice because it traveled well, and mixed with tender chicken and vegetables, it becomes the perfect winter comfort bowl.

🐔 Ingredients

• 2 cups cooked shredded chicken

• 1 tbsp butter or bacon grease

• 1 small onion, diced

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 2 carrots, sliced

• 2 celery stalks, chopped

• 1 cup wild rice (uncooked)

• 4 cups chicken broth

• 1 cup milk or cream

• 1 tsp thyme

• ½ tsp garlic powder

• ½ tsp smoked paprika

• ½ tsp salt (to taste)

• ½ tsp black pepper

• Optional: ½ cup peas or corn

🍳 Instructions

1. Sauté the Vegetables

Heat butter in a Dutch oven. Add onion, garlic, carrots, and celery. Cook until softened.

2. Add Chicken & Rice

Stir in shredded chicken and uncooked wild rice.

3. Add Broth & Seasonings

Pour in chicken broth. Add thyme, paprika, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.

4. Simmer Slowly

Cover and simmer 35–40 minutes, stirring occasionally, until rice is tender and stew thickens.

5. Make It Creamy

Stir in milk or cream and simmer 5 more minutes.

6. Serve

Dish into bowls and enjoy with biscuits, fry bread, or cornbread.

🤠 Chuckwagon Tip

Add a splash of cream and a teaspoon of bacon drippings at the end — it gives the stew that deep, smoky “campfire comfort” the trail cooks were famous for.