This chicken stew recipe is packed with fantastic flavor and health benefits, thanks to the butternut squash and quinoa. Comfort in a bowl! 330 calories and 5 Weight Watchers Freestyle SP
I was patting myself on the back for this hearty chicken stew recipe all day long. Tasty? Oh my, yes. Healthy? You better believe it. Aroma? I'd say it gets a "15" on a scale of 1 to 10. This recipe formed in my head slowly, starting with some chicken thighs sitting in the fridge. Then I picked up a butternut squash at the grocery store, with the thought of making soup. Instead, I cubed and steamed the squash, mashing half of it to help thicken the stew. In went the quinoa, one of my favorite grains, for an extra punch of protein and fiber. The topper was a kick of briny flavor from some kalamata olives and a burst of freshness from a handful of chopped parsley.
While low in calories and fat, a bowlful of this chicken stew recipe easily satisfied my craving for comfort food. Also, butternut squash is high in Vitamins A and C, as well as fiber, so I knew I was getting a well-rounded meal to keep my body healthy for my daily workouts. One can not keep up with a high-energy "power pump" instructor without some decent fuel from which to draw. Seriously, this woman makes the Energizer bunny look like a total slacker. And she has about a dozen grandkids! Inspirational? Yeah, I'd say so.
This stew can be made in advance, but you may need to add a little more chicken broth before serving because the quinoa will expand as it sits. Either way, the flavors and textures are fantastic and it is sure to become a cold-weather favorite.
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Hearty Chicken Stew with Butternut Squash & Quinoa Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds butternut squash peeled, seeded & chopped into ½-inch pieces
- 3 ½ cups chicken broth
- 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 14 ounce can petite diced tomatoes
- â…” cup uncooked quinoa
- Âľ cup pitted & quartered kalamata olives
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- ÂĽ cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
Instructions
- Steam the butternut squash until barely tender, about 10 minutes. Remove half of the squash pieces and set aside.
- Steam the remaining squash until very tender, an additional 4 to 6 minutes. Mash this squash with the back of a fork. Set aside.
- In a large saucepan set over medium-high heat, bring the chicken broth to a simmer.
- Add chicken thighs, cover, and cook until chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes.
- Transfer the chicken thighs to a plate and allow to cool. Pour broth into a medium-sized bowl.
- Return the saucepan to the stovetop and lower heat to medium. Add olive oil.
- Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is starting to turn brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
- Add the salt, minced garlic and oregano. Cook, stirring, for 1 additional minute.
- To the saucepan, add tomatoes, butternut squash pieces, mashed butternut squash. Stir to combine.
- Stir in reserved chicken broth and quinoa. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook until the quinoa turns translucent, about 15 minutes.
- Shred the chicken with your fingers or a fork.
- Stir the chicken, olives and pepper into the stew and simmer, uncovered, to heat, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in parsley and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Other healthy stew recipes:
Left to right: Italian Split Pea Stew with Cauliflower, Spiced Mushroom, Chickpea & Tomato Stew, and Curry Red Lentil Stew with Tomatoes
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Therese
Love the ingredient list for this stew. Has anyone ever tried it in a crockpot?
JudyL
Just found this on pinterest & it looks delicious, Can't wait to see if my family will eat it. I'm wondering though, I hate to waste time & always try to find an easier way to do things - so, why can't you steam the butternut at the same time you cook the chicken? Put it all in the pan & pull the butternut out when it's time - I think that would work ok, don't you?
Dara (Cookin' Canuck)
Hi Judy, this recipe is pretty forgiving. I don't see any reason why you couldn't do that. I think it will turn out perfect and save you a saucepan!
Christen
I love this so much I'm about make it for the third time. You are totally entitled to a pat on the back for this recipe, I think it will become one of my staple fall & winter recipes for life!
Dara (Cookin' Canuck)
That makes me so happy to hear, Christen!
Kathy
Dara, my friend gave me a copy of this recipe, which led me to your website. I made this stew exactly as written and it was amazing! My 8 year old daughter loved it too! She has always liked healthy food and I am so lucky. What a wonderful healthy stew for the family. Thank you and keep up the good work. I look forward to making many of your recipes.
Beth
Fantastic! I added a 16 ounce bag of spinach I took out to make a salad and thought - why not? Even better the next day.
Katie
Oh my goodness, this was amazing!!! We all loved it and can't wait for tomorrow to eat the leftovers. THANK YOU!
Kathy
Dara, I have used many of your wonderful recipes. All of them have been great. However, THIS one is unbelievably wonderful!!! At first, I thought that all those olives would make it too salty, so I decided to put one third into the stew and serve the others on the side for people to add in. After tasting the stew, we understood. The olives beautifully balance the natural sweetness of the butternut squash. Everyone immediately tossed the remaining olives into their stew. Delicious!! Thank you!
Beth
Made this soup tonight, it was fantastic! Might double the recipe next time so I can have more leftovers. Thanks for the great recipe!
johanna
could you use this in your crock pot?
Dara
Hi Johanna, I haven’t made this using a slow cooker, but a few readers have tried it with success. Here are their comments on the matter:
“You absolutely could, I do! I don’t fry off anything- literally chuck it all in on high for 3-4 hours. You may need to add more water/stock.”
“I tried this recipe over the weekend. I didn’t have quinoa on hand, but I had rice. I just threw everything into my slow cooker and added the rice in the last 20 minutes of cooking. Fantastic soup and super easy to make!”
I hope that helps!
kelly
I made this tonight my 2 sons and I. I had ground chicken on hand so that is what we used I also did not have any olives. I added a few handfulls of spinach at the end. Thank you for this recipe. I typed in paleo butternut squash and quinoa into google and got this. I had things on hand and had no ideas.