Anna Louise Chicken and bacon is one of the most reliable flavour combinations in British cooking — the mild tenderness of chicken against the smoky, salty depth of bacon, in a rich sauce that carries both flavours together beautifully.
In a casserole, cooked long and slow until the chicken is falling from the bone and the bacon has given all its smokiness to the sauce, it becomes something genuinely extraordinary.
Mary Berry’s chicken and bacon casserole recipe builds on this combination properly. The bacon is cooked first until crispy, giving up its fat into the pan — the chicken is browned in that fat, carrying the smoky flavour from the first moment.
Vegetables, stock, wine, and fresh herbs complete the sauce, and the whole thing simmers for an hour until everything has melded into the richest, most satisfying casserole sauce you can produce in a single pot.
This is the casserole for a cold Sunday evening, for cooking ahead for the week, and for feeding people who need warming from the inside out.
Why Bacon First Changes Everything
Starting with bacon and cooking it until crispy and golden does three critical things for this casserole.
It renders the bacon fat into the pan. Bacon fat is deeply flavoured — smoky, slightly salty, with a richness that carries through everything cooked in it. Browning the chicken and then the vegetables in this fat infuses the entire casserole with a smoky depth from the very beginning.
The crispy bacon pieces add texture throughout. Added back into the casserole for the final simmering, the bacon softens slightly but retains enough texture to give occasional savoury, smoky bites throughout the dish.
The fond from the bacon is invaluable. The caramelised bits left in the pan after cooking the bacon are deglazen into the sauce when the wine is added — pure concentrated flavour.
Ingredients for Mary Berry Chicken and Bacon Casserole
- 8 chicken thighs, skin on, bone in
- 200g smoked bacon lardons or smoked streaky bacon, roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion, roughly chopped
- 2 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
- 2 celery sticks, roughly chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tbsp plain flour
- 200ml dry white wine
- 400ml good quality chicken stock
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- 2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
- 2 bay leaves
- 200g chestnut mushrooms, halved
- 2 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
How to Make Mary Berry Chicken and Bacon Casserole — Step by Step
Step 1 — Cook the Bacon
Heat a large, heavy-based casserole dish over a medium-high heat. Add the bacon lardons and cook for four to five minutes, stirring occasionally, until crispy and golden. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside, leaving all the bacon fat in the pan.
Step 2 — Brown the Chicken
Increase the heat slightly. Season the chicken thighs generously. Place skin-side down in the bacon fat and cook for four to five minutes without moving until the skin is deeply golden and crisp. Turn and cook for two minutes on the other side. Remove and set aside.
Step 3 — Soften the Vegetables
Reduce the heat to medium. Add the olive oil if the pan seems dry. Add the onion, carrots, and celery. Cook for eight to ten minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and beginning to colour. Add the garlic and thyme and cook for one more minute.
Step 4 — Build the Sauce
Sprinkle over the flour and stir for one to two minutes. Pour in the white wine and let it bubble, scraping up all the caramelised bits from the base of the pan. Add the chicken stock, tomato purée, and bay leaves. Stir to combine.
Step 5 — Return Everything and Simmer
Return the crispy bacon and the browned chicken thighs (skin-side up) to the casserole. The chicken skin must sit above the sauce — not submerged — to stay golden rather than going soggy.
Bring to a gentle simmer on the hob. Cover and cook over a low heat — or transfer to a preheated 160°C / 140°C fan / Gas 3 oven — for 50 minutes.
Step 6 — Add the Mushrooms and Finish
Add the halved mushrooms. Continue cooking uncovered for a further 15 to 20 minutes until the mushrooms are tender and the sauce has reduced slightly to a rich, glossy consistency.
Remove the bay leaves. Taste and season generously. Scatter with fresh parsley.
My Top Tips For Mary Berry Chicken and Bacon Casserole
Cook the bacon first and use its fat. This is the step that gives the entire casserole its smoky character. The bacon fat carries that flavour into everything that comes after it. Do not drain the fat — cook everything in it.
Keep the chicken skin above the sauce. The skin crisps during browning and stays relatively golden if it sits above the sauce during simmering. Submerged skin goes soft and grey. Nestle the chicken skin-side up and maintain that position throughout cooking.
Add mushrooms in the final 20 minutes. Mushrooms added at the start of a long simmer dissolve into the sauce and lose all texture. Added in the final twenty minutes they remain pleasantly firm and identifiable.
Simmer gently — not vigorously. A gentle simmer keeps the chicken moist and tender. A vigorous boil can make the chicken stringy and the sauce greasy.
Make it the day before. Like all casseroles, this one improves significantly overnight. The flavours deepen, the sauce becomes richer and more unctuous, and the bacon flavour permeates every element of the dish more completely.
Serving Suggestions
With creamy mashed potato — the smoky, rich sauce and fluffy mash is one of the great combinations. With crusty bread for mopping. With steamed green beans or broccoli for freshness and colour. With rice as an alternative to potato.
How to Store Mary Berry Chicken and Bacon Casserole
In the fridge: Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat gently on the hob until piping hot. The flavour improves overnight.
In the freezer: Freeze in portions for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge and reheat gently, adding a splash of stock if the sauce has thickened.
Mary Berry Chicken and Bacon Casserole Recipe
Ingredients
Method
- Cook bacon lardons in a large casserole 4–5 minutes until crispy. Remove — leave fat in pan.
- Increase heat. Season chicken. Brown skin-side down in bacon fat 4–5 minutes until deeply golden. Turn — 2 minutes. Remove and set aside.
- Reduce heat. Cook onion, carrots, and celery 8–10 minutes. Add garlic and thyme — 1 minute.
- Add flour — stir 1–2 minutes. Add wine — bubble and scrape base. Add stock, tomato purée, and bay leaves. Stir.
- Return bacon and chicken (skin-side up). Bring to a gentle simmer. Cover and cook on low heat or in 160°C oven for 50 minutes.
- Add mushrooms. Cook uncovered 15–20 minutes until mushrooms are tender and sauce has reduced. Remove bay leaves. Season. Scatter parsley. Serve.
Notes
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use chicken breast instead of thighs?
Thighs are significantly better for a long casserole — they stay moist and tender through an hour of simmering. Breast becomes dry and slightly stringy. If using breast, add it for the final 25 minutes only.
Can I use unsmoked bacon?
Yes — unsmoked bacon gives a less pronounced bacon flavour in the finished casserole. Smoked bacon gives more depth and character. Either works but smoked is the recommendation.
Can I make this in a slow cooker?
Yes — cook the bacon and brown the chicken and vegetables as directed, then transfer to a slow cooker with the remaining ingredients. Cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours. Add mushrooms in the final hour.
Can I add cream to the sauce?
Yes — three tablespoons of double cream stirred through the sauce in the final five minutes of cooking gives a richer, more indulgent casserole. It is particularly good in the version served over mashed potato.
Why is my casserole sauce too thin?
Either the flour was not added, not cooked through properly, or the lid was on too tightly and the liquid could not reduce. Mix one tablespoon of cornflour with two tablespoons of cold water, stir into the simmering casserole, and cook uncovered for five minutes.
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