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Mary Berry Coronation Chicken Recipe

Mary Berry Coronation Chicken Recipe

Mary Berry's coronation chicken is creamy, mildly spiced, and packed with flavour — the definitive version of Britain's most celebrated chicken dish.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Cooling Time 30 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 20 minutes
Servings: 6 Portions
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: British
Calories: 480
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • Poached Chicken:
  • 1.5 kg whole chicken or 800g boneless chicken breasts
  • 1 onion halved
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 4 black peppercorns
  • 1 lemon halved
  • 1 tsp fine salt
  • Coronation Sauce:
  • 1 tbsp sunflower oil
  • 1 small onion very finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp mild curry powder
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp tomato purée
  • 100 ml dry white wine or apple juice
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • 2 tbsp mango chutney
  • 250 g good quality mayonnaise
  • 100 g crème fraîche
  • Salt and pepper
  • To Finish:
  • 50 g toasted flaked almonds
  • Fresh coriander or parsley
  • 75 g dried apricots roughly chopped (optional)

Method
 

  1. Place chicken in a pan with onion, bay leaf, peppercorns, lemon, and salt. Cover with cold water. Bring to the boil then simmer — 1 hour 15 minutes for whole chicken, 20–25 minutes for breasts. Cool completely. Shred into generous chunks.
  2. Cook finely chopped onion in oil 5 minutes. Add curry powder and cumin — cook 1–2 minutes. Add tomato purée — cook 1 minute. Add wine or juice — bubble and reduce until almost evaporated. Add lemon juice and mango chutney. Cool completely.
  3. Stir cold spice paste into mayonnaise and crème fraîche. Mix until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning.
  4. Add shredded chicken and apricots if using. Fold gently until well coated.
  5. Transfer to serving platter or bowl. Scatter toasted almonds and fresh herbs.

Notes

Always cook the spice paste properly — raw curry powder in mayo tastes harsh.
Cool the spice paste completely before adding to mayonnaise — warm paste splits the sauce.
Shred chicken into generous chunks — not fine shreds.
Make the day before — the flavour improves significantly overnight.
Use good quality mayonnaise — the brand makes a noticeable difference.
Stores in the fridge for up to 3 days. Does not freeze.
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