Our homemade Southern-Style Vegan Chicken and Biscuits recipe is the ultimate comfort food, and it's made without dairy and meat, and it can be made gluten-free. This delicious stew is filled with healthy vegetables, jackfruit, and a classic roux to make the creamy gravy, then it's topped with drop biscuits. This will be your go to comfort food meal.
Published October 18, 2019 and updated March 17, 2021.
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Is it healthy?
This hearty vegan chicken and biscuits stew recipe was inspired by my maternal and paternal grandmothers.
My mom’s mom made a mean biscuit, and my dad’s mom made the most delicious dumplings.
I loved their cooking so much.
When Alex and I were writing our second cookbook, The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook, we shared the vegan chicken and dumplings recipe.
Today, we’re giving this recipe a Southern twist and topping the vegan chicken stew with savory drop biscuits instead of dumplings.
We love that it’s healthier than the version we used to eat.
You can’t beat jackfruit when it comes to mimicking chicken, and the vegan butter and milk is free of saturated fat and cholesterol.
You get all of the flavor and texture without the unhealthy fat. A total win-win!
How to make them vegan
We like to make our hearty vegan chicken and dumplings stew, or biscuits in this case, in a large cast-iron skillet.
You can cook the jackfruit and veggies in the skillet, and then add the roux and put the pan in the oven to bake the biscuits.
This reduces the clean up and the skillet makes for a pretty and rustic presentation at the table.
TO MAKE THE FILLING
STEP ONE
Prep the jackfruit.
- Drain and rinse well.
- Shred the jackfruit with your hands, a knife, or in a food processor. We prefer to use our hands.
- Spread the jackfruit out evenly on a sheet pan and roast until the edges are dried out and crispy.
STEP TWO
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet and add the onions, celery, and carrots and cook until the onion is translucent.
- Add the mushrooms and cook until they’re nicely browned.
- Add the garlic and seasoning and cook for 2 minutes.
STEP THREE
- Deglaze the pan with the wine and add the broth and salt and pepper, the jackfruit, and the peas and bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
TO MAKE THE BISCUITS
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, garlic powder, salt, dried parsley, and pepper until fully combined.
- Add the butter and use your hands to break the butter down in the flour until it’s the size of peas.
- With a bread hook attachment, mix the flour mixture and almond milk until it forms a solid ball.
TO MAKE THE ROUX
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan.
- When the butter is just beginning to bubble, whisk in the flour until if forms a thick paste.
- Whisk in the milk and continue to whisk until it turns into a thick and creamy gravy.
STEP FOUR
Stir the roux into the vegetable and jackfruit and keep stirring until it’s completely combined. It will continue to thicken as it cooks.
STEP FIVE
Drop the biscuits evenly over the stew and bake for 25 minutes, or until the biscuits are golden brown.
What is jackfruit?
Jackfruit is an exotic fruit that’s grown in tropical locations.
It’s a large scaly green fruit that can grow up to 100 pounds!
When it’s young (not ripe) it has a neutral flavor that makes it great for savory dishes.
When it’s ripe it has a sweet flavor.
Nutritional benefits of jackfruit
Here are some of the benefits of jackfruit:
- Low in calories
- Fat free
- Sodium free
- Good source of vitamins A, C, and potassium
- A great way to get fiber
Where to buy it?
For any savory jackfruit recipe, you should ONLY use young green jackfruit packed in water.
If it’s ripe it’s going to be too sweet and sticky for a savory recipe.
Canned jackfruit that’s packed in brine will be too salty for most people, which is why we like it packed in water.
You can buy jackfruit on Amazon or at most Asian supermarkets. Some grocery stores might carry it and we’ve heard that you can find it at Trader Joe’s, but ours doesn’t have it
Frequently asked questions
Can it be made gluten-free?
Yes! Just swap out the all-purpose flour for gluten-free all-purpose flour.
The texture might be a little more rustic, but this IS a rustic recipe, so it's all good.
Will it turn out if I use canned biscuits?
Absolutely, just make sure that you use vegan biscuits.
Can you freeze it?
Yes!
If you’re going to freeze it, it’s best to bake it in a freezer safe dish and then cover it tightly to avoid freezer burn.
Freeze for up to 3 months and reheat covered with foil in a 350°F (176°C) oven for approximately 20 minutes, or until it’s heated all the way through.
More vegan stew recipes you'll love
INDIAN SPICED TOMATO & RICE STEW
CURRIED PUMPKIN AND BUTTERNUT SQUASH STEW
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Southern-Style Vegan Chicken and Biscuits
Equipment
- stove
- Oven
- large skillet
Ingredients
- 20 ounce young green jackfruit packed in water
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium white onion finely chopped
- 3 celery stalks chopped
- 3 carrots chopped
- 2 cups brown or white mushrooms chopped
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 2 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
- ¼ cup white wine
- 32 ounce no-chicken broth or vegetable broth we use Pacific brand
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 ½ cups frozen peas
- FOR THE ROUX
- ¼ cup vegan butter
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour use gluten-free if necessary
- ⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon unsweetened plant milk almond, cashew, pea, or oat will work. Do not use coconut milk.
- FOR THE BISCUITS
- 2 cups all-purpose flour use gluten-free if needed
- 3 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ cup cubed and chilled vegan butter we use Earth Balance or Miyoko’s
- 1 cup unsweetened plant milk not coconut milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C)
- Drain the jackfruit and rinse well. Squeeze the excess water from the jackfruit and shred it with your fingers or finely chop with a knife. You can also use a food processor to chop. Throw out the hard pieces that won’t shred.
- Spread the jackfruit on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes, or until the edges are slightly browned
- In a large cast-iron skillet (or whatever pan you use for sautéing), heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.
- When the oil is hot, add the onion, celery, and carrots, and cook for about 7 minutes, or until the onion becomes translucent. Stir often.
- Add the mushrooms and cook for another 7 minutes, or until they’re nicely browned. Stir often.
- Add the garlic and Italian seasoning and cook for 2 minutes. Stir often.
- Deglaze the pan with the wine, making sure to scrape up all of the stuck-on pieces.
- Add the broth, shredded jackfruit, peas, and salt and pepper, and bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.
- FOR THE ROUX
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. When the butter begins to bubble, whisk in the flour until it forms a thick paste.
- Whisk in the milk and continue whisking until it becomes a thick and creamy slurry.
- Whisk the roux into the vegetables and broth. It will thicken as it cooks.
- FOR THE BISCUITS
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, garlic, parsley, salt and pepper until completely combined.
- Add the butter and with a pastry cutter or your fingers (our preference), cut the butter into the flour until it’s the size of peas.
- Pour the milk into the flour an with a dough hook or paddle attachment, beat on medium until a solid ball of dough forms.
- Drop the dough evenly over the stew and bake for approximately 25 minutes, or until the biscuits are golden brown.
Notes
- Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- If you’re going to freeze this, bake it in a freezer safe dish that will fit in your freezer and cover tightly. Freeze for up to 3 months.
- Reheat in a 350°F (176°C) oven, covered with foil, for approximately 20 minutes, or until heated through.
Nutrition
David Watson says
And now I have a serious dilemma...do I make jackfruit carnitas with chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, shepherd's pie with Gardein's ground crumble, or this?? Now, I know which you'd answer, and it may just wind up exactly that - very similar to a wonderful treat my dearly departed mother made for us on occasion, only with dumplings (she used an old Betty Crocker Cookbook recipe, and she was born and raised in Oklahoma, about as Southern as you can get without treading into Arkansas...and here I am, almost on the border of the two).
Yep...think I'm doing this one up. I have a glass pie dish that would work beautifully for it. Might stray from the biscuit recipe and either do them up with "buttermilk" and/or add some cheesiness...but think I'll follow your recipe to the letter before making any adjustments...and have JUST enough chablis for deglazing (would prefer chardonnay, but I drank it all 😉 ). Dinner tonight is gonna be yummy, and considering the temperature outside today? A most welcoming warm comfort food. Thank you! (And carnitas tomorrow. I have TWO cans of jackfruit. Hehe... )
Linda Meyer says
Hi David! Oh yes, my German grandmother made hers with dumplings. We have a dumpling recipe in our second cookbook, and have been meaning to share it on the blog. Thanks for the reminder! Our cheesy cheddar drop biscuits would be great with this, so go for that cheese. 🙂 Carnitas for taco Tuesday!!
Christine @ Run Plant Based says
Yum, this is such a great comfort food recipe. Thanks!
Alex Meyer, MA says
Thank you so much Christine!