Various dishes of chicken “à la Reine” and “à la Royale” have appeared in cookbooks since as early as 1665, mostly without recipes; there is no indication that they are similar to the modern Chicken à la King.

However, the recipe was mentioned in The New York Times in 1893,and early published recipes appeared in 1900.

This is one of the easiest recipes I know. We very rarely make it, but it is a great tasty standby dish.

CHICKEN A LA KING

Ingredients:

• 3.5 oz margarine or olive oil
• 7 oz  mushrooms, sliced
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 3 oz flour
• 1 1/2 pintschicken stock
• 24 oz diced cooked chicken
• Salt and pepper
• Paprika or ground nutmeg
• Cornflour
• Splash of kosher sherry.

Method:

• Melt the marge or splash the olive oil and fry the mushrooms, onion and pepper until soft. 
• Stir in the flour and then the stock and cook for 2-3 minutes, remove from the heat and continue to stir until it thickens.
• Add the cooked chicken, season to taste and add the sherry, if you wish.