Mary Berry’s chicken stroganoff is sliced chicken breast pan-fried with mushrooms and paprika in a crème fraîche sauce, served with basmati rice. It serves four to six, cooks entirely on the hob, and takes about 25 minutes from cutting board to plate.
Berry doesn’t publish a chicken stroganoff, but her Pork Stroganoff in Absolute Favourites (2015) uses the identical method. She calls it “a classic recipe bound with a creamy sauce and flavoured with plenty of paprika.” Swapping pork fillet for chicken breast is the only change.
The technique that holds the sauce together is how you add the crème fraîche. Berry says to let it “just bubble to heat through,” never boil, because high heat splits crème fraîche. A squeeze of lemon juice at the end lifts the whole dish.
Mary Berry Chicken Stroganoff
Course: DinnerCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Easy4-6
servings10
minutes15
minutes335
kcal25
minutesAssembled from Berry’s Pork Stroganoff method in Absolute Favourites (2015) and her Paprika Chicken in Mary Berry at Home, with chicken replacing pork as the only change.
Ingredients
500g (1lb 2oz) chicken breast fillets, skinless
2 tbsp sunflower oil
25g (1oz) butter
1 onion, finely sliced
3 tsp paprika
300g (11oz) button mushrooms, halved
200ml (7fl oz) full-fat crème fraîche or double cream
1 tbsp lemon juice
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp chopped parsley, to gar
Directions
- Slice the chicken: Cut the chicken breast fillets on the diagonal into strips, about 1 × 6cm (½ × 2½in).
- Heat a large, non-stick frying pan until very hot and add the oil. Fry the chicken quickly over the high heat for 3–4 minutes until golden and cooked through, taking care not to overcook. Lift out with a slotted spoon on to a plate.
- Add the butter to the pan, followed by the sliced onion. Fry for a minute, then lower the heat, cover with a lid and cook for about 10 minutes until the onion is really tender.
- Sprinkle in the paprika and stir in the mushrooms, then turn up the heat and toss for a minute.
- Add the chicken to the pan with the crème fraîche, allowing to just bubble to heat through, then add the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Serve at once, garnished with the chopped parsley, with basmati rice alongside.
Notes
- The recipe follows Berry’s Pork Stroganoff method word for word with one substitution: 500g chicken breast fillets replace 500g pork fillet. All quantities, timings, method steps and serving suggestion come directly from the Pork Stroganoff. The strip-cutting technique (diagonal, 1 × 6cm) is Berry’s own instruction for stroganoff-style meat from the same recipe.
- Calories: Chicken breast (500g): 825. Sunflower oil (30ml): 270. Butter (25g): 179. Onion (150g): 60. Paprika (6g): 17. Mushrooms (300g): 66. Crème fraîche (200g): 600. Lemon juice: 3. Total: 2,020 ÷ 6 = 337 → rounded to 335 kcal per serving.
FAQs
Does Mary Berry have a chicken stroganoff recipe?
She doesn’t, but she has three stroganoff recipes across her books that cover every technique you need. Her Pork Stroganoff in Absolute Favourites (2015) is the closest match and the method this recipe follows. Her Beef Stroganoff in Cooking with Mary Berry (2016) takes a simpler route with sour cream and no paprika.
Her Mushroom Stroganoff in the same book is vegetarian, using dried porcini and red peppers with cornflour-thickened stock. All three share the same core principle: fry the main ingredient fast, soften the onion slowly, then stir in cream at the end without boiling.
Can I use soured cream instead of crème fraîche?
Berry uses sour cream for her Beef Stroganoff and crème fraîche for her Pork Stroganoff, so both work in a stroganoff sauce. The difference is fat content: crème fraîche holds together better in a hot pan without splitting.
If you use soured cream, keep the heat lower when you add it. Berry’s Beef Stroganoff method says to “stir in the sour cream and heat gently,” which shows she knows it needs more care. I prefer crème fraîche because I don’t have to watch the temperature as closely.
Can I prepare chicken stroganoff ahead?
Berry’s Paprika Chicken in Mary Berry at Home uses the same crème fraîche sauce technique. That recipe can be prepared “up to 24 hours” ahead, covered with foil and kept in the fridge. Her Pork Stroganoff is more cautious, saying “a couple of hours before serving.”
I’d cook the stroganoff fully, cool it quickly, and refrigerate for up to a day. Reheat gently on the hob until just bubbling, but don’t let it boil hard or the sauce will split. Berry warns in her Paprika Chicken to “expect some fat to come out” when reheated, which you can mop up with kitchen paper.
What paprika does Berry use?
Her Paprika Chicken calls for “mild paprika” and her Pork Stroganoff just says “paprika” without specifying the type. Standard paprika in Britain is sweet Hungarian paprika, which gives colour and gentle warmth without any real heat.
Smoked paprika would change the dish entirely and give it a barbecue note that doesn’t belong in a stroganoff. If you want more warmth, add a pinch of cayenne alongside the sweet paprika rather than swapping it out.
How do I stop the sauce from splitting?
Berry’s instruction is precise: add the crème fraîche and allow it to “just bubble to heat through.” That means one or two gentle bubbles at the edge of the pan, not a rolling boil. The lemon juice goes in after the cream has warmed.
If the sauce does split and looks grainy, take the pan off the heat and stir in a tablespoon of cold crème fraîche. It usually pulls back together. The mushrooms release water as they cook, which naturally thins the sauce, so don’t add extra liquid.
What does Berry serve with stroganoff?
Berry serves her Pork Stroganoff with “boiled basmati rice alongside” and nothing else. No side salad, no extra vegetables, no bread. The stroganoff IS the meal: protein, mushrooms, sauce and rice.
I agree with her on this. The crème fraîche sauce is rich enough that you don’t need anything else on the plate competing for attention. Plain basmati is the right choice because it soaks up the sauce without adding its own flavour.
