Chicken Murphy, a New Jersey classic that is made with bite-sized pieces of chicken, Italian sausage, potatoes, mushrooms, bell peppers, spicy pepperoncini, and tomatoes. It is a plate of deliciousness that’s spicy, savory, and gluten-free.
If you love sausage and peppers, you are going to love this recipe for chicken murphy! It’s a super flavorful dish that is a combination of sausage and peppers that meets spicy chicken and tomatoes.
This is a recipe that are going to want to make extra of, because everyone will want a second helping.
Recipe Highlights
- It’s the perfect recipe to make ahead of time, prepare a large batch ahead of time, and pop it in the oven when it’s time to eat.
- Chicken Murphy is filled with flavors, and perfect for weekend dinners, or entertaining.
Here is What You Will Need
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This is an overview of the ingredients and steps to make this recipe, scroll down to see ingredient notes and substitutions as well as a printable recipe card with exact measurements and complete cooking instructions.
Ingredients
olive oil
boneless chicken breasts or tenders
sweet or hot Italian sausage
potatoes
cremini mushrooms
garlic
onion
bell peppers (red, green or orange)
diced tomatoes
pepperoncini + brine
Equipment
cast iron skillet or ceramic casserole dish for baking
sharp knife
Here Is How To Make The Best Chicken Murphy
It takes time to make this recipe which starts on top of the stove browning each ingredient separately in a skillet, then adding them one by one back to the skillet or to an oven-proof pan or casserole dish.
Once all of the ingredients have all been browned, they are then left to cook slowly in the oven which allows the flavors to blend beautifully together, and this is when I clean up the kitchen.
Browning all of the ingredients for Chicken Murphy is the most time-consuming. Each ingredient is browned separately
Start with the Italian sausage links. Brown them, once they turn brown, cut the links into bite-sized chunks and set them aside.
Next: the potatoes. Cook them in the skillet until the outsides become golden brown. Remove them from the heat, and set them aside with the sausage.
Repeat the browning process one at a time; the onions, garlic, bell peppers, mushrooms and finally the chicken.
Note: if you have a large skillet you can double up on the vegetables when browning them.
Add all of the browned ingredients back into the skillet or place them in an ovenproof casserole dish, top with hot peppers and pour in the brine from the peppers.
Top with tomatoes and bake at 350 for 45 minutes.
Estimated Time To Make This Recipe: 1 ½ to 2 hours
“I’ve eaten this dish many times in NJ. Searched for the best recipe and yours makes the most sense and tastes the most authentic. Thanks!”
Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
Chicken – This dish is typically made with boneless chicken breasts. Chicken tenders can also be used as well as boneless chicken thighs. I like to use chicken breasts from ButcherBox.
Potatoes – Any type of potato can be used in this recipe, we like yellow or red potatoes the best.
Sausage – Pork, turkey or chicken sausage can be used.
Pepperoncini – If you don’t care for hot food, you can cut back on the number of pepperoncini or you can substitute pepperoncini with peppadew peppers or sweet cherry peppers.
Chicken Murphy Recipe Variations
Low-carb Chicken Murphy – Leave out or cut back on the potatoes.
Leave out the sausage – If you don’t like sausage, you can leave it out and an extra ¼ pound of chicken.
Serving Suggestions & Variations
Serve it with a big salad like this Spinach Salad with Basil, steamed green beans or Green Beans and Bacon, and a loaf of crusty bread.
Chicken Murphy also tastes great served over a bed of zucchini noodles, make it low carb and leave the potatoes out.
Chicken Murphy with pasta – leave out the potatoes or use less of them and serve Chicken Murphy over pasta.
Your Chicken Murphy Questions Answered
You might be thinking from its name, that this recipe is an Irish recipe. Actually it’s an Italian-inspired dish that is rumored to have originated at the “Jersey Shore” or New York City. It’s easy to make and there are several variations. Some recipes are made with brown gravy, but we prefer the tomato version.
Each ingredient is browned separately to avoid overcrowding the skillet. If your skillet is larger than 9 inches, you can brown the vegetables together in any combination that you like.
Yes, especially the tomatoes to keep the dish from becoming dry. Depending on the amount of meat added (up to a quarter pound), you may not need to increase the vegetables.
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Chicken Murphy
This Chicken Murphy recipe is made with bite-sized pieces of chicken and sausage combined with peppers and tomatoes.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound boneless chicken breasts or chicken tenders cut into one inch chunks
- ¼ pound Sweet or Hot Italian Sausage links (about 2)
- 1 ½ pounds potatoes, cut into one-inch sized pieces
- 16 ounces of cremini mushrooms, stems removed and sliced into quarters
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- 1 medium onion, cut into slices
- 1 red bell pepper cut into slices
- 1 green pepper cut into slices
- 1 cup fresh diced tomatoes or no salt or sugar added canned
- ½ cup chopped pepperoncini
- ¼ cup of brine of pepperoncini
Instructions
- Prepare all of the ingredients: cut up the chicken and potatoes into bite-sized pieces. Clean and slice the mushrooms, onions, and peppers. Crush the garlic.
- Heat a skillet over medium to high heat, brown the sausage links, slice them and set them aside to drain on a paper towel.
- Add the potatoes to the pan and cook until they become golden brown, remove them from the heat, and set them aside with the sausage.
- Next, add the mushrooms and cook them until they have a semi-crusty texture, and set them aside.
- Cook the onions and garlic until they become translucent, remove them from the heat, and set them aside.
- Add the bell peppers and cook them until they start to soften, and set them aside with the remaining ingredients.
- Last, brown the chicken and add all of the ingredients in layers back to the skillet or into an ovenproof casserole dish.
- Pour the tomatoes, hot peppers and brine over the top.
- Cover and bake for 45 minutes at 350.
- Uncover and cook for 10 minutes longer.
Notes
Cooking time for this recipe is about 40 to 50 minutes browning each ingredient PLUS an additional 45 minutes in the oven.
I like to brown the ingredients separately in a skillet before layering them into a casserole dish so that the skillet is not crowded with the vegetables. If you are short on time or have a large skillet, you can brown the vegetable ingredients together in any combination that you like.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 367Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 78mgSodium: 676mgCarbohydrates: 37gFiber: 5gSugar: 8gProtein: 34g
Nutrition information is provided by an online calculator and is meant to be used for informational purposes only. Even though I try to provide accurate information, these figures should still be considered as estimates.
The chicken is so juicy and full of flavor. I love that it has peppers and tomatoes added as well, makes a good combination with chicken
If im adding more chicken and sausage to make have it yield more servings, do I need to increase the ingredient amounts?
HI Tim, Yes I would increase the amounts of the other ingredients in the recipe if you are adding more meat.
I’ve eaten this dish many times in NJ. Searched for the best recipe and yours makes the most sense and tastes the most authentic. Thanks!
Hi Bob, thanks for your comment! I’m glad you like it!
I’m a very experienced cook and a Jersey girl. I tell it like it is. And the only way prep time is 30 mins is if you don’t include actually doing any prep except the cooking. It took me 1.75 hrs to get it all in the oven. And why cook the onions separate from the peppers? No reason. And I hate when people leave comments about a recipe having never made it. Who cares that you think it looks like it tastes good? See? I really am a Jersey girl.
Thank you for your feedback Chris! Actually, the preparation time is ONLY for the cutting the vegetables, if you notice the cooking time is 90 minutes. 45 minutes for browning the ingredients and 45 minutes oven time. I realized after reading your comment that it might be confusing to some people and I made a note of it in the recipe card. Also for doubling up on browning the ingredients separately, I find if the skillet is too crowded with food, it won’t cook properly. If you have a large skillet or are pressed for time you can certainly double them up!
Can this dish be finished in a crockpot instead of the oven? If so, high or low and length of time?
Hi Alicia
I have not tried finishing chicken murphy in a crockpot, but have kept it warm in a crockpot, so I would say that you can finish it. Since everything is cooked already, I would suggest 1 1/2 to 2 hours minimum at low heat, and then if you have a warm function set it to that until you are ready to serve it.