In a large pot, cook the bacon over medium-high heat until almost crisp, about 5 minutes. Add onion and cook until softened, about 5 more minutes. Add chicken broth and potatoes; bring to a boil. Boil until potatoes begin to soften, about 10 minutes.
Reduce heat to low. Stir in the tomato paste. Add chicken, diced tomatoes, corn, lima beans, okra (if using), brown sugar, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper. Stir well.
Cover and simmer for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally. The stew should be very thick. To thicken the stew, simmer uncovered. To thin, add more broth or water. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary. Ladle into bowls and serve!
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Notes
Some recipes include potatoes, while others do not. You can omit the potatoes if you prefer.
Instead of a rotisserie chicken, use about 4 cups of cooked, diced chicken that you boil at home or that you have leftover from another meal.
Okra can be a controversial vegetable, so leave it out of the stew if you don't care for it.
If they're available, use butter beans instead of the lima beans.
Swap out the bacon and use fatback instead.
Brunswick stew typically has a sweet-and-sour flavor to the broth, which you can achieve by stirring in ketchup or BBQ sauce instead of the brown sugar. I use 2 tablespoons of brown sugar, which gives the broth a slightly sweet taste, without being too overpowering. For a less-sweet broth, reduce the brown sugar to 1 tablespoon. You can always add more at the end, to taste.