With the holiday season upon us, hosts go looking for a one pot meal that delicious and big enough to feed a crowd. Our Cheesy Chicken Casserole made with Crystal Farms® Marble Jack is simple to make and take only about 30 minutes from prep to table. This flavorful combination will leave the masses begging for seconds!
Cheese is a true household staple in my home. From pizza creations to more intricate recipes like stuffed beef, we keep Crystal Farms shredded cheese selections, a natural gluten-free product with few preservatives on hand at all times. You never know what new and exciting meal ideas my teenage daughters and I will come up with.
During the winter months, we veer more towards comfort foods and one-pot wonders, like our hometown famous Cheesy Chicken Casserole. This is a quick dish that is great to make when you are short on time or have many hungry mouths to feed. It seems to a meal that everyone in our home (and visitors) love and rarely there is a leftover spoonful in sight.
To get started, you need a whole roasted chicken. Now, you can make this at home in your crockpot on low for 8 hours with a bit of garlic and butter for seasoning or grab your favorite flavor premade from your local grocer. We have created this recipe both ways many times and depending on time restraints.
You want to them peal off the skin of the chicken and remove the meat from the bone. We like to save the skin, bones and fat remnants to create homemade broth. If that is not your style, just toss it in the trash. Cut or hand tear the chicken meat into small pieces. You want to have 3-4 cups of chicken for this larger recipe.
Take 8 cups of frozen broccoli and steam in the microwave or on the stove per the instructions on the package. Be sure to drain the water after steaming for best results.
Prepare 8 servings of white rice, minute rice seems to work best and is time saving. For this you want to boil 4 cups of water, then add 4 cups of rice. If using minute rice, generally you would remove from heat, cover and let sit for 5 minutes.
The rice should then be fluffy and ready to place in your casserole dish (or mixing bowl). We prefer to mix directly in the baking dish to prevent additional dishes to wash. No matter which way you choose, you want to add salt and pepper to taste directly to the rice before adding additional ingredients.
Open and pour two cans of cream of chicken soup on top of the rice mixture. This is what gives it a creamy texture while adding moisture and flavor to the dish.
Then, add the shredded chicken and broccoli to the mixture. Both are healthy and pack a big punch when creating a dish that is filling and will settle even the most vicious growling tummy.
Finally, add 1 1/2 cups of Crystal Farms® Marble Jack shredded cheese and a half teaspoon of paprika to the dish and mix together thoroughly. Once well mixed, evenly place in your casserole dish. For this recipe, we like using our stone baking pan.
Top with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese. This will create a yummy, #cheeselove crust at the top of the casserole and is one of my favorite tastes of the dish. There is something special about all that melted cheese. Mouthwatering!
Bake in the oven on 350 for 25 minutes. Remove after cooked, let cook, serve and dig in!
[recipe title=”Cheesy Chicken Casserole” servings=”10-12″ time=”30 mins” difficulty=”easy”]
Cheesy Chicken Casserole That Will Have Them Asking For More #CheeseLove
Ingredients
4 cups white rice
Whole roasted chicken – shredded
8 oz Crystal Farms® shredded marble jack
2 cans cream of chicken soup
Salt & Pepper *to taste*
8 cups steam broccoli
1/2 teaspoon parprika
Salt & Pepper *to taste*
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
In the casserole pan, put in the rice, cream of chicken soup, chicken, broccoli, 1 1/2 cups cheese, black pepper, salt, and pepper.
Mix ingredients together and smooth evenly in the pan.
Add remaining 1/2 cheese to the top.
Bake for 25 minutes.
Cool and serve.
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Since 1926, Crystal Farms has been committed to providing the highest quality products to our consumers. Today the Crystal Farms® brand is one of the largest cheese brands in the country. Lake Mills, Wisconsin has been home to Crystal Farms for the past 25 years and the hard-working, honest people of Lake Mills are devoted to delivering consistent quality and great tasting products for what they love – cheese. Visit the Crystal Farms Cheese Recipe Page for more great meal ideas.
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