Chicken Broccoli and Wild Rice Casserole Recipe
I love this cozy casserole when the weather gets cooler. You can easily make this a vegetarian meal by omitting the chicken or using a meat substitute.
2 chicken breasts*
2 packets Ben’s Original Ready Rice Long Grain & Wild (2 x 8.8 oz)
1 medium onion, diced
1 head broccoli, chopped into bite-sized pieces
8 oz./226.8 g mushrooms, sliced (I like baby bellas)
2 cups/400 g shredded cheddar cheese
1 can cream of mushroom soup (10.5 oz/310.5 ml)
1 cup/240 ml milk (any kind)
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Black pepper
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit/180 degrees Celsius.
- Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces and season with salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat, add olive oil to coat pan, then chicken, and stir-fry for 5–6 minutes, until no longer pink. Remove chicken from pan. Wipe pan if juices remain.
- Add olive oil to coat pan if needed. Sauté onions for 2–3 minutes, then add broccoli for 2 minutes, then add mushrooms. Cook until the mushrooms have released their water and browned a little. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat.
- Microwave rice packets according to package instructions.
- Combine chicken, veggies, and rice with soup, milk, and half of the cheese in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Mix well.
- Sprinkle remaining cheese on top.
- Bake for 20–30 minutes or until all the cheese is melted and the casserole is bubbly. Enjoy warm.
*To make things even easier, you can buy a small rotisserie chicken and shred the meat and skip step 2.
Possible tweaks:
- Season the chicken with a bit of garlic powder at step 2, or add some fresh or dried herbs at step 5. I think a little fresh rosemary or thyme would be awesome!
- Add additional chopped veggies to step 3: kale, bell pepper, zucchini, whatever your heart desires!
- Use a different kind of shredded cheese at steps 5–6, like mozzarella or monterey jack.
- Add cracker crumbs or crispy fried onions on top of the cheese layer before putting the casserole in the oven to bake at step 6.
