This simple Rooster casserole recipe with broccoli, rice and cheese is hearty, healthful and easy to arrange. If you’re searching for a heat, satisfying meal that’s as simple to make as it’s to take pleasure in, you then’re in for a deal with with this hen broccoli rice casserole.
Appropriate for Gluten Free diets. Submit contains Weight Watchers factors.
If you’re searching for a dish that’s not solely ridiculously tasty but in addition fairly darn wholesome, look no additional than this hen and rice casserole with a creamy sauce. It’s the right consolation meals meal that gained’t depart you feeling such as you want a nap after you eat.
Some hen casserole recipes require loads of hands-on work. Not this one. Spend a couple of minutes prepping, then pop the whole lot within the oven for an unbelievable meal in beneath an hour.
Similar to this simple Baked Ranch Rooster and my Rooster Meatloaf, It’s excellent for busy weeknights or lazy Sundays when all you wish to do is curl up with a superb e-book or compensate for your favourite present.
This hen broccoli casserole has tender chunks of hen, fluffy rice, vibrant inexperienced broccoli, and a beneficiant smattering of ooey-gooey cheddar cheese.
It’s like a comfortable hug to your style buds! If you wish to whip up one thing equal components simple, wholesome, and satisfying, you’ll love this straightforward recipe.
Why Make This Recipe
- Fast and Easy – Let’s be actual – life can get busy. This recipe’s minimal prep work means you possibly can have a healthful, scrumptious meal on the desk with out spending hours within the kitchen.
- Nutritious – Everyone knows we should always eat our veggies, and this casserole makes that simple. With the addition of broccoli, you’re getting a wholesome dose of nutritional vitamins and minerals with out even realizing it.
- Good for Leftovers – This casserole reheats like a dream. So, whenever you inevitably make a bit greater than you possibly can eat, you’ve bought tomorrow’s lunch or dinner sorted with none additional effort.
Ingredient Notes
- Rooster – Cubed hen breast fillets prepare dinner up tender and juicy. Swap them with boneless hen thighs, turkey, and even tofu. You may as well use leftover hen.
- Broccoli – Recent broccoli provides vibrant colour and vitamins. You’ll be able to change it with cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and even spinach for a special twist.
- Basmati Rice – Aromatic and long-grain, basmati rice is a good alternative. You need to use different sorts of rice, like jasmine or long-grain white rice. For a more healthy choice, go for brown rice or quinoa however regulate the cooking time accordingly.
- Cheese – Grated sharp cheddar cheese brings that creamy, tacky goodness. Experiment with completely different cheeses like mozzarella, Monterey Jack, or perhaps a sprinkle of Parmesan.
- Onion – Chopped onion provides taste, and sautéing it makes the flavour candy and delicate. Should you’re not a fan of onion, you need to use shallots or leeks for a milder style.
- Rooster Broth – Rooster broth provides moisture and depth. Swap it for vegetable broth and even water, if desired.
- Salt and Pepper – These seasonings improve the flavour of the dish. Regulate the portions to your style preferences.
- Butter – Butter offers richness and taste. Substitute with olive oil, coconut oil, or a dairy-free butter different for a vegan model.
Useful Tip: Use Good Kitchen Instruments!
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How To Make Creamy Rooster Casserole
Get full components checklist and directions from the recipe card beneath.
- Preheat the oven to 350 levels F / 180 levels C.
- Soften butter in a big sauté pan over medium warmth. Add the onion to the melted butter and sauté for about 5 minutes till tender and translucent. Switch to a plate.
- In the identical pan, prepare dinner the hen breast items for 6-7 minutes, stirring often. You might be browning the hen on this step and don’t want to fret if the hen is cooked via at this level.
- In a big coated baking dish or Dutch oven, mix the hen broth, rice, cooked hen breasts, sauteed onions, salt, pepper, and one cup of cheddar cheese. Stir nicely to mix.
- Cowl with a lid and prepare dinner for 35-40 minutes within the oven.
- Whereas the casserole bakes, blanch the broccoli florets by dropping them into salted boiling water for five minutes. Switch cooked broccoli to ice water to cease the cooking, then drain the broccoli.
- Take away the casserole from the oven and stir to mix.
- Prime with the broccoli and the remaining cheese. Return the casserole to the oven for one more 5 minutes to soften the cheese.
Word: At all times verify for doneness with a meat thermometer. The inner temperature needs to be 165 levels F / 74 levels C when inserted into the thickest a part of the hen.
Suggestions For Success
- Chop the hen, onion, and broccoli forward of time to streamline the cooking course of and scale back prep time on the day you prepare dinner.
- Use leftover hen to avoid wasting much more money and time.
- When cubing the hen, attempt to make the items roughly the identical measurement. This ensures even cooking.
- Give the rice a fast rinse beneath chilly water earlier than cooking. This helps take away extra starch and prevents clumping.
- Grate your cheese on a field grater for greatest outcomes. Pre-shredded cheese typically accommodates anti-clumping brokers that may have an effect on the soften and texture.
- Regulate the seasonings, particularly the salt and pepper, to your private desire to make sure the flavors are balanced.
- The ratio of liquid to rice is essential. Observe the recipe directions intently to make sure the rice cooks correctly.
- Cowl the casserole dish with a lid or aluminum foil throughout baking to maintain moisture in and forestall the highest from drying out.
- If you need a golden, bubbly cheese topping, add the remaining grated cheese and bake for a couple of extra minutes earlier than serving.
- Enable the casserole to relaxation for a couple of minutes after taking it out of the oven. This lets the flavors meld and makes it simpler to serve.
- Think about including a contact of recent herbs, like chopped parsley or chives, simply earlier than serving to brighten up the dish.
Variations
- Rooster Soup – Simply flip this hen casserole right into a hen soup by including further inventory or stirring in a can of cream of hen soup or cream of mushroom soup and water.
- Mexican-Impressed – Add some black beans, corn, and diced tomatoes with inexperienced chilies to the combination. Season with cumin, chili powder, and a contact of lime zest. Prime with a mix of cheddar and pepper jack cheese.
- Creamy Mushroom – Sauté sliced mushrooms and garlic with the onions for an earthy taste. Use a mixture of Swiss cheese and Gruyere cheese for a wealthy and nutty style.
- Buffalo Rooster – Toss the cubed hen in buffalo sauce earlier than including it to the casserole. Combine in some cooked quinoa together with the rice. Prime with blue cheese crumbles for a tangy kick.
- Rooster Noodle Casserole – As a substitute of rice, add egg noodles with the tender hen to make a comforting hen casserole.
Funds-Pleasant Suggestions
- Buy components like rice, hen, and cheese in bulk once they’re on sale. This could prevent cash in the long term.
- As a substitute of recent broccoli, think about using frozen broccoli florets. They’re typically extra inexpensive and simply as nutritious.
- Should you’re comfy deboning hen, shopping for bone-in cuts may be cheaper than boneless. You’ll be able to prepare dinner the hen, take away the meat, and use the bones to make home made hen broth.
- Make this recipe with leftover hen, resembling leftover rotisserie hen. Shredded hen from a rotisserie hen is tender and flavorful.
- As a substitute of shopping for hen broth, make your personal by simmering hen bones, onion peels, carrot ends, and celery scraps in water. This home made broth is budget-friendly, provides taste and freezes nicely.
- Use leftover cooked rice as a substitute of uncooked rice. You’ll not have to prepare dinner the hen casserole recipe as lengthy, so regulate the cooking time accordingly.
- Take a look at a couple of of my favourite issues to make use of to make this recipe.
Prep Forward And Storage
- Prep Forward – Pre-chop all your components.
- Retailer – Retailer in an hermetic container within the fridge for as much as 5 days.
- Freeze – Cool utterly and divide into particular person parts. Freeze in particular person containers for as much as 3 months.
- Reheat – Reheat on the stovetop or within the microwave.
Meal Prep
- Put together a bigger batch of the hen broccoli rice casserole on a day when you’ve gotten extra time. Portion out particular person servings for simple meals later within the week.
- If freezing, make sure you label every container with the contents and the date it was ready.
- Whereas the casserole is a whole meal, you possibly can improve it with a facet salad, a bit of crusty bread, or some steamed greens.
FAQs
Sure, you possibly can put together this casserole prematurely and refrigerate it till you’re able to bake. Simply bear in mind that you simply would possibly want to regulate the baking time barely because the components shall be chilly from the fridge.
Sure, you may make this with brown rice, wild rice, quinoa, or different grains. Take into account that substitutions might require an extended cooking time, so regulate accordingly or partially prepare dinner it earlier than assembling the casserole.
This hen casserole is wholesome as it’s loaded with vitamins, it’s naturally gluten free, and pretty low in carbs too! You’ll be able to remove the cheese to make it even more healthy, though it does add a pleasant creaminess.
Extra Recipes You Might Like
Serving Recommendations
Weight Watchers Factors
There are 7 Blue Plan SmartPoints in a single serving of this.
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Get The Rooster And Rice Casserole Recipe:
Rooster Casserole
Tender hen and rice cooks slowly within the oven.
Servings: 6
Energy: 290kcal
Elements
- 1 pound (435g) hen breast fillets cubed
- 1 cup (71g) broccoli divided into florets
- ⅓ cup (85g) basmati rice
- 1 ½ cups (123g) cheddar cheese grated
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 2 cups (473ml) hen broth
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoon butter
Directions
-
Preheat the oven to 350 levels F / 180 levels C.
-
Soften butter in a big saute pan over medium warmth. Add the onion and saute for a bout 5 minutes till tender and translucent. Switch to a plate.
-
In the identical pan, prepare dinner the hen breast items for 6-7 minutes, stirring often. You might be browning the hen on this step and don’t want to fret if the hen is cooked via at this level.
-
In a big coated baking dish or Dutch oven, mix the hen broth, rice, cooked hen, sauteed onions, salt, pepper and one cup of cheddar. Stir nicely to mix.
-
Cowl with a lid and prepare dinner for 35-40 minutes within the oven.
-
Whereas the casserole bakes, blanch the broccoli florets by dropping them into salted boiling water for five minutes. Switch cooked broccoli to ice water to cease the cooking then drain the broccoli.
-
Take away the casserole from the oven and stir to mix.
-
Prime with the broccoli and the remaining cheese. Return the casserole to the oven for one more 5 minutes to soften the cheese.
-
Serve instantly.
Notes
- Chop the hen, onion, and broccoli forward of time to streamline the cooking course of and scale back prep time on the day you prepare dinner.
- Use leftover hen to avoid wasting much more time.
- When cubing the hen, attempt to make the items roughly the identical measurement. This ensures even cooking.
- Give the rice a fast rinse beneath chilly water earlier than cooking. This helps take away extra starch and prevents clumping.
- Grate your cheese on a field grater for greatest outcomes. Pre-shredded cheese typically accommodates anti-clumping brokers that may have an effect on the soften and texture.
- Regulate the seasonings, particularly the salt and pepper, to your private desire to make sure the flavors are balanced.
- The ratio of liquid to rice is essential. Observe the recipe directions intently to make sure the rice cooks correctly.
- Cowl the casserole dish with a lid or aluminum foil throughout baking to maintain moisture in and forestall the highest from drying out.
- If you need a golden, bubbly cheese topping, add the remaining grated cheese and bake for a couple of extra minutes earlier than serving.
- Enable the casserole to relaxation for a couple of minutes after taking it out of the oven. This lets the flavors meld and makes it simpler to serve.
- Think about including a contact of recent herbs, like chopped parsley or chives, simply earlier than serving to brighten up the dish.
- Storage – maintain in an hermetic container contained in the fridge for as much as 5 days.
- There are 7 WW Blue Plan SmartPoints in a single serving of this.
Diet
Energy: 290kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 25g | Fats: 16g | Saturated Fats: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fats: 1g | Monounsaturated Fats: 4g | Trans Fats: 0.2g | Ldl cholesterol: 88mg | Sodium: 793mg | Potassium: 404mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 517IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 223mg | Iron: 1mg