Chicken and Kale Casserole
This quick Chicken and Kale Casserole has been dubbed 'Chicken Quarantini' by my good friend Joe Fortino and his family, and is likely to become a staple in your dinner repertoire!
Servings 8
Cost 20
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 lb boneless skinless chicken breast boneless, skinless
- 1½ cup brown rice
- 2 bunch kale no stems; chopped
- 2 cup onion chopped
- 3 cloves garlic chopped
- 3 tbsp parmesan cheese grated
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 2 cup milk low-fat
- 1 cup water
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- ½ cup white wine dry, crisp (Optional)
- ¼ stick salted butter
Seasoning
- 3 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp dried mustard
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp oregano
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Cook the rice - in a medium sized pot add brown rice with water (follow cooking directions on rice for water amount). Cook time will vary based on the rice you're using - follow the instructions. Once rice is cooked, set aside.
- Cook the chicken - pat chicken dry with a paper towel and season with salt & pepper. In a medium pan, heat about 3 tbsp olive oil. Once heated (working in batches depending on how much chicken you have), add the chicken. Cook through (about 6-7 minutes a side depending on the thickness of chicken). Set aside for at least 5 minutes.
- (Optional Step) Using the same pan you cooked the chicken (or a separate one if you want), add the wine. Deglaze the pan, scrapping up all the bits and pieces left over from the chicken. Bring to a boil and drop the heat.
- Add the butter. Heat, making sure not to burn, and then add the garlic. Cook for 30 seconds or 1 minute until fragrant.
- Once fragrant, add the onion. Cook for about 3-4 minutes until soft.
- Once onions are soft, add the kale and spice blend. Cook, mixing frequently for about 3 minutes until kale begins to wilt.
- Add the milk slowly, whisking the dish as you do, and then the water. Cook, whisking from time to time, for about 5 minutes.
- As the veggies cook, shred the chicken. Taking two forks, start pulling the chicken away from each other until it shreds.
- Add the shredded chicken and rice into the pan of vegetables and mix all together, cooking for 2-3 minutes.
- In a small bowl, add breadcrumb and grated cheese. Slowly drizzle the remaining olive oil into the mixture and mix all together until the breadcrumb/cheese mixture is fully covered with the olive oil (add more olive oil as needed). Set aside.
- In a medium/large baking dish, add the chicken and vegetable mixture. Flatten out, then sprinkle the breadcrumb/cheese evenly over the dish.
- Place in oven for about 10 minutes or until the breadcrumb gets toasted (watch not to burn).
Video
Notes
Serve hot in a bowl. Top with parmesan cheese if desired. Enjoy!