The tandem post will be up later this week. To tide you over ’til then, I’m posting the recipe for Chicken Dumpling Casserole, which was submitted by reader Elaine. She said that if her son had his way, she’d make this three times a week, and he’d have the leftovers the other four days. Nance wasn’t up for giving this one a try, so I went it alone!
The original recipe came from The Shady Porch; adapted recipe can be found at the bottom of this post.
The ingredients:
The recipe calls for 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, boiled and shredded. I opted, instead, to boil a whole (small) chicken, then debone it and shred it. I think I ended up with about the right amount of chicken. Other ingredients are chicken stock (from boiling the chicken – if you use canned chicken or a rotisserie chicken, you can use canned broth instead), a stick of butter, Bisquick (or self-rising flour), 2% milk (I suspect that skim milk would have worked okay, too), cream of chicken soup (the original recipe highly recommends the herbed cream of chicken soup; I only had the regular kind on hand), instant bouillon (or cubes), sage, salt, and pepper.
In a 9×13 casserole dish, melt 1 stick of butter. I did this by throwing the butter in the baking dish, and sticking it in the preheating oven ’til the butter was melted.
Spread your shredded chicken over the butter. Sprinkle salt, pepper, and sage over this layer.
Mix your Bisquick (or self-rising flour) and milk together in a small bowl, and slowly pour over the chicken.
In a medium bowl, whisk together chicken stock (strain it first, if you need to), chicken granules/bouillon, and soup. Once blended, slowly pour it over the Bisquick layer.
DO NOT STIR THIS TOGETHER, MUCH AS YOU MIGHT BE TEMPTED TO.
Bake ’til the top is golden brown, 50 – 60 minutes.
The verdict? Man, this stuff is GOOD. I liked it a lot, and Fred liked it even more. The sauce reminded me very very much of the sauce in a frozen chicken pot pie, so I initially told Fred that next time, I should add a layer of vegetables. But to be honest, we both liked this so much as is, that I fear adding a layer of veggies wouldn’t be as good.
This is absolutely going into regular rotation. The only change I might (I say MIGHT) try next time would be to maybe take the butter down to 1/2 stick instead of a whole stick.
Thanks for the submission, Elaine!
- 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, boiled and shredded (alternately, you could use the meat from a rotisserie chicken or canned chicken; I boiled and deboned a whole (small) chicken)
- 2 c. chicken stock (from boiling the breasts, or from a can)
- 1 stick of butter
- 2 c. Bisquick or self-rising flour
- 2 c. milk (I used 2%, but am sure that skim or whole would work as well)
- 1 can cream of chicken soup
- 3 t. chicken bouillon granules or 3 bouillon cubes
- ½ t. dried sage
- 1 t. black pepper
- salt, as desired
- Place boneless, skinless chicken breasts in sauce pan with enough water to cover the chicken. Bring to a boil, then turn off the heat; cover your pot and let sit for 10 - 15 minutes to finish cooking. Remove from stock (reserve stock) and allow to cool, then shred the chicken.
- (Alternately, use the meat from a rotisserie chicken, canned chicken, or boil a small whole chicken.)
- ------------------------
- Preheat oven to 350ºF.
- In 9x13 casserole dish, melt 1 stick of butter (place butter in baking dish and place in preheating oven until butter is melted.)
- Spread shredded chicken over butter. Sprinkle black pepper, salt, and dried sage over this layer. (If you want to make a pot pie, add a layer of vegetables over your chicken.)
- In a small bowl, mix milk and Bisquick/self-rising flour. Slowly pour over chicken.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 c. chicken stock (strain it first, if you need to), chicken bouillon granules/cubes, and soup. Once blended, slowly pour over the Bisquick layer.
- Bake time varies; bake until the top is golden brown, 50 - 60 minutes.
I use black pepper and poultry seasoning on the chicken before I add the flour/milk layer.
I use the Better than Bouillon chicken base that I buy at Costco. Lower in sodium and I think it has more chicken flavor.
That looks exactly like the type of thing I would eat 11 days a week.
I thought I was going to have to fight Fred for the last piece! 🙂
Hell, I don’t know why I opted out of this – I think it’s because I assumed it would be a pain in the ass since the way I make Rick’s stupid dumplings is by rolling out dough and dropping them, blahblahblah, boring.
I’m going to try this one – with less butter, of course. Good job, Robyn!
This is WAY easier than that, for sure! 🙂
OK, so I looked at the “done” picture and thought, “I thought y’all were going to start doing SIMPLE recipes.” So what do I know? This looks simple enough for me! 🙂
Ha – an easy recipe that LOOKS like it took a lot of work. Those are the best! 🙂
But… but… but… I am a mother. I MUST PUT VEGETABLES IN THE CASSEROLE! IT’S MY JOB!!!!!
Looks like a simpler pot pie recipe that can be adapted to mix veggies in with the chicken and perhaps a bit more of the sauce to cover the flavor. Definitely trying this soon!
I have learned that the smaller the vegetable the easier it is to get them past everyone. I dice everything up really small around here because there are a couple of vegetable haters in this house so I gotta do something. It works! 😉
I tell my kids the veggies are something else. Onions aren’t onions they are leaks. It’s not a carrot, it’s cheese. Zucchini is soft cheese. Lol. They go for it every time.
If you do it, please report back, Kelly! I’ll want to know how it worked for you!
Sounds sublime — and I’m glad your lovely chickens didn’t have to polish it off!
I’m glad they didn’t have to, too – but they’re probably less happy about that! 🙂
Operating no doubt on the “Where ignorance is bliss, ’tis folly to be wise” front…
I just found my dinner recipe for tonight! Thanks!
Yay! Let us know how y’all like it, Christina!
Robyn: Do you think the bouillon cubes/granules are crucial to the recipe?
I think they give it more flavor – it might be a little bland without the bouillon, but you could maybe make up for it by adding a bit more salt, pepper, and sage.
Thank you!
I think you would definitely need salt if you don’t add the bouillon.
Yay! I’m so glad you liked my recipe. And really, it couldn’t be easier. I almost have it memorized, I make it so often.
I an definitely going to try this recipe. For my crew who aren’t big on the veggies I think I will puree them and mix in with the chicken. I do this with spaghetti sauce and my kids who swear they don’t like mushrooms, onions or green peppers eat them regularly! Thanks Robyn and Elaine!!
My house loved it! My stepson can’t quit raving about it. Excellent choice for my meat and potato family. Thank you for posting!
I’m so glad everyone liked it, Christina!!
Looks yummy! We just finished off a big chicken pot pie, but this is definitely going on the “to make” list. Thanks!
2 thumbs way up! I used the basic recipe but used cream of mushroom soup, boxed chicken broth (no cubes), poultry seasoning instead of sage and added finely chopped broccoli. We love it! Definitely will be making again!!
That is awesome – I’m going to use cream of mushroom next time, because we always have a couple of cans of that on hand! I’m so glad y’all liked it, Jen. 🙂
This was DIVINE. Seriously.
I lightened it up just a bit, since we’re doing WW: I only used 3/4 stick of butter, FF cream of chicken soup, and skim milk. If it had been any better, I don’t think I could have stood it. 🙂
A winner and so easy! I threw some frozen peas on top of the chicken and was worried because they floated to the top and looked dried out when it was done, but it was goo-ood! My husband says it’s a keeper.
Made it using boxed broth and cream of mushroom as that is what I had. I will not salt my chicken next time, but very good! Love the buttery nuggets of crunch on the crusty parts.
I made this last night and it was DELICIOUS. Word to the wise – when the recipe says to use a 9 by 13 pan, don’t use an 8 x 12 pan. Came very close to making a mess in my oven.
My 12 year old is making it again tonight.. It is delicious!!