King Ranch Chicken Casserole
Delicious chicken casserole using southwest flavors prepared and ready to bake within 15 minutes
Suggested Equipment
Casserole Dish
Medium Sized Pot
Ingredients
- Roasted Chicken (shredded) 4 cups
- Corn Tortillas (/ 4 extra in case some are broken, use the best looking pieces) 16
King Ranch Sauce
- Butter (/ to saute the onion & peppers) 2 tablespoon
- Onion (/ small and medium dice) 1 large
- Red Bell Pepper 1
- Poblano Pepper 1
- Rotel (/ onion & peppers mix) 3 tablespoon
- Chipotle In Adobo Sauce (/ be sure to try our recipe, so good!!!) 1 tablespoon
- Flour 1 ½ tablespoon
- Cream of Mushroom Soup 1 can
- Cream Corn 5 tablespoon
- Chicken Stock (/ start with 4 cups and add more if desired) 4 cups
- Black Pepper (/ to taste)
- Sea Salt (/ taste and adjust before construction) 1 teaspoon
Dry Ingredients - The Sauce
- Chili Powder 1 teaspoon
- Garlic Powder 1 teaspoon
- Sea Salt 1 teaspoon
- Cumin ½ teaspoon
- Oregano ½ teaspoon
The Cheeses
- Mexican Cheese Blend (/ 1 whole bag) 16 oz
- Monterey Cheese 6 slices
- Queso Fresco 1 ½ cups
Garnish
- Jalapeno sliced
- Roma Tomatoes sliced
- Queso Fresco Cheese
Instructions
- Roast a whole chicken or purchase a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store. Our link to "Roasting the Perfect Chicken".https://butter-n-thyme.com/perfect-roast-chicken/
- Shred the chicken away from the bone once the roast chicken is at a temperature you can handle. The whole chicken will be used. Cut the chicken into medium pieces, then mix all parts of the chicken evenly. Tip: Keep chicken bones for chicken stock
- Making The King Ranch Sauce: Start by cutting the onion, poblano pepper, and red bell pepper into medium/small dice; use a mandolin if you have one. Add 2 tablespoons of butter to a medium-sized pot and melt; once melted add onion and sweat for a few minutes, then add the poblano and red bell pepper along with a pinch of salt. The salt helps the sweating process and releases the natural water.
- Next, add the chipotle pepper and Rotel (add to taste). Stir together, then add in the flour. Once mixed, add the cream of mushroom (you could use cream of chicken soup as well) add 5 tablespoons of cream corn. Then add 2 cups of Chicken stock to start, add up to 4 cups of chicken stock to get the consistency you enjoy. If the sauce seems too tight/thick, you can add more chicken stock.
- Add all of the seasonings next, chili powder, garlic powder, cumin, oregano, black pepper. Taste and adjust your season, salt level, etc.
- Constructing the Casserole: Spray 9 by 13 casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray. Then dip the corn tortillas into chicken stock for 40 seconds. Layout 6 corn tortillas per layer, then spread out half of the chicken, sauce, the Mexican cheese blend, and then some Queso Fresco. Repeat the same layering steps over to build the next layer.
- On the presentation layer(top), use 6 slices of Monterey Cheese slices, then add the Mexican cheese blend on top of it, followed by laying out sliced tomatoes. If you like jalapenos, add them to the top layer for presentation. Finish with Queso Fresco over the tops of the tomatoes.
- Cooking / Baking: Bake at 375 for 40 minutes. If you want to add additional browning, you can place the casserole under the broiler for a few short minutes.
Video
Video: How To Make King Ranch Chicken Casserole
Notes
- Make-ahead dinner plans. Prepare the full recipe, minus baking. Make sure everything is cooled down to around room temperature before baking. Then cover and seal with plastic wrap or an air-tight container. It will last in the refrigerator for 1 week.
- Ingredient Idea: Adding different cheeses like parmesan or pecorino to top the casserole.
- Using low-fat cream of mushroom soup will change the recipe to require a little more flour, around ½ tablespoon.
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
King Ranch Chicken Casserole
Serving Size
1 slice
Amount per Serving
Calories
729
% Daily Value*
Fat
18.1
g
28
%
Saturated Fat
7.6
g
48
%
Polyunsaturated Fat
4.8
g
Monounsaturated Fat
6.1
g
Cholesterol
153
mg
51
%
Sodium
247
mg
11
%
Potassium
274
mg
8
%
Carbohydrates
31
g
10
%
Fiber
6.5
g
27
%
Sugar
4.5
g
5
%
Protein
21.8
g
44
%
Vitamin A
310
IU
6
%
Vitamin C
16.2
mg
20
%
Calcium
54.7
mg
5
%
Iron
3.4
mg
19
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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