Cheesy Chicken Bake
“What am I going to cook tonight?” is a common refrain at my house during the term-time.
Because even though I absolutely love cooking, it gets a little tedious day in and day out, particularly when I am cooking for a fussy and often un-appreciative audience.
I am not really into meal planning, but I have determined this year to have a good list of reliable, nutritious and easy to cook meals that are simple to pull together from some pretty basic ingredients.
First up, this cheesy chicken bake, the basis of which was passed on to me by a friend may moons ago.
Thanks Bek.
Cheesy Chicken Bake
Cheesy chicken bake with rice and hidden vegetables. Perfect to feed your family.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 50 grams of butter
- 1 onion diced
- 2 rashers of bacon diced
- 1/2 a red capsicum diced
- 1 stick of celery diced
- 1/4 cup of plain flour
- 2 1/2 cups of milk
- 500 grams of chicken mince
- 3 cups of cooked rice
- 1 cup of grated cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup of grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup of frozen corn
- 1 stock cube
- 1/4 cup of water
Instructions
Instructions
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Preheat your own to 180 degrees celsius and grease a ten cup capacity casserole dish.
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Heat the butter in a large pan and gently cook the onion for a minute or two before adding the garlic, bacon and chicken mince. Cook over a moderate heat until it starts to crisp. 3-4 minutes.
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Stir in the flour and gently cook for 1 minute, stirring.
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Gradually add the milk, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens.
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Add in the frozen corn, crumbled stock cube and extra water and cook for 2-3 minutes.
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Place the cooked rice in layer at the bottom of the baking dish. Pour over the chicken mixture and smooth the surface.
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Sprinkle with cheddar and parmesan.
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Bake for 25 minutes until bubbling and warmed through.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
What do you think?
Simple to cook and with a few varieties of hidden vegetables.
Plus sprinkling cheese on top is generally a sure-fire way to win over little tummies.
Hints for the perfect bake
Be sure to gently cook out the flour without burning it on the bottom. You will want a moderate heat for this and you will also have to pay attention. Some crunchy bits on the bottom will add flavour but charcoal will not!
You will also need to stir carefully when you add in the liquids, waiting for it to just come to a bubble and thicken slightly. Keep stirring during this bit and you will be lump free.
You can see from my video I used a few short cuts. Feel free to copy those or go the longer and slower method.
- I used a stock cube in water instead of homemade vegetable stock.
- I used pre-chopped bacon.
- Lastly, I used pre-grated Cheddar cheese
It is term time Ok, and I have generally have three ravenous kids and two jobs and I rely on short cuts during the busy week so stop judging me.
Great.
So what simple dishes do you cook at your house to feed the crowd?
Happy Eating.
Dani xx