King Ranch Chicken Casserole

This is a very popular casserole. There are lots of different versions of it floating around out there. I liked this one because it came from Southern Living (they always have great recipes), and because I had picked up most of the ingredients last week at Publix! I substituted flour tortillas for the corn tortillas. Use whatever you have on hand. I got in too big of a hurry and didn't read all the directions as carefully as I should have. I added the Rotel without draining it! I have never drained Rotel in any other recipes, so I just assumed that you didn't drain them for this recipe. It still turned out good though! So, what I might suggest is just draining one of the cans. I actually liked the texture of the flour tortillas after they absorbed some of the extra liquid. This was on the spicy side. It wasn't something that Ella ate. Maybe if you use the mild Rotel. The leftovers were great wrapped up in flour tortillas too! Maybe wrap it up and serve it with some Spanish Rice the next night. This is a big casserole so feed a crowd or use it for a double-duty dinner!



**Remember, I forgot to drain my Rotel. Duh! Yours won't be quite this runny. It also thickened up the longer it sat. The leftovers were great!


3-4 cooked chicken breasts (or 1 rotisserie chicken)
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
3/4 cup chicken broth
1 Cream of Mushroom soup
1 Cream of Chicken soup
2 cans Rotel, drained (I FORGOT to drain them!)
1 tablespoon taco seasoning
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups shredded cheese (I used Mexican blend)
12 (6-inch) fajita-size tortillas, cut into 1/2-inch strips

If you're using chicken breasts, trim them of excess fat, season with salt and pepper, pound slightly with a meat tenderizer and saute over medium heat in a splash of olive oil. Cook for 6 minutes per side, or until no longer pink. Remove from pan and set aside. While the chicken is cooking, chop your veggies.

In a separate large skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion and saute 6-7 minutes or until tender. Add bell pepper and garlic, saute 3-4 minutes. Stir in chicken broth, cream of chicken and mushroom soup, Rotel and taco seasoning. Cook, stirring occasionally, 8 minutes.

Shred chicken into bite-size pieces. Layer half of chicken in a lightly greased 13 X 9-inch baking dish. Top with half of soup mixture and 1 cup shredded cheese. Cover with half of the tortilla strips. Repeat layers once. Top with remaining 1 cup cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes to 1 hour or until bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.



Enjoy!


(adapted from Southern Living)