Page 34 of Sex On A Plate

CHICKEN AND RICE CASSEROLE

DIFFICULTY: Chicken. And. Rice. ‘Nuff said.

TIME: An hour and 15 minutes.

What you’ll need from the cupboard: A 13x9 casserole dish, a spatula, a steak knife or paring knife, and Pam Cooking Spray.

What you’ll need from the pantry: Salt, pepper, dried onion, paprika (preferably smoked), onion powder, garlic powder, dried onion, 3 pounds of chicken meat (boneless breasts work well, as does shredded chicken from the previous recipes), 2 bags of Uncle Ben’s Whole Grain Brown Ready Rice, a can of Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup, a can of Campbell’s Cream of Chicken Soup, a cup and three-fourths of milk (15 ounces, to be exact), half a stick of butter.

* * *

This one is easy. Despite it’s ease, it’s a favorite in our household (from 4 years old to 55, we all love this recipe).

Preheat the oven to 375.

Situate the casserole dish in the only manner you now know.

Spray it with Pam.

Heat the bags of rice per the instructions. Dump them in the dish. Add the 2 cans of soup. Fill one of the soup cans nearly all the way with milk. Rinse the can clean (into the dish). Fill the other can half full and rinse the can clean into the dish.

Toss the cans.

Stir well, mixing all ingredients thoroughly.

Add a tablespoon of dried onion, a teaspoon of onion powder, a teaspoon of garlic powder, a liberal amount of pepper, a little salt, and a half teaspoon of paprika.

Mix well.

Add either four large chicken breasts or 2-3 pounds of pre-cooked chicken. If you use breasts, space them evenly and cover with mixture. If you use pre-cooked chicken, mix it thoroughly throughout the dish.

For four or less people, the breasts work well. For more than four, it seems it’s always a fight for who gets what. I’ll let you decide, but the pre-cooked chicken seems to work best.

If pre-cooked is your decision, try to use various sized chunks, not just chicken shreds. I like to cut it into cubes, tear a little of it into shreds, and leave some pieces large. This breaks up the monotony of eating a casserole.

Slice the half a stick of butter into 10-12 THIN slices with the steak or paring knife. Place them about on the top of the casserole.

Sprinkle a LITTLE paprika over the top of everything. Just a light dusting here and there.

Bake at 375 for an hour and fifteen minutes, or until it stops looking soupy on top and the surface is turning brown (please note, it will bubble up through a few geysers, but that’s normal).

Remove from the oven and let it cool for 15 minutes.

Cut with the edge of the spatula and serve in spatula-sized sections. I like to put a few dashes of Tabasco sauce on mine, but then again, I like Tabasco on everything.

No matter how you eat it, you’re sure to love it. It seems everyone does.

Enjoy.