We love this casserole, which is why it’s part of my One Chicken, Three Meals repertoire. Adapted from a recipe my sister made for us as a freezer meal when our first baby was born, this sucker is delicious. Its like the green bean casserole of your childhood on steroids. It’s creamy, its crunchy, it’s made with heavy cream instead of canned soup and adds in tender chicken and filling rice to make a complete and completely delicious meal.
Chicken, Green Bean, and Rice Casserole
Creamy chicken and rice, studded with green beans and topped with french fried onions. Its like the Thanksgiving side dish you love, only better.
Equipment
- saute pan
- 13 x 9 baking pan
- stock pot
Ingredients
- 2 chicken leg quarters
- 4-5 cups water or chicken broth or enough to cover chicken legs
- 1 lb fresh green beans cut into 2" pieces and blanched
- 2 tbsp butter divided
- 1 lb button or baby bella mushrooms sliced thin
- 1/2 small red onion diced fine
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cups chicken broth divided
- 2 tbsp dry white white light beer will do in a pinch!
- salt
- pepper
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2 cups cooked rice any kind, (we like brown)
- 1 cup French's fried onions
Instructions
- Start by boiling the chicken legs in broth or salted water until the meat is tender and falling off the bone, about 40 minutes. (This can also be done in an instant pot. Manual setting, one cup of broth for 25 minutes with a 10 minute natural release.)
- While the chicken is cooking, prepare your rice and chop your vegetables
- In a large saute pan, saute your onions in 1 tbsp of butter for about 5 minutes or until soft and translucent
- Add in garlic and saute another 3 minutes until soft and fragrant
- Add in mushrooms and saute with a little salt and pepper for about 10 minutes or until nicely browned
- While mushrooms and onions are cooking, blanch green beans in boiling water for about 5 minutes or until crisp tender. Drain.
- Add wine to saute pan and deglaze, cooking for about 5 minutes until alcohol is cooked off.
- Add softened beans to saute pan along with last tbsp of butter.
- Sprinkle with 2 tbsp of flour. Stirring constantly, cook flour and bean mixture for about 5 minutes.
- Stir in milk, and 1 cup of chicken broth. Cook over medium heat for about 30 minutes or until reduced by half.
- While sauce reduces, remove cooked chicken legs from broth and let cool enough to handle. Separate meat from bones and skin and chop into bite sized pieces. Discard skin and bones.
- When sauce has reduced, add in chicken and heavy cream. Stir in dried thyme. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust as needed.
- Placed cooked rice in 13 x 9 baking dish and top with chicken and bean mixture. Stir to combine.
- Top with fried onions and bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown on top.
Notes
Depression Era Grandma Tip:
Refrigerate and save the broth from boiling the leg quarters to use in soup later in the week! Fat can be skimmed off the top of the cooled broth before adding to your soup. The broth may gel a little upon standing in the fridge. That is perfectly normal. It will melt back down to perfect broth consistency once heated.
