Chicken Noodle Casserole

 

Here is a recipe for a really good comfort food chicken noodle casserole. There are any number of recipes for chicken noodle casserole available but most use cans of undiluted cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup. I find that to be too salty and pretty uninspired, so I looked for recipes that didn't use soup. I found a couple and used them as a starting point to develop this recipe. Try it. I think you will like it.

Ingredients

3.5 Cups Cooked Chicken - I used Costco rotisserie chicken, but feel free to cook your own.

12 Oz. Extra Wide Noodles

1/2 Medium Onion - Finely Diced

1 Stalk Celery - Finely Diced

2 Carrots - Peeled and Finely Diced

Salt and Pepper

6 TBSP Butter - Divided

1 tsp Olive Oil

6 TBSP Flour

3 Cups Chicken Stock

1/3 Cup Cream

1/3 Cup Sour Cream

2 Cups Grated Sharp Cheddar

1 Cup Coarsely Broken Potato Chips

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9x13 baking dish. If you want to cook your own chicken, poach two seasoned large boneless -skinless chicken breast halves in a skillet with water or extra chicken broth. I used a Costco rotisserie chicken. Cut cooked chicken into bite size pieces. Cook noodles in salted boiling water for a minute or two less than package directions call for. They will continue to cook in the oven. Drain and return to the pot. Set aside. Melt 2 TBSP of the butter in a skillet. Add the 1tsp. olive oil.  Season the Onion, carrots, and celery with salt and pepper and saute until tender. Set aside. Melt the remaining 4 TBSP butter in a 3 Quart sauce pan. Whisk in the flour and form a roux. Cook until nut brown and smooth. Whisk in the chicken broth and bring mixture to a boil. Boil and whisk until sauce thickens. Reduce heat and whisk in the cream and the sour cream. Add sauted vegetables to the sauce. Taste sauce for seasoning. Stir sauce into the noodles in the pot, insuring noodles are coated. Add cut up chicken and stir to combine. Transfer mixture to prepared baking dish and top with the grated cheddar and then the potato chips. Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, until hot and bubbly. Serve with salad or some sauted summer squash and zucchini, and biscuits or crusty bread.