Cheesy Curry Chicken Casserole
a delicious ONE PAN alliteration
Okay, I did it: I cooked my first casserole! I guess if we really parse it out, I’ve made plenty of things that could qualify as a “casserole”. But to me a casserole is easy, includes lots of dairy, and maybe a “short cut” like frozen vegetables. This checks all the boxes. And it’s a ONE POT meal. You’ll dirty 1 pot, 2 bowls, and a cutting board. It also can be made entirely or parts of it ahead of time. All you have to do then is sprinkle of the cheesy topping and bake for 20 minutes. You could even text those instructions to someone in your household while you’r eon your way home. The “curry” element is just plain ol’ yellow curry powder from the spice aisle in any supermarket: think curry chicken salad. After my husband’s second bite, he asked if I could make it the following week. The full recipe for my Cheesy Curry Chicken Casserole is at the bottom of this email. Paid subscribers can access this recipe and all past subscriber-only recipes.
Check out my Reel on Instagram to watch how to make this recipe.
What I’m Loving This Week:
Trader Joes Lightly Smoked Mussels: Apparently these are not a new item, but it was my first time seeing them at my Trader Joes. On first glance, I grabbed 4 tins. And they are exactly what they advertise to be: just LIGHTLY smoked. Which personally, I love. You can really taste the mussel. Well, they are absolutely delicious. I ate a tin yesterday while standing over the sink. Using a toothpick, I plucked a mussel out of the tin , put it on a super thin cracker and finished with a little drizzle of homemade chili oil. Perfection.
Pasture Raised Pork Lard: If you follow me on instagram I’m sure you’ve picked up on my love of lard. But not, as the farmer who I buy it from say, “the shit you buy at the supermarket”. That stuff is well, not great quality. If I’m buying lard I’m buying pasture raised lard. This means that the pig didn’t come from a factory farm, and was able to graze outside. Better quality animals equals better quality and healthier by products of those animals. Back to lard: it’s a wonderful fat to cook with. high smoke point and it lends the most heavenly flavor to things like beans, savory bakes, or braised greens. I even have a published cookie recipe that uses lard and it melt-in-your-mouth good.
Freezing Tomatillos: every year around this time, I find that the farmer’s markets have lots of tomatillos for a great price. I’ve bought them, husked them, rinsed them and froze them three years in a row now. I love making pork or chicken chili verde or green enchilada sauce (paid subscribers can access that recipe from a few weeks ago) with them. They are not so easily found in supermarkets, but that alright when you have big bags in the freezer!
Makes 4 generous servings
Pan: I used my oven safe Le Creuset Braiser for this. If you use an oven safe pan this is a one pan meal. Alternatively you can cook everything and transfer to a 9” x 13” baking dish for the time in the oven.
1 pound chicken breast tenders, cut into 1” pieces (breasts and boneless skinless thighs work too, just add 5 minutes cook time for thighs)