Recently, I've needed to eat a dairy-free diet on and off. One thing I've been missing a lot are those tasty creamy casseroles that are so easy to make and so yummy! But, alas, they usually contain cream, cheese, milk, and/or other dairy products. I went on a hunt for a dairy-free casserole and found this gem. It seemed like it might be a bit bland, so I made a few modifications, including adding onions and french fried onions.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 3 cups cooked rice
- 2 cups cooked shredded or cubed chicken
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons water
- 3-4 tablespoons flour
- 1/4 teaspoon thyme, plus more to taste
- 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder, plus more to taste
- 1/8 teaspoon onion powder, plus more to taste
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 3 teaspoons chicken bouillon powder
- 3 cups water
- 1-1/4 cup frozen peas
- 1/2 cup sliced frozen carrots
- 1/2 cup sliced onion
- 1/4-1/2 cup plain breadcrumbs (make sure they are dairy-free)
- 1/4-1/2 cup french fried onions (make sure they are dairy-free)
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400°F
- In large skillet bring 2 tbsp oil and 2 tbsp water to a light simmer.
- Add flour slowly and blend until smooth.
- Add 1/4 t. thyme, 1/8 t. onion powder, 1/8 t. garlic powder.
- Slowly add 3 cups of water and bouillon then continue blend until its a smooth consistency.
- Add cooked chicken and stir.
- Lightly grease a casserole dish and layer rice in bottom.
- Layer peas, carrots, and onion onto rice and sprinkle with salt and any additional spices you want.
- Carefully pour chicken mixture over vegetables.
- Sprinkle bread crumbs over the casserole.
- Bake for 25 minutes.
- Top with french fried onions and bake 5-10 minutes more.
This casserole turned out better than I'd expected a dairy-free casserole to be! For not having any cheese, it was very good! It hit the spot, and I hardly missed the cheese and milk (ok, I did kind of miss them).
