King Ranch Casserola

 

 

Yes, yes, I know that it's supposed to say Casserole but part of my love of looking through these recipes is to see all the different handwriting and different ways people spelled (or misspelled) words. It's fascinating to me, which is why I came up with this entire Second Chance Kitchen in the first place.

Just like many of you, I've made this casserole many times before. BUT, I've never seen it call for a hen. I've never cooked an entire chicken. Good thing my mom was here! She shook her head when I told her I was going to toss the whole thing in a pot and cook it then cut it up. She quickly grabbed my big knife, cutting board and went to town cutting up that raw chicken. While she was doing that, I asked her if we were sure it was a hen and not a rooster. The recipe specifically calls for a hen. How do you know which one you're getting? Probably a dumb question, so please enlighten me if you know the answer. 

Here's my interpretation of the recipe:

King Ranch Casserola

1 Hen cooked and deboned

2 cups grated American cheese

1 doz. tortillas cut fine

1 onion cut fine

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 cup chicken broth

1 can rotel

Combine last 4 ingredients for sauce. Place layer of ½ chicken, ½ of sauce, ½ of tortillas, ½ of onion and cheese in casserola (casserole) and repeat for secold (second) layer with cheese on top. Bake 1 hour at 350°

* I used all the meat from the chicken for this recipe

* I used the broth the chicken was cooked in for the 1 cup of chicken broth

* I used corn tortillas (just incase someone was wondering)

* I used the mild rotel to make sure my kiddos would eat it

* I used mild cheddar cheese

* Lastly, I used a deep 9x13 glass casserole dish to make this in.

I hope you enjoy and give this recipe a second chance in your kitchen too.