Tender chicken and noodles in a creamy sauce, topped with a golden, crispy breadcrumb crust will make this quick and easy chicken casserole recipe a guaranteed star on your dinner menu!
I love to feature mid century recipes of Hollywood celebrities -- one of my favorites is Frank Sinatra's spaghetti and meatballs, an authentic dish from his New Jersey Italian roots. And I often make Elizabeth Taylor's favorite Chasen's chili, from one of the most famous mid century restaurants in LA. Elvis Presley's poundcake is a fantastic, sweet Southern treat from his Memphis, Tennessee heritage. But Rock Hudson's chicken casserole has hearty midwestern sensibility written all over it. Given that he was born and raised in suburban Chicago, that's no surprise at all.
Table of Contents
A Fast and Easy Chicken Casserole Dinner
When I think of dashing mid century movie stars, Rock Hudson is at the top of the list. Star of stage and screen, he was most famous for his Academy Award-nominated role as a Texas cattle baron in 1956's "Giant" with James Dean and Elizabeth Taylor. But he also starred as the leading man in audience favorites such as 1954's "Magnificent Obsession" with Jane Wyman and Barbara Rush, 1956's "Written on the Wind" with Lauren Bacall and Robert Stack, and 1959's "Pillow Talk" with Doris Day and Tony Randall.
When he was interviewed by Johna Blinn for her 1981 "Celebrity Cookbook," Mr. Hudson said when having friends over he liked to serve a simple menu, and advised that his formula for a successful party included "Lots of good food, music, and plenty of good booze." This chicken casserole definitely qualifies as simple. It comes together quickly with some basic ingredients, so the only other thing you need to do is supply the music and good booze!
Rock Hudson's Chicken Casserole Ingredients
Old fashioned casseroles use basic ingredients to create a comforting dinner with wonderful flavors. This chicken casserole is so fast and easy to make with things you probably already have in your kitchen.
- Butter - Provides a rich and creamy base to the casserole and keeps chicken moist and tender.
- Flour - Acts as a thickening agent for the creamy sauce.
- Chicken broth - Adds flavor and provides a moist base when mixed with the butter and flour.
- Milk - Acts as a tenderizer to the chicken and provides moisture and creaminess to the sauce.
- Paprika - Provides color and a sweet, earthy flavor to the casserole. Use regular paprika and not smoked paprika for this recipe.
- Salt - An everyday flavor enhancer kicks it up a notch.
- Pepper - Adds a pinch of spice.
- Sautéed mushroom caps - Highly nutritious and rich in flavor.
- Cooked chicken, diced - The primary part of the chicken casserole. Rotisserie chicken or leftover chicken works nicely as the protein for this recipe.
- Frozen peas - Vegetable component that adds color and flavor.
- Cooked eggs noodles - A comfort food that adds texture and absorbs the casserole flavors.
- Sherry - Complements the chicken and adds a layer of flavor.
- Breadcrumbs - Creates a flavorful, crunchy topping.
- Unsalted butter - Butter topping allows the breadcrumbs to brown and turn crunchy, and using unsalted butter prevents the topping from being overly salty.
Steps for Making Chicken Casserole
It only takes a few steps and just under 30 minutes for prep, then another 30 minutes to bake. Easy enough for a weeknight meal, or to prepare ahead of time and heat up when you need it.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x13 casserole dish with butter and set aside.
- Remove and discard the stems from the mushrooms, then wash them under cold water and dry with a paper towel. Slice the mushroom caps.
- Melt butter in a medium skillet, then sauté the mushrooms in butter until the liquid they dispel cooks off -- about 10 minutes. Set aside. (If you don't know how to sauté mushrooms, here's a good, easy set of instructions.)
- Melt butter in a deep, non-stick frying pan over low heat. When butter is melted, sprinkle in flour and stir until fully combined.
- Slowly stir in the next 5 ingredients. Simmer until thickened, approximately 10 minutes.
- Add chicken, mushrooms, peas, noodles, and sherry to the sauce and mix well. Pour into the greased casserole dish.
- Sprinkle breadcrumbs over casserole. Dot with butter. Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and serve!
Expert Recommendations
We've made this casserole a few times. Feel free to make it according to the original directions, however we feel these small tweaks made it better the second time around:
- Use all the white meat from a rotisserie chicken -- it's easy, has great flavor, and no need to measure, you can just use it all up.
- Cut the amount of peas in half, to roughly ¾ cup -- we felt the original version was a little too heavy on the peas.
- Add the frozen peas directly to the skillet without cooking them first. Rock's instructions say to lightly cook them, but after being mixed in the skillet and then baked in the oven, the peas were plenty cooked, so you can eliminate this step.
- Increase the amount of breadcrumbs to ½ cup and the unsalted butter to 2 tbs. -- a little extra crunchy topping never hurts.
Storage Instructions
Cool casserole to room temperature. Cover tightly with plastic wrap or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Reheat in the microwave, or in the oven at 350°F until heated through, approximately 45 minutes.
You can also freeze chicken casserole for up to six months. After the casserole comes to room temperature, place it in an airtight container or bag designed specifically for the freezer. Make sure it is sealed tightly. To thaw, place in refrigerator overnight, then reheat at 350 degrees until internal temperature gets to 165°F.
Have a comment or a vintage recipe you'd like to share? We'd love to hear from you! Please rate, comment, or send me an email at [email protected].
Rock Hudson's Favorite Chicken Casserole Recipe
Equipment
- 1 large skillet
- 1 medium skillet
- 1 9 x 13 casserole dish greased
- 1 rubber spatula or wooden spoon
Ingredients
- ¼ cup butter
- 1-½ tablespoon flour
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup milk
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup mushroom caps sautéed
- 2-½ cups cooked chicken diced
- 10 oz. frozen peas
- 8 oz. curly egg noodles cooked
- 1 tablespoon cooking sherry
- ⅓ cup Italian breadcrumbs
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 13 casserole and set aside.
- Remove and discard the stems from the mushrooms, then gently wash them under cold water and dry with a paper towel. Slice the mushroom caps.
- Melt butter in a medium skillet, then sauté the mushrooms in butter until the liquid they dispel cooks off -- approximately 8-10 minutes. Set aside.
- Melt butter in a deep, non-stick frying pan over low heat. When butter is melted, sprinkle in flour and stir until fully combined.
- Slowly stir in chicken broth, milk, paprika, salt and pepper. Simmer until thickened, approximately 10 minutes.
- Add chicken, mushrooms, peas, noodles, and sherry to the sauce and mix well.
- Pour into the greased casserole dish. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over casserole. Dot with butter. Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and serve!
Notes
-
- Use all the white meat from a rotisserie chicken -- it's easy, has great flavor, and no need to measure, you can just use it all up.
- Cut the amount of peas in half, to roughly ¾ cup -- we felt the original version was a little too heavy on the peas.
- Add the frozen peas directly to the skillet without cooking them first. Rock's instructions say to lightly cook them, but after being mixed in the skillet then baked in the oven, the peas were plenty cooked, so you can eliminate this step.
- Increase the amount of breadcrumbs to ½ cup and the unsalted butter to 2 tbs. -- a little extra crunchy topping never hurts.
