Cooking Tips & Hints
                  Week 89 Featured Recipe
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KING RANCH CHICKEN CASSEROLE
(click for printable version of this recipe)
King Ranch chicken is the State casserole of Texas. The King Ranch is the largest ranch in Texas and is known for cattle breeding and oil and gas reserves but chicken has no association with this ranch so how chicken and King Ranch came together is unknown. We chose to make this well-known and loved casserole of Texas to salute the Dallas Cowboys, and our team of choice, the HOUSTON TEXANS! (Go Texans!) Enjoy.
TOOLS:
• Large Skillet
• Cutting Board
• Knife
• Wooden Spoon
• 9 X 12 Baking Dish
• Whisk
INGREDIENTS:

Sauce:
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped finely
• 1/4 tsp chili powder
• pinch of cumin
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup unsalted chicken stock
• ½ cup milk
• 2 tbsp sour cream
• salt & pepper to taste

Filling:
• 1 tbsp butter
• ½ medium bell pepper, chopped
• ½ medium onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh poblano chili, chopped
• 8 oz fresh mushrooms, chopped
• ½ cup canned, diced tomatoes
• 2 tbsp pimentos
• vegetable oil for frying
• 8 corn tortillas
• 3 cups shredded cooked chicken, diced
• 1 ½ cups grated mild cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup sliced scallions
• 1/4 cup slice pimento-stuffed olives
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PREPARATION: 

Preheat oven to 325 deg F. Grease baking dish. In a medium skillet, melt the butter. Add the garlic, chili powder and cumin and saute for a couple of minutes. Sprinkle in the flour, stirring to form a rue. Slowly pour in the chicken stock and milk into the skillet, stirring continuously to avoid lumps. Simmer the sauce for about 3 minutes, or until it has thickened. Stir in the sour cream, salt & pepper. Reserve the sauce for later.

To make the filling, melt the butter in a skillet. Add the peppers, onion, poblano chili and mushrooms. Saute until softened. Add the tomatoes and pimentos and stir to combine. Reserve the filling.

Heat about ½ inch of the oil in a small skillet. With a pair of tongs, dunk each tortilla into the oil for a few seconds or just long enough to soften them. In the baking dish, layer half the tortillas and chicken and 1/3 of the sauce, and half of the filling mixture, half the cheese, scallions and olives. Spoon over another third of the sauce, then repeat the layering of the remaining ingredients, putting the remaining sauce on top and sprinkle with the cheese. Bake the casserole for appx 30 minutes, just until it is heated through and bubbly.

HINTS: When I make this again, I will double the sauce because I felt it needed a little more. We use Brinkman’s or Keystone canned chicken because this chicken is packed with flavor and is a favorite of ours to use whenever a recipe calls for cooked chicken.
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