Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Rice Casserole

I love quick and easy meals on a weeknight.  This is an easy to prepare chicken casserole you can serve on a weeknight or weekend.  To save some time on the day you want to serve this meal, simply marinate and cook the chicken the day before.  The next day when you plan to serve it, just heat the chicken in the skillet with the other ingredients and then transfer everything to a casserole dish. It will come together in a snap.  To save even more time by using Uncle Ben’s Natural Whole Grain Brown, Ready Rice pouches; they are 100% whole grain and provide 48 grams of whole grain per serving!
 

Enjoy!

 

Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Rice Casserole

Serves 5 – 6

Marinade Ingredients:

2 Tbls. Worchester sauce

2 Tbls. Balsamic vinegar

2 Tbls. Extra virgin olive oil; divided use (1 tablespoon in marinade, and 1 tablespoon when browning chicken)

2 Garlic cloves, chopped

Ground Pepper - a few dashes

Casserole Ingredients:

1 to 1-½  Lbs.  Chicken breast - boneless and skinless (4 chicken breast), cubed into 1 inch pieces

1 Can Reduced fat Cream of Chicken soup

1 Can Water

½ Cup Chicken stock, unsalted

2 Tsp. Soy sauce, less sodium variety – optional

1 (12-ounce Pkg.)  Frozen broccoli florets, precooked in and drained

2 Cups Whole grain brown rice (I suggest Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice); prepared according to package directions

¼ Cup Fage Total 0% Greek Strained Yogurt

¾ Cup Reduced fat cheddar cheese, shredded; divided use

Additional ground black pepper – optional

Prepare and marinate chicken:

In a large mixing bowl, mix together 1 tablespoon olive and the remainder of the marinade ingredients.  Add cubed chicken and mix to coat.  Cover and place in the refrigerator; marinate for about 2 hours.

Casserole ingredient preparation:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
 

Heat a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat and add1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan.  With a slotted spoon, lift the chicken out of the marinade (try to drain off most of the liquid), add chicken to the heated skillet.  Cook for about 15 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink and is completely cooked.  Remove chicken to a plate and set aside.

To the same skillet, add the cream of chicken soup, water, chicken stock, and soy sauce.  Stir to combine.  Add the broccoli, chicken and rice; mix to combine and heat all ingredients together.  Remove skillet from heat, stir in ¼ cup of cheese and the yogurt.

Transfer the chicken, rice and broccoli mixture to a 2-1/2  quart casserole dish.  Top with remaining cheese and sprinkle with black pepper.  Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and sauce begins to bubble.  Serve immediately.