Chicken and Green Bean Casserole
Rachael's gourmet twist on a standard green bean casserole adds homemade creamy mushroom sauce made with garlic, herbs and chicken to the green beans.
Try other recipes from Rach's Casserole Week, including Chicken and Broccolini Shepard's Pie, Buffalo BBQ Pulled Chicken Casserole with Blue Cheese Cornbread Topper and Toastacho Casserole.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds green beans, trimmed and cut into thirds
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 pound button mushrooms, sliced
- 2 large shallots, chopped
- 3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
- Pepper
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
- 4 tablespoons flour
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 2 cups chicken stock or poaching liquid (if you poach your chicken)
- 1 cup cream or half-and-half
- 1 wheel Boursin or other garlic-and-herb cheese (5.4 ounces)
- 1 1/2 pounds cooked, pulled chicken, either poached or store-bought rotisserie
For the fried onions (store-bought are fine as well for a quicker garnish):
- Frying oil
- 1 small to medium onion, very thinly sliced
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 cup flour aggressively seasoned with salt, pepper and paprika
Preparation
Bring a few inches of water to a low boil in a skillet. Add salt and the beans and cook 3-4 minutes to tender-crisp; drain.
Heat the EVOO and butter in a large, deep skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and lightly brown them, 7-8 minutes. Add the shallots and garlic and season with salt, pepper and thyme. Stir for 2-3 minutes more; add the flour, stir for a minute, then add the wine. Stir in the stock and thicken. Add the cream and reduce the heat to simmer. Add the beans and chicken and thicken a bit.
Transfer into a casserole dish and cool. Cover and refrigerate. To cook, bring back to room temperature and bake at 375°F until bubbly, about 50-60 minutes. Top with homemade* or store-bought fried onions.
For homemade fried onions, heat frying oil to 365°F in a countertop fryer or 2-3 inches of oil in a deep, medium pot over medium to medium-high heat. Separate the onions into rings and soak in buttermilk. Toss a few rings at a time into the flour and fry until crisp. Drain on paper towels and repeat with the remaining onions.
