This deliciously simple and quick chicken casserole recipe makes a great healthy midweek meal.
Everyone needs a simple chicken casserole recipe up their sleeves, in our opinion, and it doesn't get much easier than this one.
It's a fragrant, all-in one chicken dish that only takes 15 mins to prep, making it a very easy midweek recipe to throw together.
olive oil
chicken pieces (eight in total), such as thighs and drumsticks
onion, finely sliced
garlic cloves, crushed
celery sticks, thickly sliced
carrots, cut into 2cm chunks
leeks, cut into 2cm chunks
potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks
plain flour
hot chicken stock
rosemary sprigs
half a lemon
Heat oil in a large, flameproof casserole. Season chicken pieces and brown all over for 10min. Remove and set aside. Drain fat from the pan - there should be around 75ml. Pour just 1tbsp oil back in to the pan and discard the rest. Preheat oven to 200ºC (180ºC fan oven) mark 6.
Add the onion, garlic, celery, carrots, leeks and potatoes to the pan, and cook, stirring, for 5-10min. Stir in the flour, cook for 2min, then pour in the stock. Season well, then return the browned chicken to the pan. Add the rosemary, squeeze over the juice from the lemon half and pop the squeezed lemon half into the pan. Cover and bring the casserole to the boil.
Cook in the oven for 25-30min until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce is piping hot and thickened.
This chicken casserole is an incredibly versatile dish, and if you want to take it to the next level you can stir through some grated cheese for extra flavour, add a pinch of mustard powder for extra heat or even top with some dumplings half way through cooking for some extra sustenance.
We use bone-in chicken thighs and chicken drumsticks, rather than chicken breasts as they are much more succulent cuts of meat, that won't dry out during the cooking process. Any leftover vegetables or herbs can be bunged into your casserole dish, get creative and resourceful!
Not only can it be customised to suit your taste, it's also the perfect recipe for batch cooking and can be frozen for up to a month, so you'll always have a hearty and healthy meal ready in no time.
To freeze ahead - prepare to end of step 3. Cool, transfer to a freezer-safe container or bag and freeze for up to 1 month. To serve, defrost in fridge and reheat in a pan until piping hot
If you're looking for a lighter chicken casserole, then we have a spring casserole with fresh pesto, peas and new potatoes that's perfect for the warmer months. We also have a chicken casserole where the slow cooker does all of the hard work. Just put all the ingredients straight into the slow cooker and leave it to stew, it couldn't be easier.
