Chicken, Mushroom & Wild Rice Casserole

Originally from Minnesota. I had a 25+ year old recipe for this hotdish that needed updating. There is a significant difference between MN/Canadian wild rice and California cultivated. MN wild rice calls for a 4:1 ratio water to rice. You will need 2 cups cooked rice for a 1/2 batch that is baked in a greased 9x9. The finished product should yield 4 to 6 servings. Cook the wild rice for 35 minutes and drain. Cut the 1 lb chicken breast into bite sized pieces and brown in a Dutch oven using a half Tbsp butter. Remove chicken and save any juices to add back later. Add half Tbsp canola oil and sautee 1 chopped leek and 3/4 cup chopped celery for 4 to 5 min. Add 12 oz sliced crimini mushrooms, cook the 12 to 14 min. Add 1/2 cup white zin wine and cook until almost evaporated. Mix 2 Tbsp Flour into the 1 cup skim milk, add stirring until thickened. Add 1/4 cup each fresh grated Parmesan and lite sour cream. Add 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper. Add back chicken and rice. Toss to mix. Pour into baking dish, cover with foil and bake at 350 for 30 min. Remove foil and bake 15 minutes. Sprinkle on 3/8 cup chopped cashews (traditional) and bake 15 min more. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before serving. Serve green beans and/or carrots as a side.

This should actually be titled "Green Bean Casserole" since that is all you can taste. It might be better if you used asparagus instead. We put 2/3 of the green beans in this since it seemed like a lot, but it was still very green beany. Won't make it again. We'll have to throw the rest away after my husband and I ate a single serving tonight.

Fabulous Casserole We loved this recipe!!! But, it needs a little tweaking.....First, check the directions on the wild rice package as this calls for too much water. I sauteed the chicken instead of boiling and used french cut green beans. I also added about 1/4 cup fresh sage. Finally, don't overdo the almonds. I used about half what the recipe specified. Despite my critique I would give this the highest rating because the flavor of the sherry with the leeks and mushrooms is just spectacular!

Yummy This dish turned out fantastic. I followed the advice of some of the other reviewers. These are the changes I made: 1 cup of rice instead of 1/2 cup 3 cups of milk instead of 2 added celery and fresh garlic with the leeks cooked chicken in skillet with olive oil, garlic salt, pepper added rosemary, parsley, and garlic salt used broccoli instead of green beans This dish had tons of flavor and made a lot of food. Looking forward to the leftovers! Pros: hearty meal that makes a lot of food Cons: prep time a little long

Ingredients not in proportion I Added at least a cup more milk and a cup more sour cream after assembling the whole casserole, because it was way too dry. The liquid needs to come to the top of the food in a casserole, but the sauce only coated the food. I also wish the recipe had called for twice the rice. I also spiced it up with a splash of sherry directly in the sauce that I added at the end, with basil, ginger powder, and cayenne. Soy sauce too. The chicken needed some flavor, so I pan cooked it with light oil with LOTS of garlic. These adjustments worked really well and made a good dish with flavor. Pros: Good ingredients, but bland and dry without major adjustments Cons: Not enough rice, milk, spices, salt, too much chicken and mushrooms.

Enh...This wasn't anything special. And for the amount of time it took, not worth making again.

Enh... This wasn't anything special. And for the amount of time it took, not worth making again.

Yum! Made this with mushroom, celery, and kale, and it turned out great!

Yum!Made this with mushroom, celery, and kale, and it turned out great!

Not very flavorful Time saving tip: use a food processor to do all the chopping. I used mine for the leeks, mushrooms, parsley, & parmesan cheese. This recipe was bland. Particularly, the boiled chicken was bland. If I try it again, I will spice up the chicken once it is cut into bite-sized pieces - maybe garlic salt or onion salt, maybe some poultry seasoning. Pros: Makes a lot of food Cons: Take forever to make

Super Tasty, Takes forever to make I loved this dish! I just wish it didn't take forever to make (it didn't help that I was already starving when I set out to make this dish, AND I had to slice 1&1/2 pounds of mushrooms...oops!). But, I think it was worth the wait. Maybe some time-saving cuts could be getting pre-sliced mushrooms and an already cooked rotisserie chicken. Also, I didn't have sherry, so I used chicken stock and it was good. I agree with blangston that frozen broccoli would probably be just as good (and will probably try that next time as I have a bean-hater in my house). Pros: Delicious, Comfort Food, Creamy Sauce Cons: Long preparation time

Very tastyMy husband and I really enjoyed this recipe. He's a good trouper and will try any recipe I decide to make, but this is one that we both loved! I typically hate recipes with alcohol in them, no matter how I try to cook it out I can always taste it. I ended up using 3/4 cup cream sherry in place of 1 cup dry sherry and the taste was fantastic! I will be making this one again very soon.Pros: Great to make ahead, reheats very wellCons: takes a good bit of prep time

Very tasty My husband and I really enjoyed this recipe. He's a good trouper and will try any recipe I decide to make, but this is one that we both loved! I typically hate recipes with alcohol in them, no matter how I try to cook it out I can always taste it. I ended up using 3/4 cup cream sherry in place of 1 cup dry sherry and the taste was fantastic! I will be making this one again very soon. Pros: Great to make ahead, reheats very well Cons: takes a good bit of prep time

Good way to impress! This dish was fairly easy to make and seemed so fancy, even though the presentation wasn't the neatest. The almonds were a great touch. I think it would taste just as good with frozen broccoli instead of the green beans. My husband, who typically isn't a fan of casseroles had seconds! I'll be making this again!

Disappointingly bland This was not an EW winner for me. We found it to be extremely bland. Perhaps more salt and pepper, maybe some additional herbs. I think the leeks just aren't strong enough to carry the dish.

Disappointingly blandThis was not an EW winner for me. We found it to be extremely bland. Perhaps more salt and pepper, maybe some additional herbs. I think the leeks just aren't strong enough to carry the dish.

my family loves this dishthis is a hearty casserole that my family cannot get enough of. I have made it twice in one week and I am getting requests to make it again. it does take a little bit of time, but if you prep some of the items ahead of time its not to hard to put together. I would agree, I don't think layering the rice, chicken, green beans and then topping is necessary. Next time I am going to try 1 cup of rice and not layering.Pros: well-balanced, healthy food,Cons: prep time

my family loves this dish this is a hearty casserole that my family cannot get enough of. I have made it twice in one week and I am getting requests to make it again. it does take a little bit of time, but if you prep some of the items ahead of time its not to hard to put together. I would agree, I don't think layering the rice, chicken, green beans and then topping is necessary. Next time I am going to try 1 cup of rice and not layering. Pros: well-balanced, healthy food, Cons: prep time

Great recipe - would definitely make it again and now that I see the other comments about the 1 cup of rice I would do that too!