tonight's dinner -- chicken and rice casserole
By Kelli M
@spiderdust (14756)
San Jose, California
September 2, 2018 7:43pm CST
Most people in the United States have probably eaten a variation of this dish at some point on their lives. It's chicken cooked on top of a mixture of seasoned rice with a creamy sauce (often made from canned soup).
A funny story about this dish... I had it for Sunday lunch pretty often as a kid. Mom would stick it in the oven before we left for church and it would slowly cook as we sat through services, and then she took it out of the oven when we got home. I was never crazy about the chicken part, but the rice was always good.
As an adult, I made the recipe on my own and discovered that Mom had been cooking it for way too long! 
You see, church services were 3 hours, plus the 30 minutes each way to church and back, plus the extra minutes spent there (we were always early and often left for home later than everyone else)... that meant it was in the oven for 5 or 6 hours. That chicken was way overcooked! No wonder why I was never crazy about it. 
What are you having (or what did you have) for dinner tonight? Have you made this dish before?
Photo from the Pillsbury website.
You see, church services were 3 hours, plus the 30 minutes each way to church and back, plus the extra minutes spent there (we were always early and often left for home later than everyone else)... that meant it was in the oven for 5 or 6 hours. That chicken was way overcooked! No wonder why I was never crazy about it.
What are you having (or what did you have) for dinner tonight? Have you made this dish before?
Photo from the Pillsbury website.7 people like this
8 responses
@thislittlepennyearns (68246)
• Defuniak Springs, Florida
3 Sep 18
I made mashed potatoes and gravy. I didn't feel like doing anything else. I ate a bowl and then laid down. Lol. I'll make potato patties wirh the rest..
2 people like this
@spiderdust (14756)
• San Jose, California
3 Sep 18
Sometimes mashed potatoes and gravy just hit the spot. Turkey gravy?
1 person likes this
@thislittlepennyearns (68246)
• Defuniak Springs, Florida
3 Sep 18
@spiderdust yep. And I was lazy. I didn't even make my gravy. I bought it canned from work . I cheated the food gods with instant mashed potatoes and canned gravy. But I was tired and sore.
1 person likes this
@spiderdust (14756)
• San Jose, California
4 Sep 18
@thislittlepennyearns We do what we gotta do sometimes. Some days we have the time and energy for homemade, and some days we don't.
@andriaperry (118793)
• Anniston, Alabama
3 Sep 18
I made pizza, loaded with veggies.
Yes I have had chciken and rice.
2 people like this
@LadyDuck (502729)
• Italy
4 Sep 18
@spiderdust I cannot stand overcooked rice, this reminds me the times I had lunch in school and the Nuns cooked.
@spiderdust (14756)
• San Jose, California
4 Sep 18
My casserole was perfectly cooked last night. So much better than those after-church meals!
1 person likes this
@spiderdust (14756)
• San Jose, California
3 Sep 18
It was more like soggy, stringy chicken with flabby skin (because Mom usually used either drumsticks or leg quarters).
1 person likes this
@spiderdust (14756)
• San Jose, California
3 Sep 18
Either way, still unpleasant.
1 person likes this
@JohnRoberts (109841)
• Los Angeles, California
3 Sep 18
Oven baked chicken and rice.
1 person likes this
@spiderdust (14756)
• San Jose, California
3 Sep 18
More or less, but the sauce is cooked in with the rice.
1 person likes this
@RasmaSandra (98106)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
3 Sep 18
I have had it. I discovered that since I have been gone from the US for so long food is no long what food once was at least what I remember and it has gotten awful expensive. So I have to be sure that what I make is good the first time I make it. I just invested in a slow cooker and that is making juicy chicken and other meats that would otherwise have been tough. If your mom had made that chicken in a slow cooker you would have liked it for sure.
1 person likes this
@spiderdust (14756)
• San Jose, California
3 Sep 18
Maybe... overcooked chicken is still rather dry, even in a slow cooker. The moisture stays in the crock, but not in the meat.
1 person likes this
@kobesbuddy (78833)
• East Tawas, Michigan
4 Sep 18
I know exactly what you mean, overcooked chicken is terribly dry. I love chicken and rice, it's one of our favorites. When you make it, do you cook the rice first? We had a roast chicken, baked potatoes, and coleslaw.
@kobesbuddy (78833)
• East Tawas, Michigan
4 Sep 18
@spiderdust Did you use regular rice or instant rice? I'm asking, because this is a side dish I'm planning to make tomorrow with dinner. Thanks, Kelli:)
@spiderdust (14756)
• San Jose, California
4 Sep 18
@kobesbuddy I use regular rice. I can send you a rough recipe in private messages!
1 person likes this
@spiderdust (14756)
• San Jose, California
4 Sep 18
No, the rice and the chicken cook at the same time. The uncooked rice gets mixed with the seasonings and the sauce (I did use canned soup this time) and some milk or water and put in the casserole dish, the chicken is laid on top, and the dish gets popped into the oven.
1 person likes this
