Chicken and Rice Casserole with Spinach and Shiitakes

18 Reviews
ADD YOUR REVIEW
Charles E. Walton IV
Prep Time
20 Mins
Cook Time
25 Mins
Bake Time
45 Mins
Yield
Makes 8 servings
By Jackie Mills
September 2005
RECIPE BY MyRecipes

We used Lundberg Wehani & Wild Rice blend, but any brown rice blend, regular brown rice or wild rice, or barley would be delicious in this casserole. Leave out the chicken for a vegetarian main dish. Great for a potluck.

Ingredients

  • 4 tablespoons butter, divided
  • 1 medium onion, halved vertically and thinly sliced crosswise (about 1 cup)
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 pound shiitake or other mushrooms, stems discarded and caps sliced
  • 2 (12-ounce) bunches spinach, tough stems removed and coarsely chopped OR 2 (5-ounce) packages prewashed spinach, coarsely chopped
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 3 cups milk
  • 8 ounces Gruyère, shredded (2 cups)
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  • 4 cups hot cooked brown or wild rice
  • 3 cups cooked chicken breast meat, shredded (12 ounces)

How to Make It

Step 1

Heat 1 tablespoon butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, and cook, stirring often, until softened. Stir in garlic, and cook 1 minute. Add mushrooms, and cook 8 minutes or until softened. Add half of spinach, and cook, stirring constantly, until spinach begins to wilt. Add remaining spinach, and cook, stirring constantly, 2 minutes or until all spinach has wilted.

Step 2

Melt remaining 3 tablespoons butter in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add flour, and cook, whisking constantly, 1 minute. Slowly whisk in milk, and cook, whisking constantly, about 5 minutes or until mixture comes to a boil and thickens. Remove from heat, and slowly whisk in Gruyère, whisking until smooth. Whisk in salt and pepper. Add spinach mixture, rice, and chicken; transfer to a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch (4-quart) casserole dish.

Step 3

Cover and refrigerate overnight, or bake, covered with foil, at 375° for 45 minutes or until bubbly and hot. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

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Ratings & Reviews

Yum!

bsmall
February 10, 2016
This turned out amazing! Used brown instead of wild to save time. I will definitely make again using the Lundberg's wild rice. A little labor and time intensive for a week night dinner but well worth it!

Jennifer26's Review

katehopp
November 08, 2013
This was good, but mine wasn't quite as dry as I would have liked. The sauce didn't seem to be thickening, so that was probably the problem. I thought, though, that it might have been thick enough after I added the cheese. I probably will make this again, and uncover it for the last ten minutes. I'll try the panko breadcrumbs, too.

stellacorona's Review

Patti7703
October 21, 2013
i used broccoli instead of spinach, so i'm sure that gave it a whole different taste and texture. so maybe that's why i gave it a 3. it probably has potential, but it was time consuming. would use cheddar or swiss if i ever made again, felt $8 worth of gruyere wasn't worth it. save that for mac and cheese !! used lundberg wild rice blend. made a lot. at least this didn't contain a canned soup.

katehopp's Review

pooklee
April 21, 2013
I like this recipe. Could easily substitute pasta for the rice. I cut it in half, and used an 8x11 baking dish. As a result, it only took 35 minutes to bake. I love shiitakes, but only had button... you can definitely use whatever's on hand. I also carbed it up a little with some homemade breadcrumbs on top. Very good Sunday evening casserole.

Csweenlis's Review

adelsite
October 25, 2011
I used the leftovers from a roasted chicken, a mix of shiitakes and creminis, kale instead of spinach, and baked the casserole in the same Dutch oven I used to make the cheese sauce to save a pan, and it was DELICIOUS! Tasted like fall! I also added a little extra grated cheese to the top for browning.

ekw00dward's Review

Chameleon16
October 14, 2011
making this for the second time tonight. great first time, but a few problems with it that i remembered (and hopefully fixed) from the first time around. 1) it's a LOT of stuff to sautee at once! i have to do it in a wok to get everything in, just a heads' up that the "large nonstick skillet" might not quite cover it. 2) season throughout or it is totally bland. i find this all the time with these recipes. for this, this time i baked my chicken with olive oil/salt/pepper/garlic/herbs de provence and then add salt/pepper/hdp to the veggie mixture. also cooked the rice (1/2 brown, 1/2 wild) with a couple chicken boullion cubes. first time that i'm leaving it overnight before cooking, but sure it will be amazing tomorrow.

pooklee's Review

KittyD
March 23, 2011
Labor intensive to me but a very good recipe. Also used uncle bens long grain wild rice, did not chop spinach, used a mix of baby bellas and white mushrooms. Did not add the panko or breadcrumbs but would recommend. Will probably make again for a family sunday dinner but not for a normal meal

Cecilyw's Review

Esther
February 26, 2011
Declared "delicious" by my three year old, and the rest of the family. Might try adding some sherry with the mushrooms next time. The thought of using Uncle Ben's rice makes me very sad, but I guess we do what we can.

Chameleon16's Review

ekw00dward
October 24, 2010
This casserole requires a lot more prep than I like to do for comfort food, but wow, is it ever good. I'd recommend using brown or less expensive mushrooms at least the first time you make this because they are just fine (I used CostCo baby bellas). Per the suggestions of others, I added fresh sage and topped this with Panko breadcrumbs - both are great additions. I also (sadly) used a lot more salt than called for, and I added a goodish amount of sherry. I'm becoming a fan of Lundberg rice, and so this was a perfect chance to try the wild rice blend in a casserole. Yummy!

CandiceLou's Review

Momto3kids
August 31, 2010
I thought this was a good change to the original Campbell's Ckn and Rice Casserole. I didn't precook the chicken or the rice and I used frozen spinach. I browned the chicken and put in the casserole dish and add two cups of brown rice and two cups of water. (Will make less rice next time)I also didn't make the sauce; instead I used two cans of cream of mushroom soup and add a extra can of water to my rice and water mixture. I added additional spices: salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder, and rosemary. I will be making this again!