King Ranch Chicken

If you're in a rush, use a large rotisserie chicken in place of smoked chicken. It's hard to mess up this age-old crowd-pleaser.



King Ranch Chicken
Ingredients
  • 6 tablespoons butter

  • 1 ½ cups chopped yellow onion

  • 1 cup chopped red bell pepper

  • 1 cup chopped poblano peppers (about 2 medium peppers)

  • 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped

  • 2 garlic cloves, chopped

  • 1 tablespoon chili powder

  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin

  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt

  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour

  • 1 ¾ cups reduced-sodium chicken broth

  • 1 (10-oz.) can diced tomatoes with green chiles, drained

  • 1 ½ cups sour cream

  • 2 pounds coarsely chopped smoked chicken (about 5 cups)

  • 1 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

  • 2 cups (8 oz.) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

  • 2 cups (8 oz.) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

  • 18 (8-inch) soft taco-size corn tortillas

  • ¼ cup canola oil

  • Vegetable cooking spray

Instructions
    1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and next 3 ingredients; cook, stirring occasionally, 8 to 10 minutes or until softened and lightly browned. Stir in garlic, chili powder, cumin, salt, and black pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, 1 minute.

    2. Sprinkle flour over vegetable mixture, and cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Whisk in broth, and increase heat to high. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil, stirring occasionally, 1 to 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir in tomatoes and sour cream.

    3. Stir together chicken and cilantro in a large bowl; stir in vegetable mixture. Combine both cheeses in a small bowl.

    4. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over high heat. Lightly brush each tortilla on both sides with oil. Cook tortillas, in batches, in hot skillet 1 to 2 minutes each side or until lightly browned and crisp on both sides.

    5. Line bottom of a lightly greased (with cooking spray) 13- x 9-inch baking dish with 6 tortillas, overlapping slightly, to cover bottom of dish. Top with half of chicken mixture and one-third of cheese. Repeat layers once. Top with remaining tortillas and cheese. Lightly coat a sheet of aluminum foil with cooking spray, and cover baking dish.

    6. Bake at 375°F for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake 10 minutes or until bubbly and lightly browned on top. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

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