Chicken Noodle Casserole (a rotisserie chicken recipe!)

Are you a multi-store grocery shopper like me? Do you regularly have 2 or 3 different stores on your grocery list? I certainly do. My lunch hour is more like a shopping hour for me. Each week I scour the 3 grocery stores here and hit the sales during the week. I do lots of bulk shopping at Sam’s Club & BJ’s Wholesale, and I’m always on the look out for a bargain. In this economy, every little bit helps.

I often pick up a rotisserie chicken at Sam's Club. For $4.99 it's an economical meal for us and we usually have enough left over for chicken sandwiches the next day. Although we like eating the chicken "as is", I'm always on the lookout for new recipes that let me use a pre-cooked chickie. It just so happens if you buy one and pick all the chicken off the bones, you get 4 cups of chicken. Just what the following recipe calls for.

One of my favorite stores is a small chain here in New England called Dave’s Marketplace. It’s a bit more of an upscale store than my usual stops, but they have fantastic meats and a deli that boasts the most delicious prepared foods you have ever laid eyes on. My mother-in-law just raved about it when they were here visiting. Dave’s has a brick oven pizzeria and a sushi bar, with a sushi chef present for special requests! Oh how I love that! Sushi for lunch – yum! They also share some delicious recipes. This Chicken Noodle Casserole is one of them. I tweaked it a bit, as always, and it received rave reviews. Tati thought it tasted like an Alfredo sauce, John thought it tasted more stroganoffish. I thought it tasted delicious.

This recipe makes a lot. Enough that seven of us ate it last night and I still have leftovers in the fridge. Not much leftover though. This is definitely one I will make time and time again.

Chicken Noodle Casserole
Printable recipe
1 package of egg noodles (I used medium)
6 tablespoons butter
½ small onion, chopped
1-10 oz package of mushrooms, sliced (I used baby bellas)
¼ cup flour
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 - 16 ounce container of sour cream
4 cups chicken, cubed (1 rotisserie chicken, meat picked off the bone, shredded)
1 teaspoon chopped parsley
1 teaspoon fresh chopped thyme
salt
pepper

Topping
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup breadcrumbs (I used Panko)
½ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 teaspoon fresh chopped parsley

Preheat the oven to 350. Bring water to a boil in a Dutch oven. Add salt and cook noodles until al dente. Drain and set aside in colander.

Melt 2 tablespoons of better in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms, ½ teaspoons salt and some pepper. Cook until most of the water has evaporated out of the mushrooms. Stir in the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter and let it melt. Add the flour and stir until it becomes lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and cook about 30 seconds.

Gradually whisk in broth and sour cream. Let it cook 5 to 7 minutes, but don’t let it boil, you just want it to thicken. Stir in the chicken, noodles, parsley & thyme. Season with salt and pepper if desired.

Transfer the filling into a greased 3-quart baking dish while you prepare the topping.

To make the topping:
Mix all the topping ingredients in a bowl and sprinkle on top of the casserole.

Bake until browned and bubbly, about 30 minutes. Let cool for about 5 minutes before serving.