King Ranch Chicken Casserole

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With its layers of tender chicken, corn tortillas and spicy tomatoes bound together in a rich, cheesy sauce, King Ranch casserole might be the most famous casserole in Texas. Favored by home cooks and Junior Leaguers, this subtly spicy casserole dates back to the 1950s and the recipes are usually as dated, calling for “a can of this” or “a package of that.”

This modernized recipe captures the classic flavors with “scratch” ingredients. Starting with the sauce, we cooked onions and chiles in butter, then added ground cumin and Ro-Tel tomatoes, the Texas brand of spicy canned tomatoes that are the hallmark of this recipe. Instead of draining the tomatoes and discarding the flavorful juice (as most recipes instructed), we reduced the liquid to intensify the tomato flavor. Then went in flour for thickening, cream for richness, and chicken broth for flavor. Twenty minutes of kitchen work yielded a silky, flavorful sauce that put canned soup to shame.

Things went sideways at that point. When we layered precooked chicken into the casserole with raw corn tortillas and cheese, the chicken came out stringy and the tortillas turned to mush. Partially poaching the chicken in the sauce before assembly kept it moist and flavorful. As for the tortillas, crisping them in the oven pre-assembly proved to be the easy solution. And for the regulation crunchy topping, the kitchen stuck to the traditional choice: Fritos chips. Our King Ranch casserole was almost from scratch.

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  • 4

Ingredients

  • 12 (6-inch) corn tortillas
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 2 onions, chopped fine
  • 2 jalapeño chiles, seeds and ribs removed, then minced
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 2 (10-ounce) cans Ro-Tel tomatoes
  • 5 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 11/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, halved lengthwise and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch slices
  • 2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
  • 1 pound Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (about 4 cups)
  • Salt and pepper
  • 2 1/4 cups Fritos corn chips, crushed

Preparation

Step 1

Adjust the oven racks to the upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat the oven to 450 degrees. Lay the tortillas on two baking sheets, lightly coat both sides with cooking spray, and bake until slightly crisp and browned, about 12 minutes. Cool slightly, then break into bite-sized pieces. Using potholders, adjust the top oven rack to the middle position.

2. Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cook the onions, chiles, and cumin until lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their juice and cook until most of liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook 1 minute. Add the cream and broth, bring to a simmer, and cook until thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the chicken and cook until no longer pink, about 4 minutes. Off the heat, add the cilantro and cheese and stir until the cheese is melted. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

3. Scatter half of the tortilla pieces in a 13 by 9-inch baking dish set over a rimmed baking sheet. Spoon half of the filling evenly over the tortillas. Scatter the remaining tortilla pieces over the filling, then top with the remaining filling.

4. Bake until the filling is bubbling, about 15 minutes. Sprinkle the Fritos evenly over the top and bake until the Fritos are lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Cool the casserole 10 minutes. Serve.

Things you can do ahead of time: The casserole can be assembled through step 3 and refrigerated, covered with plastic wrap, for up to 1 day. When ready to bake, remove the plastic, cover the casserole with foil, and bake until the filling is bubbling, about 30 minutes. Remove the foil, top with the crushed Fritos, and proceed as directed with the rest of step 4.

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