Weekday Quick-Chick Recipes

This is a revised post from June 2020, and adds a third weekday easy chicken recipe that seemed to fit better here than in a separate recipe posting. People run pretty hard during the week and so, given the incredible versatility of chicken, it isn't surprising that just about everyone has at least one, if not several, go-to chicken recipes that can be prepared quickly for an easy weeknight supper. Here are three quick-assembly chicken recipes that we've been making for years.

For a long time, I avoided posting dishes that are what I call "can-o-dis" recipes.  You know the type: pour a "can-o-dis" kind of soup over something, and then call that culinary art.  But age and a desire for convenience are changing that.  I'm no longer such a culinary snob that a little help with brevity and simplicity isn't a good thing, as long as it still tastes good.  And that's been a prime directive for this blog since I started it over a decade ago - never post any recipe that we haven't personally tried and that either myself or My Number One Fan hasn't made and perfected.....and liked.

I'm giving credit to My Number One Fan for these three recipes she's been making for years.  They are designed for maximum flavor and minimum preparation time, with one-pot clean-up.

Baked Chicken Thighs in Savory Broth

Of the three recipes posted, this one is low carb, unless you serve it over rice, which we typically do. Originally published in the Sugar Busters Cookbook in 2003, this dish was called Baked Chicken Supreme.  If you conduct an Internet search of that recipe name, you'll find hundreds of them and the only thing they have in common is chicken.  I think people use the word "Supreme" when they run out of ideas to name their dish, or maybe had none to begin with.

 

This recipe originally called for a full cut-up chicken.  But since white meat and dark meat cook at different rates, we found using just chicken thighs works better - and tastes better, too.

 

Incidentally, this isn't a pure "can-o-dis" recipe: it takes just a few minutes of thoughtful measurement of several ingredients to pull together, but it's still a quick turnaround.

Ingredients

6 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

1 14.5 oz can chicken broth (like, Swanson's)

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp light soy sauce

1 tbsp Italian seasoning

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp powdered mustard (like, Coleman's)

1/4 tsp ground dried ginger

salt & pepper to taste

The Recipe

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

 

Place the chicken in a baking dish and season with salt and pepper.  Leave chicken skin side up

Combine all remaining ingredients in a mixing bowl, whisk well, and pour over the chicken.  You want the liquid to cover about half to 2/3 of each piece of chicken leaving the skin exposed so it will cook up crispy and flavorful.

Bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 1-1/2 hours, and baste once or twice during cooking.  Serve over rice with plenty of the delicious broth.

Creamy Baked Chicken Breasts with Stuffing and Swiss Cheese

I have no idea where this recipe came from, but My Number One Fan has been making it for at least twenty years.  While it is a "can-o-dis" recipe, it adds a couple of culinary nuances so that you wouldn't really know it.  My only complaint is that generally we eat all the stuffing on the first go-round and don't have any for the leftovers.  Accordingly, I have increased the amount of soup and stuffing to the original recipe.

Ingredients

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

5-6 thin slices of premium Swiss cheese (like, Boar's Head Baby Swiss)

2 cans of condensed cream of chicken soup (like, Campbell's)

1/2 cup dry sherry

3 cups seasoned stuffing mix (like, Pepperidge Farms)

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup chicken broth (like, Swanson's)

non-stick cooking spray (like, Pam)

salt & pepper to taste

The Recipe

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

You need a casserole dish that has a tight fitting lid.  Treat it lightly with non-stick cooking spray, then place the chicken breasts seam-side down.  Season with salt and pepper, and then place the slices of Swiss cheese to cover the chicken.

In a separate bowl, mix the soup and sherry together and whisk well, then pour over all the chicken.

Spread out the stuffing evenly over the whole dish.  Melt the butter in your microwave and then pour the butter and the chicken broth evenly over the stuffing.

Bake covered at 350 degrees for one hour until the chicken is tender and the the mixture is bubbly.

Crock Pot Cheesy Chicken

This originated from a 2001 recipe from the food.com website and My Number One Fan has made it scores of times.  The original recipe has undergone a few tweaks in the past two decades, including the addition of white wine.  The recipe's author intended it to be served over noodles and while I think that would be delicious, it almost defeats the convenience of the dish.  Microwaved rice these days is far easier and that's generally what we serve under the deliciously creamy, cheesy chicken.

 

The dish is also flexibly suited to either boneless chicken breasts, tenders or thighs, or a combination of those.  "Almost too easy," the original author said; this is the quintessential can-o-dis, crock pot recipe.  It freezes well, too.

I would also encourage some experimentation with this recipe which almost tastes like the base for a variety of other possibilities: 

• You could add small can of sliced mushrooms and 1/2 chopped yellow onion to the recipe, and then add a cup of sour cream just before serving for an additional dimension of creaminess and a stroganoff-style "zing."
• A couple of small cans of chopped green chilies and a dash of cumin would give this a recipe a decidedly Mexican twist.  Top with fresh cilantro.
• Add a tomato-y component to the flavor profile with a can of petite diced tomatoes (like, Hunt's) or tomatoes combined with diced chilies (like, Ro-Tel). If using the former, add a tablespoon of oregano and 2-3 tablespoons of dehydrated minced onions for some Italian flair.
  
• Top it with crumbled crispy bacon, finely minced green onions and shredded cheddar cheese, ladled into a large baked russet potato and call it "Baked Potato Chicken."
• Add 2 cups of frozen, thawed broccoli during the last hour of cooking for some added variety and color.
• Add a large, peeled diced russet potato to the recipe, then add 2 cups of frozen, thawed peas and carrots during the last hour of cooking and call it "Crust-less Chicken Pot Pie."  Or ladle it into some baked frozen puff pastry shells (like, Pepperidge Farm) and omit the word "Crust-less."
  

Really, any number of variations are limited only by your imagination and creativity.

Ingredients

2 lbs boneless chicken breasts, tenders and/or thighs, cut into strips or pieces

2 cans condensed cream of chicken soup (like, Campbell's)

1 can condensed cream of cheddar cheese soup (like, Campbell's)

1/4 tsp Mrs. Dash table-blend seasoning

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp celery seed

1 cup dry white wine

non-stick cooking spray (like, Pam)

 

The Recipe

Spray the crock pot liberally with cooking spray, then place chicken pieces in the bottom. Mix the soups, seasonings and white wine in a separate mixing bowl and then pour the sauce over the chicken.

 

Cook 3-4 hours on high and an additional 3 hours on low.  Serve over rice, noodles or heaped in a baked potato as suggested above.

An Even Easier Version

To make this an even easier recipe, you can forego the crock pot method entirely and use cooked, prepared chicken by using the white meat from a grocery store-bought rotisserie chicken, or by using a product from Perdue called, "Short Cuts" Carved Chicken Breast.  This is really a delicious product that we use frequently to make chicken quesadillas. chicken salads, or for use in Chicken Caesar or Cobb salads.

 

Ingredients

1 pound pre-cooked rotisserie white meat chicken, or 2 9-oz packages of Perdue Carved Chicken Breasts, Original Roasted

1 can each of Campbell's Cream of Chicken and Cheddar Cheese Soup

1/2 cup white wine

1 cup milk

1/4 tsp Mrs. Dash table-blend seasoning

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp celery seed

1/8 tsp black pepper

 

The Recipe

Blend all the ingredients except the chicken in a saucepan and place on medium low heat on the stove.  Bring to a boil and allow it to gently simmer for a half-hour.

Add the chicken and stir to ensure all pieces are submerged.  Simmer for another ten minutes.

Serve over white rice.