Lebanese Casserole
And it's that time of the year again. It's winter here in Dubai! 😍 And that calls for a hot and soupy casserole for dinner. This is perfect coz the recipe only calls for basic ingredients that are almost always available in the kitchen.
Anything soupy, warm and hearty is what one needs during winter nights! 😍 I happened to come across this recipe on a keto page called thatketoyum, since the Mister is no more on keto and feeding the family with fat and proteins only isn't practical, I decided we wanted some carbs here. I used potatoes for carbs, you may use cooked rice instead too. This dish is kind of a combination between a stew and a casserole. The next time I make this, I might prepare using vermicelli for the carbs instead of potatoes. I am sure, vermicelli would make a great substitute too.
All you need to do is boil and shredd chicken breasts in salt and pepper. And if using vermicelli, cook according to package instructions and set aside. I roasted my potatoes in salt, pepper, olive oil and garlic powder. Next, in a pan add you chopped onion, minced garlic, spices, tomato puree and veggies as per your choice. I used chopped carrots, Capsicum, sweet corn niblets and frozen Peas. Finish off with a couple of teaspoons of tomato paste and season with salt as required.
Into a casserole dish or a baking dish, layer the prepared ingredients. The first layer being the shredded chicken, next add in some black olives and layer with the prepared tomato gravy. Finally pour in your chicken stock, milk or cooking cream, roasted potatoes, labneh (optional) and Mozzarella cheese and allow to bake for around 20 minutes or until the cheese melts well. As simple as that, and it is a whole meal in itself! What better excuse to prepare this yummy dish. Yallah! Let's move on to the ingredients.
Ingredients : (makes for 3)
- 250 gms Chicken Breast, boiled and shredded
- 1 cup chicken stock, reserve from the cooked chicken breast/ use maggi chicken cubes.
- 1 potato mashed or roasted * (check notes)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium Onion, chopped finely
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- Salt and pepper as required
- 1 tsp paprika powder
- 1 tsp Kashmiri Red Chilli powder
- 1 tomato, pureed
- 1 small carrot, chopped
- 1/2 Capsicum, chopped
- 1/4 cup frozen Peas (optional)
- 1/4 frozen corn niblets (optional)
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1/4 cup sliced black olives
- 1/2 cup milk/ cooking cream
- Few labneh balls (optional)
- 1/2 cup shredded Mozzarella Cheese
- Coriander leaves, chopped, to garnish
Instructions :
- Roast/ Mash potatoes and set aside. (Instructions under Notes)
- Boil the chicken breast pieces in salt and pepper water, shred lightly and set aside.
- In a skillet, pour the olive oil and add in your chopped onions and minced garlic. Sauté well, until raw smell disappears.
- Next add in your seasonings and spices like salt, pepper, paprika, and Chilli powder, sauté for a minute on low.
- Add in your pureed tomato and allow to cook for a couple of minutes.
- Next add in your chopped veggies and frozen veggies (optional).
- Finally add in your tomato paste and check if more seasoning required.
- In a baking dish or a casserole, pat in your layer of shredded chicken and then Sprinkle your sliced black olives.
- Now layer up your tomato gravy prepared earlier. Level the layer using a spatula.
- Pour in your chicken stock and milk/cooking cream.
- Finally, place the roasted/mashed potatoes as the final layer. Add in some labneh balls and or some thick cream if you have and generosly Sprinkle in your shredded Mozzarella cheese.
- Place in a preheated oven 200°C for around 20 minutes or until the cheese has melted well.
- Finally garnish with chopped Coriander leaves and voila! Labanese comfort food done. Lazeez!
Note:
- To roast the potatoes, marinate the potatoes with salt, pepper, garlic powder and drizzle olive oil. Place in the oven at 200°C and allow to roast for around 25 minutes.*
- The labneh balls are totally optional. I used it here as I had them in stock. Not quite necessary.
- You may use mashed potatoes instead of roasting the potatoes. You may also use cooked vermicelli.
