King Ranch Chicken Casserole

This casserole is AMAZING. Its one of my husband's all time favorites and something we both grew up eating. I was a little nervous about making it again. While I was pregnant I made it for dinner and it didn't agree with me AT ALL. I had it once at a wedding after I had my son and I handled it well although it wasn't the best tasting. So, since I had it at a wedding almost a year ago I've made it a couple times and thought I would share it. This recipe is so great for a crowd or your family of 4. And it is pretty simple.

King Ranch Chicken

1 to 1 1/2 lbs chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
2 cans rotel diced tomatoes (original is what I use but you can use any heat desired)
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
2 cans cream of chicken soup
20 - 30 corn tortillas cut into bite sized pieces
2 cups chicken broth (from chicken breasts cooking)
1/2 medium onion, chopped
shredded cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Boil and shred the chicken breasts. You've all seen how I like to do this ahead of time so I didn't photograph it here for you. I like to add salt to the boiling water during this time.

Finely chop the onion and set aside.

Cut your tortilla into bite size pieces. I cut them into triangles by stacking and cutting. Put in a ziploc bag until ready to use so they don't harden.

In a large pot, combine soups, rotel, onions and broth and salt and pepper to taste. You may not use all the broth. I don't like my mixture really runny so I usually only use about 1 cup of broth.

Heat over medium high heat until it starts to bubble and just come to a boil. Add shredded chicken and heat through.

Let cook about 5 - 7 minutes.

In a greased 9 x 13 dish, create a layer of tortillas. Make sure the majority of the bottom of the dish is covered.

Spoon half of the chicken mixture over the tortillas and top with a little bit of shredded cheese. Repeat one more time so that you have two layers.

Cover your top layer of chicken mixture with as much cheddar cheese as desired. My husband likes a thick layer of cheese on top so I get a little crazy with it.

Bake at 350* for 35 - 45 minutes until cheese is melted and soup is bubbling (you can see if its bubbling on the sides of the dish).

I of course served this with Mexican rice and a pot of charro beans. Hope y'all enjoy this dish as much as my husband and I do!

Happy Eating, Y'all!