Chicken and Stuffing Casserole

You know what amazes me? That there are people in the world who can't just walk into their kitchens and create something for dinner. I'm not claiming to be some fabulous chef by any stretch of the imagination, but I can usually come up with something nutritious and tasty for dinner even when I didn't have a plan going in. This one was born because the weather turned cold and I had two jars of turkey gravy that were gifted to me that were taking up space on my shelf.

But I realize there are people (perhaps some of you), who need a little push to get started, so that's why I started making what I call pantry stews, or casseroles, or whatever. Most of them use ingredients many of you probably have already, but if you don't have exactly what I used they're easily switched out for something you do or like better.

One thing you'll notice about my ingredients is the brands. Or rather, the lack of national brands. In this case, the stuffing mix, gravy, and large can of chicken came from Aldi. The mushrooms came from a Spartan store. The small can of chicken from Meijer (as well as the frozen peas). The onion and garlic powder came from Dollar Tree. The only thing that came from a "real" store is the Olde Thompson's Rustic Tuscan seasoning, but even that I bought at a Kitchen Collection outlet store. There are some ingredients I insist be a brand name, but for the most part I use whatever is cheap.

Because I'm still new to this whole thing where I take pictures as I cook, I neglected to take a picture of the first step. It really wasn't that much different than this one, though... Put the dry stuffing mix in a large bowl and pour in the water. Let it soak for a couple of minutes (I let it soak for as long as it took me to open the cans of chicken and drain them). Then add the chicken and stir to break up the larger chunks and mix it into the stuffing.

After that, I added the mushrooms and peas and stirred to combine them well. You can leave out either of these things if you want, add different vegetables, or whatever you want. I happen to like peas and mushrooms and had them both, so that's what I chose. But I can see this tasting good with corn, or green beans, or mixed vegetables.

I actually mixed the gravy into the stuffing and vegetables in the bowl and then spread it in my casserole dish, but I didn't figure you really needed two pictures to get it. This is my 3-quart casserole dish and it's pretty full, so make sure you don't use anything smaller. It probably would also work in a 9x13 pan if you'd rather go that way, although it would reduce the baking time some.

After the top started to brown, I figured it was probably done. Nothing in there was raw, so I wasn't worried about that. If you choose to shred chicken you cooked yourself rather than using canned, that would work fine as well. I just love the canned chicken because it's easy.

Chicken and Stuffing Casserole

Serves 8

1 (6 ounce) box stuffing mix (herb or traditional)
1 cup water
15 ounces chicken (canned, drained)
1 (4 ounce) can mushrooms (drained)
2 cups peas (frozen, thawed)
2 (12 ounce) jars turkey gravy
1 teaspoon Tuscan seasoning (I use Olde Thompson Rustic Tuscan)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder


Step 1
Preheat oven to 350F; spray a 3-quart casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.
Step 2
In a large mixing bowl, combine the stuffing mix and water and let stand a minute or two until water is absorbed.
Step 3
Mix chicken into stuffing, breaking up large chunks and combining well.
Step 4
Mix mushrooms and peas into stuffing mixture, then stir in the gravy and seasonings until well combined.
Step 5
Spread mixture into prepared casserole dish and bake, uncovered, for 40 minutes or until top is browned.
Step 6
Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Serving Size: 240 g

Calories: 547

Calories from Fat: 78

Total Fat: 8.7 g

Saturated Fat: 2.2 g

Cholesterol: 53 mg

Sodium: 4114 mg

Total Carbohydrates: 77.3 g

Dietary Fiber: 2.8 g

Sugars: 3.9 g

Protein: 29.0 g

Granted, this one is not at all in the ultra-low carb realm in which I try to stay, but sometimes you just want comfort food. We've been 15-20 degrees below normal temperatures lately, so I planned the meals a few days either side of this one well under my normal carb goal. It works.