Asian Chicken, Vegetables and Rice Casserole

Asian Chicken, Vegetable and Rice Casserole requires very little prep time, is baked in the oven and feeds a family of four for $1.76 per person.

Procuring on sale chicken, using a frozen stir-fry vegetable blend, my go to spices from my pantry and Asian ingredients I always have on hand (soy sauce and mirin) - was key to keeping the cost of this meal down. The stir-fry blend I used has sugar snap peas, broccoli, green beans, yellow squash, red and yellow peppers, carrots and water chestnuts.

Clean up is a snap as you place all the ingredients in a 9x 13 casserole dish then pop it in the oven.

• 2 boneless/skinless chicken breasts
• 1 bag frozen stir-fry vegetables
• 1 cup long grain white rice
• 2 cups water or chicken broth
• 3 tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 tbsp. mirin
• 1/3 cup onion - diced small
• salt to taste
• pepper to taste
• granulated garlic to taste
• onion powder to taste

COOKS NOTE: If you can't find mirin in your local grocery in the international aisle, then you can find mirin here.

PREP THE CHICKEN:

1. Wash your chicken under cold water then pat dry.

Using this graphic as a guide:

1. Cut the chicken against the grain into 1" long strips.
2. Then cut the strips into 1" pieces and place in a medium sized bowl.
3. Season the chicken (to taste) with salt, black pepper, granulated garlic and onion powder. Toss to coat.
4. Add in the 3 tbsp. soy sauce and 1 tbsp. mirin, stir and let marinate for at least 20 minutes.

For the rest of the dish

1. Add the 1 cup of rice and 1/3 diced onion to your casserole dish along with 2 cups of either water or chicken broth. Add in salt, pepper, granulated garlic and onion powder to taste.
2. Place the marinated chicken pieces throughout the dish.
3. Add the frozen stir-fry vegetables on top and season those with salt and pepper.
4. Cover with aluminum foil and bake in a preheated 350° oven for approximately 50 minutes.

COOKS NOTE: If you are using water to cook the rice instead of chicken broth be sure to season the water well. If using broth you can dial back the amount of salt.

There you have it. A complete, well balanced meal for your family that cost just $7.04 to make! I hope you enjoy this as much as we did.