Three Little Jewells

Chicken Tetrazzini

This is such an awesome recipe! People love it every time I make it so I thought I’d share a tutorial.  I didn’t come up with this on my own- it was given to me by a friend.  Seriously, it’s crazy-good.

Here’s another thing about Tetrazinni- it’s a great company recipe because you can make it ahead.  In fact, honestly, it’s better if you make it the day before you plan to eat it.  It gives the everything a chance to really soak up the flavors of the sauce and seasonings.

FIRST- cook 3-4 chicken breasts.  Or, you can use turkey.   This is a good meal to make after Thanksgiving when you don’t know what to do with all that leftover turkey.   I made this chicken the day before using THIS RECIPE and then set it aside to use for tetrazzini the next day.  If you don’t have chicken breasts or turkey already made then throw it in a pot and boil it until it’s done.

Chop the chicken up into bite-size chunks and set it aside.

TOPPING

I usually double the topping because I love the crumby texture it adds to the tetrazzinni.

1/2 cup breadcrumbs

1 pinch of salt

1 1/2 TBSP Butter, melted

Combine all of above in baking dish.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and crisp.  Remove from oven and allow to cool to room temperature.

1/4 cup Parmesean cheese Add to the above mixture when it is cool.  Combine thoroughly and set aside for later.

Secondly, get your breadcrumbs going.

Filling

2 medium sized onions- chopped finely. (See previous post.    ))

2 TBSP butter- heat in large skillet over medium heat until foaming subsides.

Add to butter and season generously with salt and pepper.

8 oz. package of sliced white mushrooms- add to above.

Saute onions and mushrooms in the butter for 12-15 minutes or until onions soften and mushroom liquid evaporates.   Season with more salt and  pepper.   When done, set aside in a bowl.

MEANWHILE- cook 3/4 box of fettucinni or linguini (or, if you can’t find either at the grocery store just use spaghetti) per the box directions.  BEFORE you drain the pasta, reserve 1/4 cup of the cooking water.  Then drain the pasta, return it to the pot and pour the 1/4 cup water back into the pasta.  Set aside.

SAUCE

Important step- a lot of the following is timing.  You need to stir constantly so you can’t be rooting around the kitchen looking for ingredients or measuring cups/spoons.   Set out all the ingredients you need next to the stove and as much as possible pre-measure them like I did below.  It will make things MUCH easier.

4 TBSP (1/2 a stick) of butter- melt in skillet used above on medium heat until the butter stops foaming.   Do not clean the skillet from the onions and mushrooms.  You *want* all the little burned bits and such in the bottom of the pan because it adds to the tastiness of the sauce.

See how the butter is foaming??  Keep stirring until it’s gone.

1/4 cup flour- when butter foaming subsides, add flour.  Stir constantly with whisk until flour turns thick and golden.  About 1-2 minutes.

2 1/2 cups chicken broth- *SLOWLY* add chicken broth to the above mixture, stirring constantly with whisk.  Simmer for 3-4 minutes to allow it to thicken.

In this picture you can kind of see all the little bits of mushrooms and onions from the bottom of the pan all mixed in with the sauce.   yum.

Remove from heat and then add:

3 TBSP dry sherry

3/4 cup Parmesean cheese

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

2 tsp. lemon juice

2 tsp. thyme

Combine.

Now, combine the sauce and the vegetables together.

Place the pasta in the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish, pour the sauce and vegetables over the top.  Add the chicken and mix it all together.

Top with the breadcrumb mixture you made earlier.

Bake at 450 degrees for 13-15 minutes if made fresh.  If you made it ahead of time and you are baking it just out of the fridge, bake for 15-20 minutes.   Serve immediately after removing from oven.   Great with salad and bread.

Close up picture….