I’ve recently discovered chicken tetrazzini as a delicious and quick comfort food that offers lots of possibilities to a growing family of foodies. In actuality, I’ve started to stock a file away in my giant recipe collection for recipes to use up the leftover chicken when I roast a whole chicken. This makes making the recipe easier. . .otherwise you have to cook chicken and then put everything together. This chicken tetrazzini is one such recipe.
The trick to making a smooth sauce is to add ingredients gradually to a hot butter and to add the ingredients while stirring constantly. I will tell you though, I have another trick for getting things like this to turn out smooth. I add the flour to the butter in small quantities with my left hand and wield a stealthy Braun hand blender in my right hand to get everything smooth. You still can’t dump the flour in, but doing this almost guarantees flawless results.
You will need:
1 (8 ounce) package spaghetti, broken into pieces
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sherry
1 (4.5 ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained
2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Lightly grease a 9×13 inch baking dish.
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add spaghetti, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, or until al dente; drain.
Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, until smooth. Remove from heat, and gradually stir in chicken broth and cream.
Return to heat, and bring to a low boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add sherry, then stir in cooked spaghetti, mushrooms, and chicken. Pour mixture into the prepared baking dish, and top with Parmesan cheese.
Bake 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until bubbly and lightly browned.
Also see:
5 Things You Can Do with Leftover Turkey
Spaghetti and Meatballs Contessa Style