Some nights I crave comfort food and there is nothing that says comfort to me than Old Fashioned Southern Cooking. Even though I am an only child I come from huge extended families. There were eight kids on my father’s side and 12 on my mom’s and all the women in the family were amazing cooks. I was my parents late in life child so most of my first cousins had children who were older or at least the same age as me. When we all got together for family reunions and holidays, not only did we have a huge amount of people, we had a huge amount of food. I thought it would be fun to have a year of Southern Cooking, 52 tried and tested recipes that are (usually) easy to fix and taste amazing, with a little history that is behind the dish. Most Southern food is not low calorie so we are not able to eat these foods on a daily basis, but they remain family favorites and often requested dishes.
This week I am sharing a chicken casserole that is a staple at any family get together or self-respecting church potluck. At our church it is usually made by Miss Eulene, who always takes home a scraped empty plate. One of the saddest church dinners of my daughter’s life was the time she helped herself to a heaping serving of this and realized Miss Eulene had used a different recipe than normal. “How could she trick us like that, Mom?” she asked, “I had been looking forward to that all morning.” Other people must have felt the same because she went back to the original recipe and has not changed it since.
- 4 to 6 chicken breasts, boiled and shredded
- 2 cans (12 ounces each ) cream of chicken soup
- 1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
- salt and pepper to taste
- 24 ritz type crackers, crushed
- 1/2 stick butter, melted
- optional: 1 can chopped water chestnuts (8 ounces, drained) Note–I like these added for the crunch. My kids pick them out.
- Mix undiluted chicken soup, sour cream and salt and pepper together in a large bowl. Add shredded chicken and water chestnuts, if using. Pour into a greased 9″ by 13″ inch pan. Meanwhile mix crackers and together. Sprinkle over top of chicken mixture. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes at 350 degrees.
Do you have a favorite Southern recipe or a request for a favorite dish? I might just have a recipe to share in the future.
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My favorite comfort food would have to be tacos… I know it’s not southern but Tacos are amazingggg
Wow! Yummy food! Saved it for my future cooking . 🙂
southern food is the peak of comfort food – and this one just takes the cake 🙂
My comfort food go-to is always chili, but this looks so good. Funny that your daughter had that reaction, I can think of dishes we have regularly at church that I would be the same way.
Thanks for the great recipe. I love trying new things and this one sounds delicious.
mmm sounds like comfort food to me 🙂
I love me so warm comfort food!!
I’m printing this recipe so I can try it this weekend!
Great post 🙂
As a Southern girl born and breed I can tell you something about comfort food. It is what we do best. Forget low cal or low fat, comforting is what we like. LOL
Great dish.
Dawn
Spatulas On Parade
I love comfort food too. This would be an excellent recipe to add to my recipe book. It looks so good! My mom would love it too! Thank you for sharing it!!
Cold weather and comfort food go hand in hand. This dish looks very good. I love cooking with chicken, it is so versatile.
This reminds me of a recipe my mom makes but without the water chestnuts. I love water chestnuts so I am going to bookmark this and try it soon. Family recipes are the best! Very excited about the year of southern cooking!!!
I like this one you posted,its different than mine,,so im going to try it out,,I was born in raised in Tennessee,an that’s the only way I know to cook is southern,,I married a yankee(Vermont) so its totally different up here,I cant even find cornmeal to make cornbread ,,I have to bring it back from the south 40 lbs at a time,,lol
This sounds really delicious. I love using sour cream in casseroles like this for a little bit of tang.
This sounds really really good i would love to give it a try and see how it comes out,thank you for sharing.
I use a lot of chicken and I’m always looking for new recipes! Thanks..going to try this.
That looks amazing Pam. I love making casseroles!
I grew up in Texas and this casserole looks so GOOD!!
I’m dying for some comfort food right now! You’re my saving grace!
My Husband would totally love this dish! I am going to give it a try for him!
That looks really good and creamy : )
This sounds so good and I KNOW my kids would love, they are so picky… but this will be a great meal for them.
Mmmm…fall comfort food at its best!
oh my goodness, this looks delicious! I will have to try it.
I’ve never been to the South, but this looks great!
Always a good quickie meal. looks delicious.
chicken casserole is perfect for days like today- cold and raw and rainy here in ct! YUM!
I am always looking for chicken recipes since Hubby loves to eat chicken A LOT! The Ritz crackers on this sound delicious.
Oh my goodness, I seriously have GOT to make this! Winter is coming and my oven will always be on!
We make a version of this!
I’m going to agree!! Nothing like Southern cooking! Im going to have to look into this cookbook
This sounds fairly simple but yet tasty. I remember my mom making something very similar to this with the leftover turkey after Thanksgiving.
This look soooooo good right now! I am the same — when I crave comfort food, nothing else will do. I just printed this and totally making this week.
Yum! Great recipe and will be trying this soon!
This looks sooo good and uquestionably a dish that my Honey/Hubby would LOVE…. Except that when I think Southern cooking – I think high in fat and probably carbs too. But this recipe doesn’t look too bad in that department (I mean for a splurge!) I think Campbells makes a “Healthy Recipe” or lower fat/sodium type of Cream of Chicken (or maybe Mushroom) Soup – and I always buy light or lowfat Sour Cream (basically sour half & half) and that seems to work pretty well as a minor substitution – but forget about FAT FREE – at least if you want to enjoy the meal!)
I’m going to try this with my minor adjustments and maybe a few other tweaks – I’ll let youknow how it goes – and thanks for the recipe – I’ve already REALLY enjoyed just looking at the picture and thinking about how good it’s going to taste.
We do have a lot of high in fat and high in carbs recipes in the South. I try to cook healthier dishes but sometimes I really want the food I grew up with. 🙂 Let me know how it turns out and how you adjust it.
I love comfort food, this sounds like it is one of those meals that would be perfect when cuddled up in front of the fireplace watching a good movie. I know I should not eat while I watch tv, but some days you just need to relax. I will be making this as soon as the weather cools off a bit.
This looks so good! I come from a Southern family myself and love comfort food!
This is really good, especially with the shredded chicken.
That sounds awfully, awfully good, Pam. I do love me some Southern cooking as well.
Yum! sounds absolutely perfect!
I’m a big fan of casseroles. So easy to make when you’re busy. Thanks for this one!
This recipe sounds absolutely scrumptious!! I am trying this tonight!!
Can’t go wrong with a chicken casserole these days. The cool weather has me making all hot dinners and this one just got added to the list. Thanks!
This recipe is a great way to get my family to sit together and eat dinner – it’s delish!
Love Southern Comfort Food. I’ve tried a similar recipe without the chestnuts – I’ll have to try it with now!
Oh goodness, that looks and sounds AMAZING! I can’t say I’ve ever had tried and true southern cooking, but I definitely look forward to the day I experience it 🙂
Thank you for sharing this great recipe with everyone!
Now that’s what I call comfort food. Yum!
This sounds like a really yummy recipe to have on a cold winter night! I love chicken and I love casseroles, so what’s not to love about this? YUM!
I have been wanting some chicken casserole! I will have to try your recipe out. 🙂
A friend of mine used to make this all the time. It was pretty good!!
Sounds tasty! We like all the ingredients so I am sure this will be a WIN WIN! Pinned
Our family loves anything with chicken and considering this uses Ritz crackers as well, assures me that this is one dish my kids and Hubs will love!
Oh that sounds quite delicious! The combination of ingredients makes my mouth water already.
This seems so easy and sounds delicious. I just emailed the link so I can make it for dinner in the next few weeks. We make chicken in the slow cooker with chicken broth often so we have “shredded” chicken to use in different ways. This is perfect!
This looks delicious. Thanks for the recipe!
Comfort foods are the best! This looks like a rich, satisfying dish, exactly what I’d expect to find in the south. Looking forward to all the great recipes to come! Have a feeling I’m going to have lots of new dishes to add to our favorites here!
I love Southern cooking and looking forward to more recipes like this one. I’m going to try this one out.
This sounds and looks delicious. I’m always on the hunt for new meals so may give this one a try. My kids love chicken and so does hubby.
What a fantastic recipe! I think that anything with creamy chicken is always delicious. 🙂
This looks yummy – I love chicken!
This might just be what I make for our family cook off in January. I never know what to make and this sounds like a winner.
This sounds absolutely delicious! My boys and I love comfort foods and this definitely fits that bill. I will have to bookmark this to make soon!