Chicken Tetrazzini

Chicken Tetrazzini is made with creamy béchamel sauce, tender chicken, and pasta, all baked under a crunchy crumb topping. This simple casserole is ready in under an hour or can be made ahead or frozen.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 25

Total Time 40

Servings servings (1 cup each)

Calories 336kcal

Author Meggan Hill

Ingredients

For the topping:

2 slices high-quality sandwich bread lightly toasted (see note 1)
2 tablespoons butter melted

For the casserole:

Salt and freshly ground black pepper (see note 2)
8 ounces spaghetti broken in half (see note 3)
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion finely chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup half and half
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
hot sauce to taste, optional (see note 2)
2 cups cooked chicken chopped or shredded (see note 4)
1 cup frozen peas

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Tear the slices into 2-inch pieces. In a food processor, process the pieces until finely ground. In a small bowl, add bread crumbs and melted butter and toss until evenly coated. Set aside.
Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. In a large pot or Dutch oven, bring 4 quarts water and 1 tablespoon salt to boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, about 7 to 9 minutes. Drain well and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking.
Return the same large pot to medium-high heat and melt butter until foaming. Add onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and thyme until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Stir in flour and cook until golden, stirring constantly, about 1 minute. Whisk in broth and half and half. Bring to a simmer and continue to whisk until sauce thickens, about 1 minute longer.
Remove from heat and whisk in Parmesan cheese. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and hot sauce if desired. Do not skip this step or your casserole may be bland!
To the pot with sauce, add cooked pasta, chicken and frozen peas, and toss to combine. Pour into a 2-quart baking dish and sprinkle with breadcrumb topping.
Bake until the sauce is bubbling and the topping has browned, about 10 to 15 minutes. Cool 5 minutes before serving.

Video

Notes

Bread: Or substitute 1 1/2 cups bread crumbs for the sliced, toasted bread. Combine with the butter as directed in Step 1.
Salt and pepper: If you don't season the sauce before you add back the noodles, your casserole will be bland! Taste the sauce and season it until you love it. Now's a good time to add hot sauce or red pepper flakes if that's your thing.
Spaghetti: Any pasta will do, but I prefer a long-stranded pasta: linguine, or fettuccine, snapped in half while uncooked for easy serving.
Chicken: Leftover rotisserie chicken, grilled chicken from the weekend, or poached chicken, shredded or cut up.
Yield: This recipe makes about 2 quarts of casserole, enough for 8 servings, 1 cup each.
Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Nutrition