I am just amazed thinking about how my mom made so many dishes every single day for so many people. In Bangladesh, it is common and expected to have 3 to 5 items for dinner which goes well over rice. Breakfast and lunch are also home-cooked with different items.

I like to cook elaborate meals from time to time, but not every day. Today, I am going to share one of my down-day meals, which takes little time and is full of flavor. This is my signature chicken noodle casserole; one of the easiest American comfort food recipes. My family absolutely loves it.

I start with a store-bought roast chicken, which cuts down the cooking time tremendously. There are so many varieties of roast chicken in our regular supermarket, but I like the lemon pepper flavored one the most. Feel free to use whatever is available, or what you prefer!

I take out the meat from the roast chicken and dice them, using the leftover bones and skins to make chicken stock. I have a couple of chicken stock recipes here on this website, which I encourage you to check out!

Classic chicken noodle casserole is generally made with egg noodles. However, I enjoy using rotini pasta as it holds its shape better. Of course, you can use your favorite ones. I also use canned cream of chicken soup. You can substitute mushroom or celery soup if you prefer!

Ingredients

Casserole

• 8 oz. rotini pasta (2 cups dry)
• 1 10.5 oz. can cream of chicken soup
• 1 cup thawed peas and carrots (from a frozen bag)
• 3 cups cooked chicken, diced (from a rotisserie chicken)
• 1 cup shredded med. sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup mayo
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp. granulated chicken base

Topping

• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• 1 tbsp. finely chopped parsley

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease an 10×10 inch round baking dish with non-stick cooking spray, then set aside.

Cook pasta according to the package directions. Add a couple tablespoons of oil and 1/2 tbsp. salt to the pasta boiling water before you add the pasta. This ensures the pasta does not stick to each other.

Drain the pasta and place it in a large mixing bowl, adding rest of the casserole ingredient to the pasta. Mix well, then set it aside while you make the crunchy topping.

Add the panko bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, and parsley to the melted butter. Mix well.

Then, sprinkle half a cup of panko mixture over the bottom of the greased baking dish.

Pour the chicken noodle mixture over the panko bread crumb mixture. Spread chicken mixture well. Then sprinkle the rest of the panko mixture all over the chicken noodle mixture.

Bake uncovered for about 25 to 30 minutes until bubbly and top is golden brown.

Serves 6

Did you make this dish? I’d love to know how it turns out! Feel free to like this post and comment or use the hashtag #globaldinein on Instagram. If you would to be notified of upcoming posts, please consider subscribing to my blog!