"LAYERED" POTATO CASSEROLE WITH BROCCOLI AND CHICKEN
Layered potatoes, or as we Hungarians call it, "Rakott Krumpli", (good luck pronouncing it), is an extremely popular dish in Hungarian kitchens. Originally, it is made using potatoes, sausages, hard boiled eggs, sometimes some bacon, topped with sour cream. Despite the fact that I love this simple and cheap dish, I decided to try an updated version, perhaps more fitting to the International taste. The reason I also love casseroles is because even though it takes time to usually put it together, while it is baking, you can get rid of all the dishes and the evidence of you ever being in your kitchen. When it is ready, the only thing to do is wipe your plate clean with a nice piece of bread.
Ingredients:
- 2 pounds of red potatoes
- 2 pieces of chicken breast, halved and cut into thin slices (if you like a lot of meat, you can double the amount)
- 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 2-3 garlic cloves minced or finely chopped
- 16 ounces of frozen broccoli, defrosted, excess liquid drained
- 2 cups of whipping cream
- 1 cup of sour cream
- 1 cup of Gruyere cheese
- 2 eggs
- salt & pepper to taste
First, peel and slice the potatoes, place them into a large boiling pan. After water starts boiling, cook potatoes for a couple of minutes more, then drain water. You just want to soften them up a little, not cook potatoes completely. They will spend plenty of time in the oven later on to become tender. In a deeper nonstick skillet, heat olive oil on medium high heat, add chicken pieces, season it with salt and pepper and brown for about 3-4 minutes on each side. Place cooked chicken pieces on a plate and set aside. Using the same pan, add onions and saute for a couple of minutes. You can always top it off with extra olive oil if needed. Add garlic and cook for an additional couple of minutes. Turn heat down to low. In a mixing bowl, mix together sour cream, cream and eggs with a whisk. Pour mixture into skillet and warm it through, do not bring it to a boil.
Add cheese and make sure it melts nicely in cream mixture. Turn the heat off and set it aside. Butter bottom and sides of a 13 by 9 inch glass baking dish. Place a layer of potatoes on the bottom of the glass dish, season it with salt and pepper generously. Next, layer chicken breast slices on top of potatoes. Spread broccoli over chicken, season it with salt and pepper. Pour half of the mixture over broccoli. Finish it with a layer of potatoes and top it with remaining cream mixture. Cover dish with foil and bake for an hour on 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove foil and bake for another 15-20 minutes or until top is nicely brown. Remove glass dish from oven and let it sit for 10 minutes to set. Ready to taste it? Jó étvágyat! (Bon Appetite in Hungarian)
