Mustard Chicken Quinoa Red Pepper Casserole

Posted on February 15 2018

A one pot, one pan wonder of a comfort food dish that is BURSTING at the seams with FLAVOUR and GOODNESS!  It’s so easy to make from scratch, and it’s incredibly healthy.  Made with a creamy mustard and coconut milk sauce, this Mustard Chicken Quinoa Red Pepper Casserole is a MUST TRY!

GORGEOUSNESS in a casserole dish!!

Did you ever lay eyes on such a pretty casserole?  Me neither.  Casseroles can be pretty, who knew.

Also try my One Pot Mustard Coconut Chicken Skillet with Quinoa, The Best Super Quick Chicken Curry With Sweet Potatoes, my Baked Chicken Barley Kale Stew, my Hearty Black Pepper Mushroom Chickpea Soup, my Cheesy Polenta & Garlic Sautéed Mushrooms, my Healthy Homemade Celery Carrot Chicken Soup, my Sesame Chicken Butternut Barley Salad and my Smashed Chickpea Avocado Chicken Salad.

Especially when they’re made the way this Mustard Chicken Quinoa Red Pepper Casserole is!  From scratch with all healthy ingredients…

First the onion and red pepper are chopped extra fine and sautéed in a little olive oil until tender and super fragrant (red pepper cooking away is a heavenly fragrance!), then all the sauce elements go in…coconut milk, dijon mustard, wholegrain mustard, chicken broth and a little cornflour to thicken it up.

About a minute simmering on the hot plate and this sauce is thickening up nicely!  Now the quinoa is stirred in.  The chicken pieces are arranged on the bottom of your baking dish and the thick, creamy dreamy (yet dairy free, fyi) mustardy, red-pepper-infused sauce *(YUUUUM)* is poured over.  This gets baked until the chicken and quinoa are cooked and the sauce is super thick and silky smooth.

Can you smell it?  Can you taste the amazing, delicious flavours???

Now the broccoli florets are stirred in, a little grated cheese goes on (optional, not really), and the casserole gets baked for another 5 minutes or so until it’s golden, the white cheddar cheese is melted and everything is perfectly cooked.

Honestly, seriously, no jokes, this Mustard Chicken Quinoa Red Pepper Casserole is one of my All Time Favourite things that I have ever made!  It combines everything I love, gorgeous flavours, healthy goodness, and a really simple, straight forward recipe!

 Here’s why this Mustard Chicken Quinoa Red Pepper Casserole is so healthy:

• Quinoa is highly regarded as a super food and for good reason, it contains every essential amino acid, which makes it a complete protein. It’s gluten free and is very high in fibre, B Vitamins, iron, potassium, calcium, Vitamin E and several antioxidants.
• Red peppers are extremely high in Vitamin C and vitamin A, they also contain fibre, and they help to maintain glowing, healthy skin.
• Broccoli is a great source of vitamins, fibre, potassium, antioxidants and collagen which helps to build tissue and bone, and helps cuts and wounds heal.
• Coconut milk contains Lauric acid which is converted in the body into a highly beneficial compound called monolaurin, an antiviral, anti-fungal and antibacterial that destroys a wide variety of disease causing organisms.

That’s a LOT of good stuff right there.

Basically there is no reason I can think of for you not to try this amazing, lovely to look at, Super Tasty, baked from scratch by yours truly (that’s YOU!  Totally claim it as your own) Mustard Chicken Quinoa Red Pepper Casserole!

Please, please try it soon, I want you to love it like I do, and I want to hear from you!  Tell me what you think of this recipe in the comments.

5 from 1 vote

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Mustard Chicken Quinoa Red Pepper Casserole

Prep Time

25 mins

Cook Time

55 mins

Total Time

1 hr 20 mins

 

A one pot, one pan wonder of a comfort food dish that is BURSTING at the seams with FLAVOUR and GOODNESS! It’s so easy to make from scratch, and it’s incredibly healthy.

Course: Main Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Chicken casserole, easy, Healthy, Quinoa

Servings: 6

Calories: 476 kcal

Author: Berry Sweet Life

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 brown onion , very finely chopped
• 1 red pepper , very finely chopped
• 1 1/4 cups coconut milk
• 2 tbsp cornflour , heaped, dissolved in a little cold water
• 1 cup chicken broth , low sodium
• 2 tsp wholegrain mustard
• 2 tsp dijon mustard
• 1 cup quinoa , rinsed
• 420g chicken breasts sliced into 1 inch pieces
• 1 small head broccoli ,sliced into florets
• 1/2 cup white cheddar ,grated

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) and generously grease a casserole dish with olive oil.

2. In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil and fry the onion and red pepper until tender. Stir in the coconut milk, cornflour mixture, chicken broth, wholegrain mustard, dijon mustard and simmer until the sauce starts to thicken. Take the sauce off the heat and stir in the quinoa. 

3. Place the chicken pieces in the greased casserole dish and pour over the  coconut milk mixture. Bake for about 50 minutes until the quinoa and chicken are cooked.

4. While the casserole bakes, place the broccoli florets in a bowl, cover with boiling water and leave for 1 minute. Then drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking (they should be bright green!), set aside. 

5. Once the chicken and quinoa are cooked through, stir the casserole with a wooden spoon, stir in the broccoli florets and top with the grated cheese. Bake for another 5 - 8 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the broccoli is cooked to your liking.

Recipe Notes

Served with a side dish of some kind this casserole will serve 6 people, and served on it’s own (coz it really is a complete meal) it’s more likely to serve 4 - 5 people.