Butternut Squash Chicken Rice Bake
This easy and savory dish combines tender chicken, nutty squash, sweet potatoes, wild rice and just a little sweetness from currants. It's more like a baked rice bowl than a typical casserole, and gets eaten quickly!
Servings 5 servings
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked wild rice blend will make 3 cups cooked rice
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 to 1½ pound cooked white meat chicken cubed
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- 1 small butternut squash about 1¼ pounds, peeled and cut into ½ inch cubes
- 1 small sweet potato peeled and cut into cubes, about 1 cup
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme plus 8-10 sprigs for garnish
- ½ cup dried currants
- 1 cup coconut milk I use full-fat organic
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
Instructions
- Cook the rice according to package directions.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat a 9x13-inch baking dish with olive oil and set aside.
- In a deep Dutch oven or pan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat.
- Sauté the onions for 3-5 minutes until they are just tender. Add the garlic and the cubes of squash and sweet potatoes. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the squash and sweet potatoes are just tender when poked with a fork, about 5-6 minutes (may take a couple more minutes at high altitude).
- Stir in the chopped thyme, currants, chicken, cooked rice, coconut milk and nutritional yeast.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes (the higher time at high altitude).
- Garnish with sprigs of fresh thyme and serve warm with a green or vegetable salad.