Traditional Chicken Tetrazzini Recipe

Chicken tetrazzini is a dish that many different cooks have put their own special spin on, and recipe developer Erin Johnson is no exception. She notes that some recipes may take shortcuts with the dish, saying, "A lot of tetrazzini recipes use cream of mushroom or chicken soup," but she prefers to make a white sauce of butter, cream, and Parmesan from scratch, instead. As she explains, she feels this makes her recipe "even easier because you don't have to have [canned soup] on hand."

Chicken tetrazzini is, of course, made with chicken, with Johnson suggesting the rotisserie kind but adding that any leftover cooked chicken will do. You can, however, use a different bird to turn it into the alliterative turkey tetrazzini instead. In such a case, Johnson points out, the recipe would make "a great way to use up Thanksgiving leftovers." Of course, using chicken is the most classic option, so let's dive into this traditional tetrazzini recipe!

The main ingredients of this chicken tetrazzini are noodles (Johnson favors linguine) and shredded cooked chicken cooked in a white sauce made from butter, flour, chicken broth, half and half, and Parmesan cheese. The dish includes a few vegetables, too, these being an onion, some mushrooms, and some frozen peas. It is seasoned with minced garlic, bouquet garni, salt, and pepper and topped off with breadcrumbs.

One ingredient that may cause a little confusion is the bouquet garni. While this term is often used to refer to a bundle of fresh herbs tied with twine, here Johnson is referring to a dried spice blend of the same name. She does say, however, "If you don't have bouquet garni you can use herbes de provence [another seasoning blend] or thyme."

Preheat the oven to 350 F, then boil a large pot of water. Use the water to cook the pasta according to the package directions, stopping when it's just short of al dente as it will soften up more as it bakes. Drain the pasta, then let it sit while you cook the sauce. Johnson notes that you can use different types of noodles in this dish. "I prefer to use linguine," she says, but adds "spaghetti is also very popular." She also tells us there's no need to opt for long, skinny pasta, since any shape will work just fine.

Now, to start on the sauce. First, in an oven-proof skillet, melt 3 tablespoons of butter and add the onions and mushrooms. Allow those to soften, then add in the garlic and cook until fragrant.

With the onions and mushrooms softened and the garlic smelling garlicky, go ahead and stir in the flour, then add the broth and the half and half. Add the bouquet garni, salt, and pepper, then stir in the Parmesan. Cook the sauce for 5 minutes until it thickens.

Stir the chicken and peas into the sauce, then melt the remaining butter and stir it into the breadcrumbs. Sprinkle the buttered crumbs over the chicken tetrazzini, then put the pan in the oven and bake it for 45 minutes. When the chicken tetrazzini is done, it will appear golden brown in color.

If you don't finish the entire pan of chicken tetrazzini in one sitting, Johnson says that leftovers will hold up in the fridge "for up to 3 days."