Our Favorite Chicken Divan

If you were to ask my kids what their favorite dinner was growing up, bets are they would all say the same thing. We called it "Chicken, Broccoli and Rice", but it is known to most as Chicken Divan. There are several ways to make Chicken Divan, the super simple canned soup route or the made from scratch version. It's one of those- adult version or kid version recipes.
My kids love both. When I was in a hurry, I could have dinner on the table in less than 20 minutes start to finish with the canned soup version, but the from scratch version doesn't take much longer, and in my opinion,  tastes waaay better. My favorite way to serve this dish is to bake it in the oven after making the sauce. I love the way the dish tastes when the sauce is spread over the rice and baked for a few minutes. But serving it straight from the stove top works too.
Oh, one more thing. If you're looking for a way to get your kids to eat broccoli, this dish should do the trick.

Our Favorite Chicken Divan aka  Chicken, Broccoli and Rice Dinner
A Bountiful Kitchen
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6-8 cups cooked rice ( I like Pearl or Japanese style rice for this dish)
4-5 cups chopped broccoli
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup flour
1- .49 oz packet chicken flavoring*
1 teaspoon each salt and pepper
4 cups milk (skim)
1 cup mayo (regular or low fat)
4 cups cooked chicken
1 cup milk
1-2 cups grated cheddar cheese

Cook rice, set aside.
Steam broccoli by placing on a plate or non metal pie plate with about 3 tablespoons of water, cover with a damp paper towel and microwave on high for about 3 minutes or until bright green. Remove and set aside.
Melt butter in a large pan over medium heat. Add flour and cook while whisking and butter and flour make a smooth paste. Cook for about 2 minutes. Add one package liquid chicken flavoring and salt and pepper. Slowly add milk to the mixture a little at a time, whisking while adding milk.
Cook until mixture thickens, about 3-4 minutes on medium-medium high heat. Continue whisking.
Add mayo, whisking until smooth. Add broccoli, chicken and cheese. If the mixture is too thick, add an additional cup of milk until desired consistency.
If baking (not necessary) grease a 9x13 pan. Spread cooked rice (it's okay if it is still hot) into the dish. Pour chicken and broccoli mixture over the rice. Bake for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees. Top with additional grated cheese last ten minutes of baking.
If serving without baking all ingredients together, scoop rice onto individual plates and spoon broccoli and chicken mixture over the top of the rice.
Serves about 6

Alternative super quick and easy recipe, aka :

Foster Children's  Favorite Chicken, Broccoli and Rice Dinner

6-8 cups cooked rice
4-5 cups chopped broccoli
4 cups chicken (about 2-3 large chicken breast halves)
2 tablespoon olive or canola oil
salt and pepper
2 can cream of chicken soup regular or low fat
2 cans milk
1 cup mayo light or regular
1-2 tablespoons bottled lemon juice
2 cups grated cheese
more milk to thin, if necessary

Chop broccoli, set aside.
Cut up the chicken and place in a large pan with oil over medium-high heat. Cook until no longer pink, about 3-4 minutes. Add chopped broccoli to chicken in pan, cook until broccoli is bright green (about 3 minutes) . Add salt and pepper. Whisk in the soup, milk, mayo, lemon juice and grated cheese. Continue to cook until smooth and cheese is melted, about 5 minutes.
Serve over top of cooked rice.

Tips:
-*I like to use Swanson brand "Flavor Boost" 100% Natural Concentrated Broth. There are 4 packets to a box. You may also use bullion cubes(2) or other types of chicken flavoring. It is not necessary to use the flavoring in the second recipe, the canned soup has plenty of chicken flavoring.

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