Eleven ingredients and under an hour, using a skillet, a saucepan and one baking dish.
There is no crumb on this casserole. The browned surface is the Swiss cheese itself, melted and taken a little further in the oven.
Why This Recipe Works
- Searing the chicken briefly gives colour while leaving the cooking to the oven.
- A flour-and-butter base thickens the milk into a sauce that clings to the chicken.
- Dijon cuts through the milk and the ham, which are both mild on their own.
- Diced cooked ham only needs heating, so it can go in raw to the dish.
- Swiss shredded over the top browns in patches without any crumb to help it.
How to Make It
Oven at 375°F, a 2-quart dish greased
Heat the oven to 375°F and lightly grease a 2-quart baking dish.
Chicken seasoned and seared briefly, not cooked through
Season the chicken with the salt and pepper and sear briefly in a skillet until lightly browned but not fully cooked.
Butter, flour, milk and broth simmered, then Dijon in
Melt the butter, whisk in the flour, then slowly whisk in the milk and broth. Simmer until thick enough to coat a spoon and stir in the Dijon.
Chicken and ham combined, sauce poured over
Combine the chicken and diced ham in the baking dish and pour the cream sauce over them.
Swiss on top, baked until 165°F and browned
Cover with the Swiss cheese and bake 25 to 30 minutes, until the chicken reaches 165°F and the cheese is melted and browned. Finish with the parsley.
The Sauce Is the Cordon Bleu Part
A cordon bleu is chicken, ham and Swiss - usually rolled and crumbed. In a casserole there is no crumb to carry it: NO BREADCRUMB OR CRACKER TOPPING IS USED. So the Dijon cream sauce is what holds the identity together.
The roux
2 tbsp UNSALTED BUTTER and 2 tbsp ALL-PURPOSE FLOUR
Melted and whisked together first. Without it the milk would stay thin and run off the chicken instead of coating it.
The liquid
Until it coats a spoon1 1/2 cups MILK and 1/2 cup CHICKEN BROTH
SLOWLY WHISKED IN and SIMMERED UNTIL THICK ENOUGH TO COAT A SPOON. Slowly is the whole technique - poured in at once it goes lumpy.
The sharpener
1 tsp DIJON MUSTARD
STIRRED IN at the end. One teaspoon against a cup and a half of milk, which is enough to cut the richness without tasting of mustard.
The two meats
1 1/2 lb CHICKEN BREAST in 1-INCH PIECES, SEARED BRIEFLY UNTIL LIGHTLY BROWNED BUT NOT FULLY COOKED, and 8 oz DICED COOKED HAM
COMBINED IN THE DISH with the sauce POURED OVER THEM. One is raw and finishes in the oven; the other is cooked and only heats through - the whole safety picture in a sentence.
The cheese
25 to 30 minutes at 375°F6 oz SHREDDED SWISS CHEESE
COVERING the dish, then BAKED 25 TO 30 MINUTES UNTIL THE CHICKEN REACHES 165°F AND THE CHEESE IS MELTED AND BROWNED. Swiss is the pale cheese this recipe uses.
Then tasteFINISHED WITH 2 tbsp CHOPPED PARSLEY and served straight from the fluted dish.
Ingredient Notes
- Cooked ham, diced
- Eight ounces. Already cooked, so it goes into the dish to be heated through rather than browned.
- Swiss cheese
- Six ounces shredded. It is the pale cheese browning on top.
- Dijon mustard
- A teaspoon stirred into the finished sauce - the sharpness a cordon bleu needs.
- Milk and chicken broth
- A cup and a half with half a cup, whisked in slowly so the sauce stays smooth.
Success Tips
- Add the milk gradually to the flour and butter, whisking, or the sauce will stay lumpy.
- Cut the chicken into even inch pieces so they finish together in the oven.
- Check the temperature in a piece from the centre of the dish, under the cheese.
Serving Ideas
Six servings spooned from the dish, chicken and pink ham in a pale Dijon cream sauce under melted, browned Swiss, scattered with parsley.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the breadcrumb topping?
There isn't one. This version browns the Swiss cheese instead, which is what the photograph shows.
Does the ham need cooking?
No. It is already cooked and simply heats through in the casserole.
How do I know the chicken is done?
It reaches 165°F in the dish, after 25 to 30 minutes. The brief sear at the start does not cook it through.
