Teriyaki Chicken and Rice Casserole

I feel like, if I ever met Yoda, he would say, 

"The love for Asian food, strong in this one is...Aaaauuummmm!"

Haha, how nerdy am I, right?! 

But for real, as I have mentioned before, I am half Korean so I have a natural love for Asian foodage! I love sushi, bulgogi, kimbap, all things rice, black pepper chicken, general tso's chicken...man, the list goes on for days I tell ya'! 

This Teriyaki Chicken and Rice casserole that I made tonight was SO stinkin' easy that the ease of making it alone, was enough to make me want to add it to our meal plan! And on top of this being so easy-peasy, the taste was phenomenal and this is actually pretty cheap to make! I have had a lot of teriyaki dishes in my day, usually I just buy the sauce instead of going the homemade route, but the sauce in the recipe has to be hands-down THE BEST teriyaki sauce that I have ever made! And the fact that this dish has all these veggies makes it even more of a plus! Mr.Hooah loved that it had actual pineapple in it as well! We with that being said, we're definitely sold on this one! I added this from EmilyBites of course, and as always, it did not disappoint! It is also great as leftovers the next day! By the way, this recipe along with all of her other recipes, are WeightWatcher friendly! It is healthier than take-out and you can honestly customize it any way you please; Different veggies, etc... It is healthier and filling, we absolutely LOVED this one! 

SHOUT OUT: 
Thanks Emily, though you probably do not even know me from Adam, for making your recipes and blog so awesome that I am always cooking something new and delicious! :)

-XO
 

Teriyaki Chicken and Rice Casserole

¾ c. low-sodium soy sauce
½ c. water
1/3 c. packed brown sugar
1 TBSP. honey
¾ tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. EVOO
½ tsp. garlic, minced
2 TBSP. corn starch
2 TBSP. water
1½ lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts
32oz. frozen mixed vegetables (look for the un-sauced stir fry or Asian varieties)
1 c. drained canned pineapple tidbits or chunks (packed in juice or with no added sugar)
3 c. cooked brown rice

• Pre-heat the oven to 350.
• Combine the soy sauce, the ½ cup water, the brown sugar, honey, ginger, olive oil and garlic in a small saucepan and cover. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove lid and cook for one minute once boiling.
• While waiting for the sauce to come to a boil, stir together the corn starch and 2 tablespoons of water in a separate dish until smooth to form a slurry. Once the sauce is boiling, add the slurry to the saucepan and stir in to combine. Cook for another minute until the sauce starts to thicken and then remove from heat.
• Lay the raw chicken breasts flat in a 9×13 casserole dish and pour about a cup of the sauce over top of the chicken. Place the chicken in the oven and cook for 30-35 minutes until breasts are cooked through*. Remove the dish from the oven and shred the chicken right in the dish using two forks.

***While the chicken is cooking, steam or cook your frozen vegetables according to package directions.***

• When the chicken is shredded and the vegetables are cooked, add the vegetables, pineapple and rice to the casserole dish with the chicken. Add most of the remaining sauce, reserving a bit to drizzle over the top when finished. Stir everything together in the casserole dish until well combined. Return the dish to the oven and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, drizzle with the remaining sauce and serve.