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My Long-Missed Favorite Dish…is Back!

A couple of years ago I posted a recipe for Chicken Tetrazzini, which was my very favorite meal growing up. The recipe I came up with wasn’t paleo, by any stretch, but it was a heck of a lot cleaner and healthier than the traditional recipes out there. My family loved it, too. Anyway, because it had dairy and grains (noodles), I never ate it. Today, I decided to figure out a way to make a Chicken Tet that was as Paleo as possible, since it is, after all, one my favorite meals!

I am excited to say, it turned out great!! EVERYONE in the family loved it! I was really surprised because they were used to the old kind. When I served the meal, I didn’t tell them it was “Chicken Tetrazzini” since I didn’t want them to have a mental comparison (marketing is everything you know!). But, Alice was quick to say that it tasted exactly like our old Chicken Tet. Yes, perfect! And, because I got everyone’s thumbs up, I was happy!

So, this is as close to Paleo as I could get without sacrificing any of the traditional flavors . I left out the Half-and-Half and noodles (I’m sure you can guess what I used instead of noodles.). And used my homemade mayonnaise  and Greek yogurt to give in a creamy texture. It turns out, even for people who are lactose intolerant, they can usually stomach Greek yogurt once in awhile because of all the good bacteria, which is comprised of live, active cultures that help digest the lactose. And there is less lactose in Greek yogurt than traditional yogurts. I like the Fage brand because it is only pure ingredients and tastes great.

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The recipe also typically calls for Parmesan cheese. I did put some on top, but honestly, it really didn’t need any. For my serving, I just ended up just taking it off. I did use a raw cow’s milk cheese (from Trader Joe’s) which is also easier for our bodies to digest because all of the enzymes are not destroyed like they are in regular cheeses in the pasteurization process. I think it’s a better choice.

If you have any issues or intolerances with dairy, you should still use with caution. I’ll be the guinea pig though and as far as the greek yogurt consumption was concerned, I didn’t have any issues. But with that said, don’t go overboard. Just pay attention to your body and how you feel since we all react to foods differently.

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But I’ll admit, I had a hard time not going overboard on this one. It has been YEARS people! I love my chicken tet!Paleo(ish) Chicken Tetrazzini from Stiritup.me

Ingredients:

  • 1 whole organic chicken (see recipe here) slow cooked or Whole Foods Rotisserie Chicken
  • 1 spaghetti squash
  • 1 cup homemade mayonnaise (recipe here) or Spectrum Olive Oil Mayonnaise
  • 2 tbsp Ghee or Kerrygold butter
  • 2 small 7 oz. containers (like pic above) Greek yogurt
  • 1 package of celery, finely chopped
  • 2 small or 1 large container of fresh mushrooms, chopped
  • 1 medium onion (I used Trader Joe’s onion garlic shallot pack), chopped
  • 1 tbsp celtic sea salt
  • 1 tsp garlic (omit if using TJ onion garlic shallot pack)
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 2 tbsp white cooking wine

I started my slow cooker in the morning so the chicken would be ready to go, and all I had to do was the following…

Preheat your oven to 400F. Cut the spaghetti squash in half, scoop out all of the seeds, and lay each side face down on a cookie sheet. Cook for 20-22 minutes or until you can push on the back and it feels soft. Once it is done, reduce your heat to 350F.

While that is cooking, finely chop celery, mushroom and onions.  Add ghee or butter to pan and sautee onions and garlic until they start to turn brown. Then add mushrooms and celery and cook until soft. Then put them, butter and all, in a very large bowl.

Now, tear apart your chicken and put pieces in the bowl with the veggies. Next, while your spaghetti squash is either still cooking or hopefully cooling by now, make your mayo (or use Spectrum’s) and add that, both containers of the Greek yogurt, white wine, salt and pepper to the bowl and stir it all together.

Next, scoop out all of the spaghetti squash and add it to the bowl and stir so everything is well coated. Then, in a 9×12 Pyrex glass dish or whatever you have, add the mixture, top with parmesean cheese (if you would like) and cook on 350 for 20 minutes. Then, for the last 5, turn the oven to broil and let it get brown on top.

I know it sounds like a few more steps that I typically make it but really wasn’t that bad to do and for me, to have my old favorite dish back, it was so worth it!!! I hope you love it as much as I do!

Oh and I wanted to do a little belated birthday shout out to my son Tate who just turned 6 years old. Hopefully by next year we won’t be counting with our fingers. Sweet little guy…

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  • Anna McDuffie - Hey! How much Greek yogurt? I don’t see it on your ingredient list. Can’t wait to try this one!ReplyCancel

  • landriav - Hey Anna! Thanks asking!! I used 2 small (7oz) containers of Fage yogurt. I hope you like it. 🙂ReplyCancel

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