Poppyseed Chicken or Turkey

Cooking My Way Through Neighborhood Cookbooks

My mom made this recipe every year with the leftover Thanksgiving turkey, so it was a no brainer to try this neighborhood cookbook recipe for Poppy Seed Chicken (or Turkey). One thing I have noticed about neighborhood cookbooks is the instructions can be a little sparce. I must admit if I had not have seen my mom make this before, I would be a little lost.

Start by cutting up some leftover chicken or turkey. I cooked up some boneless, skinless chicken breasts in the Instapot, because I did not have any leftover meat. Even though the recipe says to cut up the chicken I decide to shred it. I had recently heard you can shred chicken quickly with a stand or hand mixture, so I decide to try it out. Wow! That is a game changer – so easy.

The first instructions in the recipe said “Stir ½ crumb mixture into chicken or turkey mixture.” My thought was what is the crumb mixture? and what is the turkey mixture? Luckily I’d seen this made before and knew the crumb mixture was a blend of Ritz crackers, poppy seeds, butter, and dehydrated onion.

After mixing up the crumb mixture place half the crumb mixture, the chicken (or turkey), some sour cream, and cream of chicken soup in a large bowl.

Mix everything together

Put chicken mixture into a casserole dish. The recipe did not indicate the size of the dish, but a 2 quart seems about right.

Top the chicken mixture with the remaining crumb mixture.

Top it with some dried parsley and paprika. (I got a little heavy handed with the paprika in the left bottom corner -- oops.)

Bake at 350 °F for 30 minutes.
 
You can freeze this casserole (before baking) and reheat later. Make a double bath of the recipe, prepare the second casserole in a freezer safe dish, but do not bake. Cover the casserole with aluminum foil, write heating instructions on the top, and freeze.

Nutrition Updates
As a dietitian I like to bump up the nutrient density of recipes. This casserole is high in fat, but a few simple changes can bump up the nutrient density. First eliminate the butter when making the crumb mixture, next use fat free sour cream, and lastly choose low-fat cream of chicken soup. 

Poppy Seed Chicken or Turkey (Updated Recipe)

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2-3 cups cubed or shredded cooked turkey or chicken
1 can low-fat cream of chicken soup
1-1/2 C fat-free sour cream
 
8 oz crushed Ritz crackers
1 tsp dehydrated onion
1 Tbs Poppy Seeds
 
2 Tbs butter, melted
Paprika (optional)
Dried Parsley (optional)
 
Stir soup and sour cream together, gentle fold in chicken. Mix crackers, onion, and poppy seeds in a medium bowl. Stir half the cracker mixture into the chicken mixture.  Place mixture into a 2-quart casserole. Melt butter and stir into remaining cracker mixture. Top casserole with remaining butter crumb mixture. Sprinkle with parsley and paprika if desired. Bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Serves 4-5.

Poppy Seed Chicken or Turkey (Original Recipe)

​2-3 cups cubed cooked turkey or chicken
1 can cream of chicken soup
1-1/2 C sour cream
1 tsp dehydrated onion
8 oz crushed Ritz crackers
1 cube melted margarine
1 Tbs Poppy Seeds
Mix well
 
Stir ½ crumb mixture into chicken or turkey mixture.  Put in casserole dish. Top with remaining crumb mixture. Sprinkle with parsley and paprika. Bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Serves 4-5.