Crack Chicken Pierogi Casserole is a one-pot meal that combines pasta, cream cheese, chicken, crusty bread, and sausage. It is simple to prepare with most ingredients already in your kitchen.
The sauce is smooth and creamy without added fat or flour. Just combine the cream cheese with egg yolks until well mixed.
Add garlic, onion powder, dry mustard, and salt, then add in chicken broth alternately with chicken broth to thin out the mixture for thicker consistency when needed.
How To Make Crack Chicken Pierogi Casserole?
Crack Chicken Pierogi Casserole is a one-pot meal that combines pasta, cream cheese, chicken, crusty bread, and sausage.
It is simple to prepare with most ingredients already in your kitchen. The sauce is smooth and creamy without added fat or flour. Just combine the cream cheese with egg yolks until well mixed.
Add garlic, onion powder, dry mustard, and salt, then add in chicken broth alternately with chicken broth to thin out the mixture for thicker consistency when needed.
Ingredients:
- 4 oz Sausage (Let cheese mixture set before cooking the sausage)
- 6 tablespoons heavy cream ( you can use milk if you want to make it dairy-free)
- 1/2 of an onion, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
- 1 tablespoon dry mustard (use soy sauce if you want to make it vegan)
- The sauce:
- 8 oz cooked medium shells pasta. (I used whole wheat fusilli pasta)
- 2 ounces cream cheese, softened.
- 4 egg yolks
- 2 cups chicken broth (I used half and half of low sodium chicken broth and water)
- 1 cup cooked, shredded chicken breast
- 1/4 – 1/2 cup milk (to thin out the sauce if necessary)
Directions:
Step 1. Heat a large soup pot to medium heat. Add the chicken sausage and cook until browned. Shred the chicken into bite-size pieces. Add cream cheese, sour cream, garlic powder, and spices to a medium bowl. Mix well until well combined.
Step 2. Add pasta to the pot of sausage and mix in cream cheese mixture. Pour in just enough chicken broth to cover the pasta and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, then reduce heat to low and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes or until most of the liquid has been absorbed by the pasta. Remove from heat and set aside.
Step 3. In a medium bowl, combine the egg yolks with the heavy cream. Whisk until well blended. Add 2 tablespoons of the hot pasta sauce to the yolk mixture and whisk to blend well, then pour back into the pot of pasta.
Pour in chicken broth and stir until well blended over medium heat for 5 minutes or thickened to desired consistency. Remove from heat and add shredded chicken, parmesan cheese and stir until well combined. Serve immediately with crusty crackers if desired.
Step 4. In a medium bowl, mix the egg yolks, chicken broth, milk, and salt and pepper to taste. Add to soup with most of the chicken pieces in the soup. Stir well and cook on medium heat for 5-10 minutes until the sauce has thickened. Remove from heat.
Step 5. Add remaining shredded chicken to pasta and stir through the casserole mixture in the pot.
Nutrition Fact Crack Chicken Pierogi Casserole
Each serving contains 845 calories,
Fat 63 g
Carbs 21 g
Fiber 9 g
Protein 56 grams
Saturated Fat: 16 grams
Carbohydrate: 26 grams
How To Make This Recipe More Delicious?
Overall, this simple and delicious recipe can be made healthier by leaving out the sausage, sour cream, and egg yolks. When making this dish, if you do not have heavy cream in your refrigerator, use milk and add 1 tablespoon of dry mustard to the sauce for a bit of extra flavor.
Also, feel free to make it dairy-free by using vegan cream cheese. When making crack chicken pierogi, you can use 2 oz of smoked sausage or substitute a smoked ham hock for additional flavor.
Note: This recipe is not written in a way considered ‘healthy,’ so any points for portion control would be ignored. The information provided is simply a guideline.
7 Healthy Nutrition of Crack Chicken Pierogi Casserole
1. Low Sugar
Pierogi Casserole has only 4 grams of sugar per serving and 3 grams of sugar if only pasta and chicken. Commercial crackers can contain up to 15 grams of sugar in one serving. The sauce uses heavy cream high in fat and cholesterol (calcium).
2 . High Protein
Crack Chicken Pierogi Casserole is a high-protein dish with over 50 grams of total protein per serving. This is composed of chicken and dairy-free cream cheese, adding flavor and protein. A serving of cream cheese contains 8 grams of protein.
3. High Fiber
Crack Chicken Pierogi Casserole has 25 grams of fiber per serving and 19 grams if only including the pasta and chicken sauce. Twenty-six grams is considered a high fiber meal for this age group (children/adolescents).
4. Low Carb
Crack Chicken Pierogi Casserole has only 9 grams of carbohydrate per serving, not including pasta and sauce. Also, if you only include pasta and chicken, this is a low-carb meal.
5. Low Fat
Crack Chicken Pierogi Casserole has 15 grams of fat in each serving with 11 grams of saturated fat per serving. The chicken can be substituted with extra firm tofu or peas and carrots to lower the fat further.
6. Low Sodium
A serving contains 0 mg of sodium which is low for this age group.
7. High Protein “Fat.”
Crack Chicken Pierogi Casserole is high in fat, with 45 grams of fat per serving and 33 grams of saturated fat per serving. This type of fat can combat inflammation and is considered ‘healthy fats’ without a lot of processing that can lower the number of healthy fats shown in this casserole.
Can I Safe to Freeze This Recipe?
Yes, but you will need to make sure that the sauce and cheese mixture is cooled down before freezing it and only freeze the chicken separately. You may also want to thaw it out in the refrigerator before heating up.
The Bottom Line
This is a healthy recipe that can be made at home. It is very high in protein and fiber, low carb, and low fat. It can be served with many delicious side dishes like crackers or cornbread muffins.
One of the healthier options you can do while making this dish is to use egg whites instead of whole eggs and use less pasta (10 oz).
If you are looking for more recipes made with chicken and low carb, check out Low Carb Chicken Recipes. If you are looking for more casseroles, check out Healthy Crock Pot Casseroles.
If you’re looking to learn how to cook at home, check out our Education Page. And if you’re interested in finding healthy plant-based recipes that don’t require much time or effort, check out Our Plant-Based Recipes Section.
