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    $5 Dinners | Budget Recipes, Meal Plans, Freezer Meals

    Budget Recipes, Meal Plans, Freezer Meals and Cooking Tutorials for the Busy Home Chef

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    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Dinner

    January 7, 2015 by Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom 5 Comments

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    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Dinner | 5DollarDinners.com

    So this is seriously, slamming delicious. Like, gourmet restaurant delicious.

    I’m not sure if it’s the homemade ‘cream of mushroom’ sauce {photo tutorial below} or the homemade ranch dressing mix. It’s probably the combination of the ranch and mushroom flavors, all cream-ified together.

    Whatever it is, it’s slamming delicious.

    Like Ka-Bam. Slam. Jam. Delicious.

    My husband has become quite used to my ‘so what do you think?’ questions when I put a new dish in front of him. He’s a pretty low key kinda guy and an ‘it’s good’ generally means that he loves it and I can always tell by how quickly he polishes his plate and if he asks for seconds and thirds. Well, with this dish I received the following response: “This is outstanding.” Similar sentiment as when I asked him what he thought about the Slow Cooker version of this meal. He loved that one too.

    I don’t eat too many meals with dairy included, but I took a chance on this one and enjoyed a bowl full anyways! I snarfed a bowl down in a matter of minutes. I was not on my best behavior eating this and did a terrible job of displaying proper manners to the boys. I might have even licked the bowl. {hehe}

    Erin, get serious! I’m sharing this recipe as a photo tutorial…just to give you a sense of what happens when making a homemade ‘cream of’ soup, in the event that you’ve never tried and want to give it a whirl! (If you scroll through fast enough, it might turn into a video!)

    Alright, it goes a little somethin’ like this….

    “Tag Team back again, check and direct and let’s begin…Party on, party people, let me hear some noise
    DC’s in the house jump, jump, rejoice…There’s a party over here, a party over there, Wave your hands in the air, shake your derier…These three words when you’re gettin’ busy, Whoomp there it is…”

    Oh.my.word. Sorry!

    I don’t even know where that came from, and I’m slightly concerned about the fact that I can remember lyrics from 90’s hip-hop music. But I have to set reminders in my calendar to stop working to go pick up my kids from school. {Please tell me I’m not the only one with this problem!}

    If that song gets stuck in your head, I’m doubly sorry. I truly am. But I guess if it pops into your head later in the week, just do a little 90’s dance move (#rogerrabbit #runningman) and smile and remember the yesteryears. 🙂

    Clearly, I should not be allowed to write blog posts after 9 pm.

    Ok, really now…

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Dinner

    Melt butter.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    Add flour.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    Whisk.

    Whisk. Into a paste.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    A very bubbly paste.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    Quickly whisk in the milk, so no clumps form.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    It will become smooth and thicken as it heats.

    Medium to medium low heat.

    You don’t want to burn the sauce.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    Drop in mushrooms.

    Or onions.

    And/or garlic. Fresh garlic.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    Let them cook up and bubble in the sauce for a few minutes.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    Add in the homemade ranch dressing mix spices.

    Or a packet, if you wish.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    Add bite size pieces of chicken.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    Stir them into the sauce to cook.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    Cover and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until chicken has cooked through.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    Uncover and simmer a couple more minutes to let the sauce reduce and thicken more.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    Stir in the cream cheese cubes and let it melt into the sauce. Stirring a few times over a few minutes.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    Add the frozen veggies.

    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Recipe

    Stir them in and let simmer for another few minutes to warm and soften them up.

    Your creamy ranch chicken (with vegetables) sauce is ready to serve over rice or pasta!

    Gluten-Free Modifications: Use GF flour or blend in place of the flour when making the white sauce.

    Dairy-Free Modifications: Use rice milk in place of the regular milk. Omit the cream cheese, it will still be creamy and tasty without it!

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    Creamy Ranch Chicken Skillet Dinner

    Seriously delicious. Like, gourmet restaurant delicious!
    Prep Time20 minutes
    Cook Time20 minutes
    Servings - 4 servings

    Ingredients 

    • 4 Tbsp butter
    • 4 Tbsp flour (GF flour if GF)
    • 3 cups milk
    • 4 oz fresh mushrooms chopped
    • 2 Tbsp parsley
    • 1 tsp dill
    • 1 tsp onion powder
    • 1 tsp garlic powder
    • 1/2 tsp basil
    • Salt and pepper, to taste
    • 2 chicken breasts about 1 lb, diced
    • 4 oz cream cheese cut into small cubes
    • 12 oz frozen mediterranean blend veggies
    • 1 1/2 cup white rice (pasta would work too!)

    Instructions

    • Cook the rice or pasta, as directed.
    • Prepare the white sauce in the skillet. Melt the butter and then whisk in the flour to form a paste. Whisk in the milk and let thicken over medium/medium-low heat. Stir in the mushrooms and let cook for a few minutes. Pull out the spices (or packet) and add them into the sauce and let simmer for a few minutes.
    • Stir in the diced chicken pieces and cover and let cook for 10 minutes, or until chicken has cooked through.
    • Stir in the cream cheese cubes and let them melt into the sauce. Once the sauce is creamy, add the frozen veggies and let them simmer for a few minutes to soften and warm up.
    • Serve Creamy Ranch Chicken sauce over rice or pasta.

    See more $5 Dinners Popular Recipes here

    90 shares
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    Filed Under: Budget Friendly Recipes, Chicken Recipes, Homemade Recipes, Skillet Dinner Recipes Tagged With: 31 Days of Skillet Dinners, popular recipes

    Comments

    1. Jim Cser says

      January 11, 2015 at 9:38 pm

      Tried this tonight, Everyone loved it, this is definitely a keeper

      Reply
      • Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom says

        January 12, 2015 at 11:11 am

        Glad you enjoyed it Jim!!!

        Reply
    2. Stacey says

      January 29, 2015 at 8:43 pm

      This was the first recipe of yours we tried….LOVED IT!

      Reply
    3. Eden says

      March 20, 2015 at 9:09 am

      Are all of your meals only 5 dollars?

      Reply
    4. Mindy says

      February 19, 2017 at 4:12 pm

      Looking forward to trying this. Just finished the Birds Eye version, and while it is delicious…holy expensive!!!! Where can I find the slow cooker version you mentioned?

      Reply

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    I’m Erin Chase…

    Also known as the
    $5 Dinner Mom.

    I have a little problem. I cannot make a meal that costs more than $5.
    It’s a fun challenge,
    and my pocketbook
    thanks me.
    Want to join me?

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