Broccoli Rice Casserole

1. 1

   Preheat your oven to 350 °F. Grease a 9x13 baking pan and set aside.

Blanching the Broccoli

1. 2

   To blanch the broccoli, place the broccoli in a lidded microwave-safe casserole dish, pour in 1 cup of water, and cook for 3-4 minutes, until the broccoli starts to become tender. Remove and drain the water completely and set aside.

   3 min

Cheese Sauce

1. 3

   Place the butter and garlic in a large saucepan over medium heat. Melt the butter and cook the garlic in it for 2 minutes.

   2 min
2. 4

   Add your flour and cook it for about two minutes, stirring continuously until it starts to smell like cooked pie crust.

3. 5

   Dissolve the chicken bouillon into the milk, then slowly pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture, whisking rapidly to ensure that there are no lumps.

4. 6

   Cook this mixture for about 8 to ten minutes until the mixture has reached a gentle simmer and thickened up.

5. 7

   Add in the cheese and onion powder. Cook, stirring constantly until the cheese has melted in.

6. 8

   Taste and add more salt and pepper as needed.

7. 9

   Once ready, remove from the heat and stir in the blanched broccoli and rice until everything is combined completely.

8. 10

   In a small bowl, combine the panko crumbs, melted butter, Parmesan cheese, and paprika. Sprinkle the shredded cheese over top of the casserole, then sprinkle the Panko mixture over the top of the cheese.

9. 11

   Bake in the preheated oven until bubbly and golden brown, about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.

   30 min