chicken rice casserole

that doesn't use cans of soup

Ingredients

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
~3/4 cups (170g) uncooked jasmine rice
3 cups (288g) frozen mixed veggies (carrots, corn, peas, and green beans, lima beans)
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup milk (whole, 2%, whatever)
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
4 chicken thighs, deboned, skin on, trimmed (or chicken apple sausage, cut into rounds)
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (4 ounces)

Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat an 11x8-inch baking dish (NOT 9x13) with cooking spray. Place rice then frozen vegetables in the dish. Set aside.
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onion with salt until onion is soft but not browned, 3 to 5 minutes.
Whisk in the flour, and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
Whisk in the chicken broth, breaking up any lumps of flour and onion and scraping browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Whisk in milk and bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until sauce thickens, about 3 minutes.
Add sauce to rice and vegetables in baking dish, and stir to combine.
Season the chicken thighs with the remaining kosher salt and pepper. Set the chicken on top of the rice mixture. Cover the baking dish tightly with aluminum foil.
Bake until the rice is tender and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken registers 160°F, about 1 hour.
Turn the oven off. Uncover and sprinkle with cheese. Return to the still-warm oven uncovered and let sit until the cheese melts, 2 to 4 minutes.

Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days.