Creamy Cheese, Chicken & Vegetable Bake Recipe

This creamy cheese, chicken and vegetable bake is a simple homemade meal.

The great thing about this recipe is that it’s easy to adapt to what ingredients you have to hand: Carrots, parsnips, potatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, peppers, courgette, mushrooms, onions… the list goes on!

For the cheese sauce, you can make this yourself using the recipe and just three ingredients…. or cheat and use a packet mix.

The below numbers will make for 4-6 servings.

How to make Creamy Cheesy Chicken, And Vegetable Bake:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees/180 degrees (fan).
2. Peel, if necessary, and chop up the vegetables you’re using into small bite size pieces.
3. If you’re using root vegetables such as carrots, potatoes, swede or parsnips, boil the pieces in a pan of water for 5 minutes. Everything else can go straight in the oven.
4. Cut up the chicken into bitesize pieces.
5. Add the chicken and vegetables to a baking dish and drizzle with oil. Season well with salt and pepper, dried herbs and garlic powder. Give everything a good mix to ensure it’s coated.
6. Bake for 25 minutes.
7. Meanwhile, make up the cheese sauce: Melt the butter over a medium heat.
8. Add in the flour and whisk for a minute until a smooth paste forms.
9. Gradually whisk in the milk.
10. Keep whisking until the sauce begins to thicken slightly. Season with salt, pepper and optionally a pinch of cayenne pepper.
11. Allow to simmer, stirring regularly for 5 minutes.
12. Remove from the heat and stir in handfuls of grated cheese – as much as you wish! If the sauce becomes too thick, add a little more milk. If it’s too runny, add a little more cheese.
13. Pour over the chicken and vegetables. Optionally top with some breadcrumbs or more grated cheese.
14. Return to the oven for a further 15-20 minutes or until top has started to golden/brown.