King Ranch Chicken Casserole

True comfort food - warm, gooey, cheesy and a little spicey from the green chili. It travels well and even freezes well. What's not to like?
From an old issue of Southern Living

Makes 8-10 Servings

1 (4 1/2 - 5 lb.) whole chicken (I used a rotisserie to save time)
2 celery ribs, cut into 3 pieces each (for cooking chicken, not needed for rotisserie)
2 carrots, cut into 3 pieces each (for cooking chicken)
2 1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium sized pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, pressed
1 (10 3/4 oz. ) can cream of mushroom soup
1 (10 3/4 oz.) can cream of chicken soup
2 (10 oz.) cands diced tomatoes and green chilies, drained
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. Mexican chili powder ( or tsp. chili powder + 1/8 tsp. cayenne)
3 cups grated sharp Cheddar cheese
12 (6 in.) corn tortillas, cut into 1/2 inch strips OR 3 cups coarsely crumbled lime flavored white tortilla chips
3/4 cup chicken broth (only if using Rotisserie chicken)

1. Place cleaned chicken, celery, carrots and salt in a large Dutch oven with water to cover. Bring to boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer 50-60 minutes or until chicken is done. Remove from the heat. Remove chicken from broth and cool 30 minutes. Remove and reserve 3/4 cup cooking liquid. Strain remaining liquid and reserve for later use.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter in large skillet over medium high heat. Add onion, and saute 6-7 minutes or until tender. Add bell pepper and garlic and saute 3-4 minutes. Stir in 3/4 cup reserved cooking liquid or chicken broth, cream of mushroom soup and next 5 ingredients. Cook, stirring occasionally, 8 minutes.
3. Skin and bone chicken; shred meat into bite-size pieces, or do same for rotisserie style chicken. Layer half of chcken in a lightly greased 13 X 9 inch casserole dish. Top with half of soup mixture and 1 cup Cheddar cheese. Cover with half of corn tortilla strips or tortilla chips (for quicker version). Repeat layers once. Top with remaining 1 cup of cheese.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes to 1 hour or until hot and bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.