Loaded Chicken and Potatoes

 

This is SO good. It takes a little time to prepare and cook, so you do have to plan ahead, but it's worth it and it makes great leftovers. Bacon, cheese, chicken, potatoes, and ranch dressing. What's not to like?






1/3 cup olive oil
1-1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp paprika
2 Tbsp garlic powder
2 Tbsp hot sauce or vinegar
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts
6-8 medium red potatoes
2 cups fiesta blend cheese
1 cup bacon crumbles
1 cup diced green onion (optional)
Ranch dressing

In a large bowl, combine the olive oil, spices, and hot sauce or vinegar until thoroughly mixed. I'm not big on spicy foods, so I just use vinegar. If you like it spicy, use hot sauce (which has vinegar in it). You're basically making a salad dressing with oil and vinegar and spices.

Cut the chicken breasts into roughly 1" cubes. Cut the potatoes into 1/2" cubes (they can be longer than 1/2", but shouldn't be too thick). Stir the chicken and potato pieces into the oil and spice mixture until all pieces are well-coated.

Pour into a 13" x 9" baking pan or large casserole dish. (In these pictures, I actually did a recipe and a half and put it all in a 15" x 11" baking pan. It works just as well, but it might need a few extra minutes in the oven.)

Bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour or until the potatoes are tender and the chicken is done. You may want to stir it a couple of times during cooking to be sure it all gets evenly done.

While the chicken and potatoes are in the oven, cook about 1/2 a pound of bacon until it starts to get crispy. Cool and crumble into pieces.

When the chicken and potatoes are done, top with bacon, then with fiesta cheese, then green onions (if you want them). Put the dish back in the oven for a minute or two to melt the cheese.

Serve with ranch dressing (or sour cream, but ranch dressing is way better). Enjoy!