Tomato Mustard Sauce: Dairy Free Chicken Casserole
This Dairy Free Chicken Casserole is a cozy dish made with bite sized chicken, sweet potatoes, and carrots. It is topped in a rich savory tomato, mustard, and coconut cream sauce. Naturally Paleo, Whole30, and Gluten-free.
Looking for a lighter flavorful comfort-food casserole? This dairy-free gluten-free chicken casserole is our go-to on nights where we want a warm, yummy, simple-to-make casserole. It is filled with potatoes, chicken and carrots. And our favorite part is the tomato, mustard, coconut cream sauce that it cooks in.
We love serving this dish with rice and a lemon salad or lemon asparagus on the side. Since the sauce is so tasty, it is great to serve it on top of something that soaks it up.
Why this recipe works
- It is simple to put together.
- It has carrots and sweet potatoes inside.
- It is naturally Paleo, Whole30, Gluten-free, Dairy-free, and Grain-free.
- The sauce is creamy and satisfying! It is sweet from the tomato paste, spicy from the mustard and those flavors are then balanced out by the coconut cream, which adds a nice creaminess.
Recipe ingredients
- Garlic and onion– This seasons the sauce and the dish.
- Carrots and sweet potatoes– these veggies add texture and sweetness to the dish, along with fiber.
- Chicken– chicken breast is cut into bite sized pieces for this dish to add protein.
- Tomato paste– this adds a nice tomato taste to the sauce.
- Dijon mustard– this adds some spice but not too much to the sauce.
- Coconut cream– this makes the base of the dairy-free sauce. Make sure to use a brand that you like the taste of. Savoy coconut cream is creamy and doesn’t taste too much like coconut.
- Thyme– this flavors the whole dish nicely.
See recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
Additions/ Substitutions
- Instead of coconut cream, you can use a non-dairy creamer. You can also use heavy cream. This adds dairy to the dish, but works well.
- Instead of carrots and sweet potatoes, you can use regular potatoes and butternut squash.
- Instead of mustard, you can use hot sauce or horseradish.
Try this dairy-free chicken casserole by Fit as a Mama Bear for a yummy bacon filled option.
Step by step instructions
Step 1
Step 1: Sauté the shallot and garlic in a pan.
Step 2
Step 2: Cook the carrots and sweet potatoes with the onion and garlic.
Step 3
Step 3: Add diced chicken and spices to the pan and cook for a few minutes.
Step 4
Step 4: Add coconut cream, mustard, and tomato paste to the pan and mix.
Step 5
Step 5: Pour everything into a casserole.
Step 6
Step 6: Bake!
Expert tips
- Make sure the carrots and sweet potatoes are sliced thin. If they are too thick, they won’t cook through in the allotted time.
- It is so important to like the taste of your coconut cream. This affects the whole flavor of the whole dish. We personally do not like tasting too much coconut which is why we love Savoy coconut cream.
- Make sure to cut the chicken breast into bite sized pieces, so that eating the dish is easier.
Prep 15 minutesCook 30 minutesTotal 45 minutesMakes 6 people
Ingredients
- 1 Tbs olive oil
- 1/2 cup diced white onion, ( this was one 1 small onion for us )
- 4-5 cloves garlic,, diced
- 1.5 cups sliced carrots, (sliced thin, this was 2 large carrots for us)
- 2 cups sweet potatoes, (thinly sliced and quartered, this was one large sweet potato for us)
- 2 Tablespoons water
- 2 lbs chicken breast,, cut into bite sized chunks
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
- 1 cup canned coconut cream, ( Savoy tastes great and has no preservatives in it )
Method
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- In a large pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced onion and garlic, mix and cook for 2-3 minutes, until fragrant. Add the carrots and sweet potatoes, and cook for 3-4 minutes, mixing often. Add 2 Tablespoons of water and continue cooking for 3-4 minutes, mixing often. Add the chicken, thyme, salt and pepper to the pan. Cook the chicken for about 3 minutes, mixing every so often. Turn the heat off.
- Then, add the tomato paste, dijon mustard, and coconut cream to the pan. Mix well. Pour everything into a 9 x 9 inch baking dish. Cook for 30 minutes.
- Serve and top with the sauce from the baking dish.
Notes
- Instead of coconut cream, you can use a non-dairy creamer. You can also use heavy cream. This adds dairy to the dish, but works well.
- Instead of carrots and sweet potatoes, you can use regular potatoes and butternut squash.
- Instead of mustard, you can use hot sauce or horseradish.
