A from-scratch creamy chicken sauce served over rice and piled with delicious toppings in these Hawaiian haystacks made without cream of chicken soup.
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While I was writing this post, my daughter was removing all the spices from my spice cabinet. She loves to play pretend with them. Then all of a sudden I heard a very unique sound. It sounded kind of like a rain stick. I turned around just as she finished emptying an entire bottle of mustard seeds all over my living room floor. Yeah I’m pretty sure I’ll be cleaning those up for months. Slick itty-bitty roly-poly fellas.
Anyway. What’s new with you?
What are Hawaiian Haystacks?
Have you ever heard of a Hawaiian haystack? I honestly don’t know how widespread that term is in the outside world, but we would have these in our family ALL the time when we were growing up.
The chicken sauce we used was always some variation of canned cream of chicken soup mixed with milk. It was served over rice (white or brown – you pick). And then piled high with toppings that you can change up to your heart’s content.
In my quest to minimize the processed ingredients that my family consumes and become more conscious what the ingredients are, I decided to improve the sauce to my own from-scratch version in this well-beloved family meal.
I say well-beloved because Hawaiian haystacks are probably about as kid-friendly as you can get as far as delicious family meals go.
I don’t know about you, but my kids absolutely love meals where all the ingredients are separated and you just pile them on your plate in whatever order or chaotic fashion that you want.
No rules about how you pile the haystack. You can separate everything out and make sure nothing touches and contaminates anything. Oh boy. Kid-friendliness– I tell ya. This is where it’s at.
This meal is so easy and so good. And so much improved in taste with the from-scratch sauce. I can hardly even stomach the traditional version anymore after having this amazingly delicious creamy chicken sauce.
We usually make our haystacks with brown rice to add a little more fiber and nutrition to our diet. My favorite is to cook the brown rice in the electric pressure cooker (i.e. Instant Pot if that’s the brand you have). Cooking it in the pressure cooker makes the brown rice puff up soft and yummy.
How to cook brown rice in an electric pressure cooker
To cook the brown rice in the electric pressure cooker is easy. I use a ratio of 3:5 for brown rice – that’s 3 parts rice to 5 parts water. Add the water and rice to the pressure cooker pot, add a bit of salt or this homemade chicken bouillon substitute if you want. I usually add about ½ teaspoon of salt or chicken bouillon substitute for every cup of water. Then let it cook on high pressure for 21 minutes. Do a quick release of the pressure (or slow if you have time to wait) and then…
Wallah!
The best brown rice ever.
How to cook white rice in an electric pressure cooker
If you prefer white rice or are running out of time, it cooks in only 6 minutes on high pressure with a 3:5 ratio of rice to water in the electric pressure cooker. So easy and fast. And so good.
Some tips & tricks about the recipe
Sometimes if I’m feeling extra ambitious I will double this sauce when I make it and freeze half (it freezes great) and then I have a really quick meal for another day. Not that it’s not already fast. Seriously, as long as you have cooked chicken on hand, this is one of the fastest meals ever.
If you don’t have cooked chicken on hand, my favorite way to cook it is also in the pressure cooker. I like to cook it straight from boneless skinless breasts that I’ve individually frozen. That way I don’t have to remember to unthaw anything (yeah this is totally the lazy girl’s approach). Just pile the frozen breasts in the pressure cooker pot below the fill line, add about 1 to 1 ½ cups of water, and lock the lid in place. Cook on high pressure for 21 minutes for large breasts. Note that smaller breasts will not take as long.
Sometimes meats will toughen a bit when you do a quick pressure release so I always let them release naturally for at least part of the time. I know it’s kind of a pain to wait for the pressure to release if you’re in a hurry so cooking the chicken ahead of time is always preferred. Even letting it release for just 10 minutes naturally and then doing a quick release the rest of the time should be good. The chicken comes out tender and juicy. Just perfect.
Now that I’ve given you all the background tips you need, you’re all set to make this delicious, quick, and easy dinner that your whole family will love.
Hawaiian Haystacks
A from-scratch creamy chicken sauce served over rice and piled with delicious toppings.
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter
- ½ cup all purpose flour see note
- 1 ½ teaspoon chicken bouillon see note
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 cups milk
- 2 cups cooked chopped chicken
- ¾ cups sour cream see note
- salt and pepper to taste
- 6 cups cooked white or brown rice see note
- toppings: grated cheese, cooked peas, crushed pineapple, chopped orange bell pepper, chow mein noodles see note for more ideas
Instructions
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In a medium saucepan melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour, bouillon, and pepper, and stir with a whisk to combine.
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Heat for a few minutes stirring constantly to remove starches from the flour and develop the sauce’s flavor. Then add milk and stir to combine. Heat until sauce is thick and bubbly. Add the chopped chicken and stir to combine. Then add the sour cream and heat until sauce is bubbly, stirring often. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Keep warm until ready to serve. Add a bit more milk before serving if it gets too thick.
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Prepare the rice and toppings. When ready to serve, let each person pile the parts on their own haystack in any order they desire.
Recipe Notes
1. To make this recipe gluten free, you can use a gluten free flour blend and obviously omit the Chow Mein noodles and other toppings that have gluten in them.
2. For the chicken bouillon, I used this homemade chicken bouillon substitute: thecookstreat.com/chicken-or-vegetable-bouillon-substitute/
3. Instead of the sour cream, I’ve also substituted plain (unsweetened) yogurt with good results.
4. To cook the brown rice in the electric pressure cooker use a ratio of 3:5 for brown rice – that’s 3 parts rice to 5 parts water. Add the water and rice to the pressure cooker pot, add a bit of salt or this homemade chicken bouillon if you want. I usually add about ½ teaspoon of salt or chicken bouillon substitute for every cup of water. Then let it cook on high pressure for 21 minutes. Do a quick release of the pressure. If you prefer white rice or are running out of time, it cooks in only 6 minutes on high pressure with a 3:5 ratio of rice to water in the electric pressure cooker.
5. Here are some additional ideas for toppings, but feel free to use whatever sounds good to you: shredded coconut, chopped green onions, chopped bell peppers (any color), mandarin oranges, chopped spinach leaves, chopped tomatoes, roasted slivered almonds, chopped celery, or sliced olives.
5. The chicken sauce can be cooked ahead of time, frozen and reheated. You may need to add a bit of milk to thin it out a bit before you serve it.
Recipe Source: Heather @ The Cook’s Treat
All images and text ©The Cook’s Treat
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