Hillary and Monica

ndtaya says:

A woman started by tracking down the origin of the dish. First she called the Houston Chronicle. Food Editor Ann Criswell, who has been with the newspaper more than 30 years, told her about the King Ranch in Kingsville, Texas. It is a national historic landmark, founded by Captain Richard King in 185 3. It is considered the birthplace of American ranching and is the largest ranch in the world.

Criswell assumes but has never heard definitively, that the layered casserole of corn tortillas, chicken, cheese, onions, green bell peppers, tomatoes, green chilies, canned cream of chicken soup and cream of mushroom soup originated there. Because the family has never taken credit for the dish, she speculates a ranch cook concocted the hearty and filling meal for cowboys.

Carla S says:

No, it started in Mexico.

Title: King Ranch Chicken
Categories: Chicken, Mexican, Cheese
Yield: 10 servings

3 lb Chicken
Salt
Pepper
1 Bay Leaf
1 c Green Pepper; chopped
1 c Onion; chopped
1/2 c Butter or Margarine
2 cn Cream of Chicken Soup
2 cn Cream of Mushroom Soup
10 oz RO*TEL Tomatoe W/Green Chili
12 Corn Tortillas; crumbled in
- bite sized pieces
1 1/2 c Cheddar Cheese; shredded

Stew chicken with salt, pepper and bay leaf. After cooking, bone and
cut chicken into bite-size pieces. In a large saucepan, cook green
pepper and onion in butter until tender. Stir in soups and RO*TEL
Tomatoes and Green Chilies. In a 3-quart shallow baking dish, 13×9",
arrange alternate layers of tortillas, chicken, soup mixture, and
cheese, using one-third of all ingredients. Repeat layers two more
times. Bake at 325~ for 40 minutes or until hot and bubbly and cheese
is browned. Serves 10-12. May be frozen before or after baking.