1-First Step: Mise en place Gather and prep all ingredients before you start. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a 13×9 inch baking dish. Peel, wash, and slice 4-5 medium potatoes into 1/4 inch rounds. Thinly slice 1 yellow onion and set aside. Cook and crumble 8 slices of bacon, or use quick bacon pieces. Cook and season 4 chicken breasts, then cut them into chunks; rotisserie chicken works great as a time-saver.

2-Second Step: Make the sauce In a medium bowl, combine 1 can condensed cheese soup with 1 1/4 cups milk. Whisk until smooth and pourable. Reserve 1 cup of this soup-milk mixture to layer over the chicken later. This reserved cup helps keep the chicken moist and adds another hit of creamy flavor when baked.

3-Third Step: Layer the dish Spread 1/4 of the cheese soup mixture across the bottom of the greased 13×9 inch dish to form a thin base layer. Add a single layer of potato slices, fitting them evenly. Season the potatoes with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. Spoon another 1/4 of the soup mixture over the potatoes to coat them lightly. Repeat layering two more times to create three layers of potatoes, each followed by a portion of the soup mixture. Tuck thin slices of yellow onion between layers if you like a stronger onion presence.

4-Fourth Step: Bake covered Cover the baking dish tightly with foil and bake for 40 minutes. The covered baking steams the potato layers and helps them become tender without drying out. After 30 minutes of covered baking, remove the foil briefly to check progress and proceed to the next step.

5-Fifth Step: Add the chicken and finish baking After 30 minutes (while the dish is still in the oven), remove the foil and evenly distribute the cooked chicken chunks over the top of the potato layers. Pour the reserved 1 cup of the cheese soup mixture on top of the chicken so it soaks down into the layers. Cover the dish again and bake 15 more minutes.

6-Final Step: Add cheese and bacon Remove the baking dish from the oven. Sprinkle 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese over the top, followed by the crumbled bacon. Return the dish to the oven uncovered and bake 5 minutes or until the cheese melts and bubbles. Let the casserole rest 5-10 minutes before serving so slices hold together.