This chicken and rice casserole is one of those dinner recipes that’s easy to make, and at least at our house, we can eat the leftover for days. I sort of love a meal that stretches like that— it’s a real life-saver for this current season I’m in. Lol.
I like to make my chicken and rice casserole with broccoli, but you could omit it or even swap it out for something else like mushrooms.
I also like to make chicken and rice casserole without canned soup. Nothing against the soup versions! This is just how I prefer to make it.
Related: Marry Me Chicken, Baked Chicken, Easy Chicken Pot Pie and 60 Easy Dinner Recipes
You likely have already noticed I like to top mine with French fried onions! I know, it’s a little different. I feel like French fried onions don’t get enough love, as the main thing they are known for is Thanksgiving green bean casserole.
I like the flavor and crunch they add to this dish, but if you want to swap them out for a cup of shredded cheddar cheese instead (for a more traditional chicken and rice casserole), be my guest.
Do you cook the rice before adding to the casserole?
No, that is one of the great things about this dish. Even though we are making it from scratch, it’s still essentially a baked risotto dish in that you add the uncooked chicken AND uncooked rice to the casserole dish (with the liquid) and bake it all together. Simple!
If you love a casserole for dinner (and the leftovers the following days), you might also like:
- Rosemary and Mushroom Hashbrown Casserole
- Green Bean Macaroni Casserole
- My Favorite Baked Macaroni and Cheese
- Biscuits and Gravy Casserole
I love to serve this alongside a big salad or another vegetable side dish, but this chicken and rice casserole is also a great meal all on its own.
If you make this, I’d love to know what you think in the comments. You can also leave a star rating based on your experience, which is helpful to other readers. Thank you in advance! xo. Emma
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Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts (about one pound)
- 1 cup broccoli florets ( chopped)
- 2 cups long grain white rice
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup milk
- ¼ cup butter
- 2 chicken bouillon cubes
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon cayenne
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- salt and pepper
- 1 cup French fried onions (or shredded cheddar cheese)
Instructions
- Cube the chicken breast (if frozen, thaw first).
- Chop up the broccoli if using.
- Butter a rectangle casserole dish. Add the chicken, broccoli, and rice.
- In a large pot, combine the chicken stock, milk, butter, bouillon cubes, and other seasoning. Heat over medium heat and stir until everything is well combined.
- Place the casserole pan on a baking sheet. Pour the liquid over the rice and chicken mixture in the casserole pan. Cover with aluminum foil.
- Bake at 350°F for 1 hour and 15 minutes. During the last 15 minutes, remove the foil and add the French fried onions or cheese to the top.
Nutrition
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
I’ve made this 3 times now and it’s delicious every time! I’ve used broccoli and mushrooms, both were good. The last time I halved the recipe and it fit great in a 9×9 dish.
Thank you for this gem!
Just tried this delicious looking recipe, and after 90 minutes of cook time, the rice was still super crunchy and hardly any liquid had absorbed! Definitely open to suggestions because I followed the recipe to a T, and typically consider myself a decent cook! 🤦🏼♀️
I made this last night and topped it with shredded parm! Me and my husband ate arguably too much 🙂 it was delish!
I was craving cozy dinners to eat after Christmas and thought this sounded perfect. I made it tonight and the whole family loved it! We added mushrooms since we had some left in the fridge that needed to be used. I love how light this is while still being a comfort meal. Five stars from this family!
Had already pinned this for the future but after hearing the best of 2022 podcast episode, I decided to make it sooner. I was pretty skeptical but wow – my husband and I really loved it!!! I used precooked Costco chicken and jasmine rice and it turned out wonderful. Loved the bit of heat – might add some TJ’s fried jalapenos to the top next time to boost the spice. Will definitely make this regularly!
I made this recipe for the first time two weeks ago and have made it twice since. My husband loved it! I now cook my rice in the oven with chopped up vegetables and different riffs on Emma’s sauce because it turns out far better than my stovetop rice ever did. This recipe is a real winner – easy and flavorful!
I’m starting to collect Thanksgiving recipes!
night but with chicken thighs, kale and celery. It was delicious and the kids loved it too! Thank you
Love it!
Made this last night but with chicken thighs, kale and celery. It was delicious and the kids loved it too! Thank you!!
This was really good!! I put shredded cheddar cheese and French fried onions on top. Next time I will add mushrooms and maybe an onion. The cayenne pepper gives it a nice kick of heat. My toddler loved this meal.
Umm talk about yum. Super duper easy to make and the onion on top is great crunchy goodness. Lady Emma thanks for the recipe 🎉
The recipe had good flavor but was a bit dry to me- I guess I was expecting more cheese or more creaminess? I added extra liquid and extra chicken. If I made it again I’d cut down on the rice- add more everything else. I did love that I didn’t have to use a super salty can of soup. Thank you for coming up with this recipe, Emma. I’d still call it a keeper. 😘
Can i use arborio rice for this recipe? I have some leftovers since long and not keen to try risotto.
Mmm that look easy and delicious.
Would love to try if I could get a calorie count. Please
Wow! This looks so delicious. I will definitely try it. Thanks for the recipe.
Ingredients sound yummy. Finished casserole also looks awesome. Definitely will try and let you know how mine turns out.
This looks absolutely delicious!
How would this be topped with potato chips (a la classic tunic casserole) instead of the fried onions?
I will be trying this at work. I cook for 60
Whoa! That’s a big group!
If you use cream of something soup dobyoubsub that for the milk?
I cut this in half and put it in a 8 inch square pan. Substituted mushrooms for the broccoli cuz that’s what I had on hand. Was fabulous! Served with shredded parmasan cheese.