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Best Recipe for Chicken and Rice Casserole
Our tasty chicken and rice casserole is a hearty dish that is packed with creamy tender chicken, rice, and seasonings, making it the perfect weeknight meal.
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Table of Contents
- Chicken and Rice Casserole Recipe Ingredients
- Chicken Rice Casserole Substitutions and Additions
- How to make Chicken and Rice Casserole
- Easy Chicken Rice Casserole Serving ideas
- How to store Chicken Casserole with Rice
- Why you’ll love this recipe for Chicken and Rice Casserole
- Chicken and Rice Casserole Recipe FAQs
- More Recipes You’ll Love
- JUMP TO RECIPE
This classic chicken and rice casserole is a hearty family favorite. Creamy and delicious, tender chicken is mixed with cream soup, rice, and seasonings for a meal that we guarantee will get rave reviews.
Chicken and Rice Casserole Recipe Ingredients
You’ll need:
- 3 cups cooked chicken, diced into small pieces
- 1 package dry onion soup mix
- 1 can cream of mushroom soup
- 1 can cream of chicken soup
- 2¼ cups milk
- ¾ cup sour cream
- ½ cup water
- 2 cups minute rice, uncooked
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Parsley for garnish
Note: You could use leftover chicken or a rotisserie chicken you pick up at the grocery store for this recipe.
Chicken Rice Casserole Substitutions and Additions
CHICKEN BREAST: I make this great recipe with a rotisserie chicken or other leftover chicken, but you could also use homemade chicken breasts, chopped or shredded, or even ground chicken.
CREAM SOUP: If you don’t like cream of mushroom soup, you can substitute for any other cream soup such as cream of celery soup or another one that you do like.
SOUR CREAM: You can substitute Greek yogurt for sour cream if you’d like. If you wanted to leave out the sour cream entirely, you could, but we would suggest increasing the quantity of cream soup in this case.
SEASONING: You could add a dash of paprika for more flavor if you’d like.
VEGGIES: You could add your favorite veggies like carrots, broccoli, peas, celery, green beans, or mushrooms to this dish.
CHEESE: Add your favorite cheese! Cheddar cheese and parmesan cheese are two great options.
TOPPING: You could always add a few breadcrumbs on top for some extra crunch.
How to make Chicken and Rice Casserole
This chicken and rice casserole recipe is a great way to use up leftover chicken or make a quick and easy weeknight meal. It’s packed with flavor and can be made in under an hour.
It can even be easily doubled or tripled to feed a large group of people.
STEP ONE: Preheat oven to 350°F.
STEP TWO: In a large bowl mix all ingredients together except the parsley which is optional for garnish.
You don’t need to cook the rice before adding it to this dish.
STEP THREE: Pour chicken and rice mixture into a 9×13 casserole dish that has been sprayed with nonstick spray.
STEP FOUR: Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 45 minutes.
STEP FIVE: Remove the foil cover and bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown.
HOW LONG DO YOU BAKE A CHICKEN AND RICE CASSEROLE?
You’ll bake this casserole for a total of 55 minutes. First, bake covered for 45 minutes and then remove the foil for an additional 10 minutes so that the top browns nicely.
Easy Chicken Rice Casserole Serving ideas
Add a tasty side dish and you’ll have a delicious meal for a weeknight dinner. Since you’ve got your meat and grains covered, a vegetable-based dish would be a great choice. Try our green bean casserole or a Caesar salad.
For more easy recipes, try our chicken pot pie soup and crockpot crack chicken.
MORE CASSEROLE RECIPES
How to store Chicken Casserole with Rice
If you’re in the mood for something savory and comforting, but don’t want to spend hours in the kitchen, this chicken and rice casserole is the perfect solution.
It’s a dish that can be easily made ahead of time and reheated for a quick and delicious meal.
IN THE FRIDGE: Store leftovers from this chicken casserole in the fridge for up to 3 days.
IN THE FREEZER: If you’re doing this creamy chicken and rice dish as a freezer meal, you’ll put it together and then cover it tightly to freeze.
When it’s time to bake, just thaw in the fridge and then pop the baking dish in the oven, covered with foil, and follow the baking instructions above.
HOW TO FREEZE CHICKEN AND RICE CASSEROLE
If you are making this as a freezer meal, assemble the dish right up to the baking stage. Cover with foil and freeze. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight and pop in the oven to bake.
This casserole is perfect for a winter night or any time you’re craving old fashioned comfort food. Our easy chicken and rice casserole is full of creamy sauce and delicious ingredients.
Best of all, it’s super easy to make. So go ahead and give it a try – we promise you won’t be disappointed.
Why you’ll love this recipe for Chicken and Rice Casserole
- Easy clean up: All the ingredients are mixed in one bowl and then transferred to the casserole dish.
- The rice doesn’t need to be cooked ahead of time.
- Hearty and delicious.
- Add a side veggie and you are all set.
- This dish can be made as a freezer meal and frozen before baking.
Chicken and Rice Casserole Recipe FAQs
Can I make this casserole ahead of time?
This easy casserole recipe is a fantastic make-ahead meal. You can prepare the dish and then freeze it. Thaw it in the fridge overnight and then bake it according to the recipe instructions.
Do I have to use minute rice?
In this creamy rice bake, it is best to use minute rice as it cooks faster and we can’t guarantee that any other type of rice will come out cooked and tender.
Can I add vegetables to this dish?
If you’d like to add either fresh or frozen veggies to this casserole, you certainly can!
Do You Cook Chicken Before Adding to Casserole?
For this casserole recipe, you will be using cooked chicken. You can either cook the chicken specifically for this recipe or use any leftover chicken from rotisserie chicken to baked chicken breasts from a previous meal.
Do I Cook Rice Before Adding it to Casserole?
The rice does not need to be cooked before adding it the casserole. It will cook while the casserole is in the oven.
Can You Cook Rice and Raw Chicken Together?
While this recipe uses cooked chicken and uncooked rice, generally, it is safe to cook rice and raw chicken together and a great way to save on extra pots and pans.
More Recipes You’ll Love
Chicken Casserole with Rice
Our tasty chicken and rice casserole is a hearty dish that is packed with creamy tender chicken, rice, and seasonings, making it the perfect weeknight meal.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings 8
Ingredients
- 3 cups chicken, cooked and diced
- 1 package dry onion soup mix
- 1 can cream of mushroom soup
- 1 can cream of chicken soup
- 2¼ cups milk
- ¾ cup sour cream
- ½ cup water
- 2 cups minute rice, uncooked
- salt and pepper, to taste
- parsley, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix all ingredients together except the parsley which is optional for garnish.
- Pour into a 9×13 casserole dish that has been sprayed with nonstick spray.
- Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes at 350°F.
- Remove the foil cover and bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown.
Video
Notes
Note: You could use leftover chicken or a rotisserie chicken you pick up at the grocery store for this recipe.
Note: You don’t need to cook the rice before adding it to this dish.
Nutrition
Calories: 287kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 38mg | Sodium: 1174mg | Potassium: 283mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 344IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 126mg | Iron: 2mg
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Comments
Crystal says
This recipe is a staple in my home! I use two cans of cream of mushroom instead of the cream of chicken. I also slice kielbasa sausage into it. Yummy!
Shelly Kimmel says
What about raw rice? Just increase the liquid? Which liquid? Broth? Milk?
Layne Kangas says
Hi, Shelly – we haven’t tested that, so I’m not sure how much liquid would need to be added and if the baking time would significantly change. I also don’t know if it would impact the final dish.
Stephanie Simmons says
The BEST chicken & rice we’ve ever had!
I did the recipe for x2, it filled a 9×13 pan…me and my 3 children almost ate the entire thing. For me, finding something we all like to eat, that is a WIN!
I asked them what they wanted to eat for dinner this weekend, answer: your chicken & rice mom 😁
Erin says
Looking forward to digging into this recipe. How does the finished product freeze?
Miranda says
It freezes so well! I’ve frozen it a couple times, and after letting it thaw for about 24 hours, it cooks up just the same!
Lucie Jones says
Tried it last night and my husband loved. So did I.
Can this be frozen after it has been cooked. It is only my husband and I and there is a lot of leftover. But we both love it.
Layne Kangas says
Hi, Lucie – glad you enjoyed it. You can freeze leftovers and reheat later easily. Enjoy!
Jennifer says
I find myself using your recipes all the time! Today I didn’t have onion soup mix so I googled how to make my own with crushed beef bouillon cubes, dried onions and some other spices! Also didn’t have sour cream but I did have some French onion dip so I just used that! The taste is so amazing! I used left over thanksgiving turkey also!! Great dinner!! Thank you so much!
Alison Queeney says
Absolutely loved this recipe, I added cream of celery soup and topped it with shredded cheese
Margaret says
I was looking for a recipe that wasn’t as time consuming as many of my recipes, something “simple but really good too”. This recipe didn’t disappoint and we will have it again. I just love simple from time to time (who dosen’t) and I don’t do enough of it. I did cover/uncover as directed and after baking found it just a little bit dry, not as creamy as I expected but my oven has a life of its’ own. I simply added a very small dollop of sour cream to other half that I had put in freezer before baking. (Be careful not to add too much or you will have “chicken-rice soup”) Thank you so much for this recipe:)
Yanet says
Can I use uncooked chicken and freeze it all in a bag?
Layne Kangas says
Hello! I would recommend using cooked chicken and raw chicken would change the cook time significantly and likely dry out the dish. Enjoy!
Sandy says
Great casserole and my husband and grandchildren liked it also. It was easy and simple to prepare!