Chicken With Rice Casserole With Cream Of Chicken Soup is one of the most popular, satisfying and delicious dish. It makes a complete meal in itself. It is easy, simple and quick recipe to prepare at home. You just need to follow proper step by step direction for preparation and cooking.
Tasty, tasty! I don’t know what happened to me, but I couldn’t resist to get your attention with a title like this. I’m sorry if you believed that I was going to expose a recipe of delicious chicken with rice casserole with cream of chicken soup.
Chicken and Rice Casserole
Chicken and Rice Casserole is a quick and easy dinner recipe for a crowd. Creamy rice and fork-tender chicken baked in a garlic cream of chicken soup sauce.
Hearty casserole dishes like Baked Spaghetti, Cheesy Taco Pasta, and this chicken casserole are easy and delicious Dinner Recipes perfect for busy weeknights.
CHICKEN AND RICE CASSEROLE
This easy Baked Chicken and Rice Casserole is made with pantry ingredients, fresh chicken breasts, and uncooked rice. Everything is mixed together in a pan, poured into a large baking dish and cooked covered in the oven for about an hour. You can prepare this quick family favorite dinner on busy nights or make it ahead of time for a hearty freezer meal ready to go.
You don’t need to be a master chef to make the savory and thick creamy sauce in this Chicken and Rice Casserole. The cream of chicken soup and cream of mushroom soup make it easy and full of flavor. This Chicken and Rice Casserole recipe cooks the sauce ingredients together briefly before baking, but if you want to save time and dishes you can just stir the ingredients all together in the pan and skip that step.
Creamy rice and tender chicken are cooked in the sauce for a comforting dish that is extra rich and flavorful. Serve Chicken and Rice Casserole with a light side of Roasted Broccoli or Sautéed Green Beans. You can add frozen broccoli to make this dinner a one-pan casserole dish. Top with sour cream or add shredded cheese in the last few minutes of baking.
This kid-friendly dinner recipe can be made ahead of time for busy weeknights but also can be ready fresh from start to finish in just over an hour. Chicken and Rice Casserole is the kind of dinner dish that can be easily adjusted if you’ve got picky eaters. If you’re in a dinner rut, swap one or two ingredients or add spices and veggies to this delicious classic recipe for a whole new dinner.
- Rice: You can use brown rice instead of white rice, but you will want to increase the chicken broth by at least ¼ cup and add 10 minutes to the cooking time.
- Soup: For an extra rich dinner made from scratch, replace the cans of soup with our homemade version of Cream of Mushroom Soup and Cream of Chicken Soup. Each can of soup is about 1 ⅓ cup cream soup.
- Chicken: Cut the chicken breast into thin strips the same size so they cook evenly in the baking time without drying out. You could also swap in boneless skinless chicken thighs for chicken breast.
- Topping: For a crunchy old-school casserole topping, add a cup of crushed Ritz crackers or unsweetened corn flakes tossed in a ¼ cup melted butter before baking.
REHEATING INSTRUCTIONS FOR MEAL PREP OR LEFTOVERS
- Prepare this dish ahead of time a few ways. Prepare the sauce, cool completely before adding the uncooked chicken and rice, and refrigerate covered in the baking pan for up to 2 days. You can also freeze the uncooked dish for up to 2 months in the baking pan, covered with plastic wrap and then foil or the lid. A baked casserole can be frozen for up to 4 months and refrigerated up to 3 days before reheating.
- Reheat prepared Chicken and Rice Casserole covered with foil from the refrigerator or thawed overnight in the fridge in the oven at 350 degrees until hot, about 15-30 minutes. Unbaked casserole can be cooked from frozen, adding 10-15 minutes to the cooking time.
- Add a little water (about 1-2 tablespoons) over the top of the chicken and rice mixture before covering with foil and baking. This will help steam the rice and add moisture back to the dish as it is reheating.
RECIPE VARIATIONS
- Broccoli Cheddar Chicken & Rice Casserole: Replace the mushroom soup with 1 can (or 1 ⅓ cup) Cheddar Cheese Soup and 2 cups chopped broccoli florets (fresh or frozen).
- Pork Chops: Make this a pork chop bake with boneless pork chops or pork tenderloin cut in thin slices. Be sure to cut them thin enough so they cook all the way through without needing to add time.
- Vegetables: For a one pan dinner, add up to 2 cups diced mixed vegetables, either fresh, canned, or frozen. Try frozen broccoli, green beans, fresh mushrooms, peas, corn kernels, or bell peppers.
- Chicken: You can use boneless chicken thighs or bone-in chicken pieces, with or without the skin. For bone-in chicken, increase time to 1 ½ hours and nestle the chicken pieces in the between the rice mixture.
HOW TO STORE
- Serve: Chicken and Rice Casserole needs to be stored in the refrigerator or freezer after 2 hours at room temperature.
- Store: Cool casserole dish completely before transferring to an airtight container or covering dish tightly with plastic wrap to store. Refrigerate for up to 3 days and reheat in the oven on low heat, covered with foil.
- Freeze: Once cooled, store Chicken and Rice Casserole covered tightly with plastic wrap and aluminum foil, or in a freezer safe container. Freeze casserole for up to 3 months. Reheat from frozen if in baking dish, covered with foil, or thaw overnight and reheat in oven safe dish.
EASY CHICKEN AND RICE CASSEROLE
There is nothing better than a hot serving of creamy rice and chicken – except of course a double serving! I love how easy it is to make satisfying bakes like this chicken and rice casserole, especially when it comes out tasting this good.
MAKE THIS EASY CHICKEN AND RICE CASSEROLE FOR A HEARTY MEAL!
Before there were slow cookers and instant pots, there was the casserole. It was the original (and still best) dump-and-go option for feeding a family (or one seriously hungry individual).
My grandmother and my mother both used to make casseroles for dinner all the time. And, I can totally understand why! All you have to do is preheat the oven, add what you want to the baking dish, and wait for the golden-brown perfection.
Literally every other Sunday my mom would pop this casserole in the oven and it would slowly cook while we were at church. Us kids would devour the delicious chicken and savory rice as soon as it was served. (And we fought over who got the crispy edges. Soooo good!)
I mean, nothing says comfort food like a creamy casserole–especially like this one with chicken and rice. It perfectly hits the spot every time! Plus, casseroles are so easy to make it’s hard to resist serving one every night.
I make this savory baked casserole recipe with my special, secret seasoning (dry onion soup mix), which makes the flavor irresistible and very versatile. I could eat so many servings of this casserole by itself, but it also pairs well with many other things.
Tip: Serve as a side dish or an entree all on its own!
INGREDIENTS NEEDED TO MAKE CHICKEN AND RICE CASSEROLE RECIPE
To make this chicken casserole at home, here are the ingredients you will need:
- Chicken Breasts: Boneless, skinless, and patted dry. Removing the moisture allows the chicken to brown in less time because the heat source doesn’t have to work so hard to evaporate it.
- Cream Of Chicken Soup: This is the key to binding the ingredients. It’s also the essence of the chicken and rice casserole.
- Water: You’ll just need one soup can worth of water to thin out the cream of chicken.
- Dry Onion Soup Mix: Dry soup mixes can be the perfect spice blend, and this variety is the perfect seasoning for this chicken and rice recipe.
- Minute Rice: Minute rice is ideal for a quick batch of rice to fill a casserole.
- Melted Butter: This is a casserole essential!
- Salt And Pepper: Only added to taste as this recipe likely won’t need any more salt, but a pinch of pepper might be just right.
SUBSTITUTIONS FOR CHICKEN AND RICE CASSEROLE RECIPE
If you can’t get cream of chicken soup, you can use any other creamy soup, such as cream of celery, mushroom, or broccoli. Just make sure you pick a flavor you enjoy. Any of them go well with chicken!
For a truly decadent casserole, use cheddar cheese soup for some extra cheesy flavor.
For a little Tex-Mex flair in your creamy chicken and rice casserole, use dry tortilla soup mix instead of the dry onion soup mix. You can even top the casserole with a layer of tortilla strips!
WHAT TO SERVE WITH CREAMY CHICKEN AND RICE CASSEROLE
As I said before, this is a truly versatile dish that you can serve as either a side or an entree. That means you can serve it with whatever you want or as a bowl all by itself.
My favorite thing to serve alongside this casserole is my broccoli salad. I also like it with an appetizer such as a charcuterie board or my Bisquick sausage balls.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT CHICKEN AND RICE CASSEROLE WITH CREAM OF CHICKEN SOUP
Whenever I share this recipe, I get some of the same questions from readers. Here are the most popular ones that people ask.
If you have a question that isn’t listed here, please leave it in the comments, and I’ll answer it as soon as possible.
CAN YOU FREEZE CHICKEN AND RICE CASSEROLE?
Of course, you can. Make sure to store it in an airtight container or wrap it really well in foil. Let the casserole have a little bit of space so that the air in the freezer can circulate around it for the best results.
HOW LONG CAN YOU STORE THIS CASSEROLE?
If stored correctly in a sealed container, chicken and rice casserole with cream of chicken soup can last for 2-3 days in the refrigerator and up to 2 months in the freezer.
HOW DO YOU REHEAT THE LEFTOVERS?
You can easily reheat this chicken and rice casserole. If it’s frozen, you’ll need to use the oven to heat it back up. If it’s only been refrigerated, then a microwave will do just fine.
Do you think you’ll make this recipe? Will you make it with cream of chicken or swap it out? If so, let me know! I’d love to hear what you think in the comments below!
Easy Chicken and Rice Casserole
Laura at Comfort Food at Home
There is nothing better than a hot serving of creamy rice and chicken – except of course a double serving! I love how easy it is to make satisfying bakes like this chicken and rice casserole, especially when it comes out tasting this good.
PREP TIME: 10 mins
COOK TIME: 1 hr
TOTAL TIME: 1 hr 10 mins
COURSE: Dinner
CUISINE: American
SERVINGS: 6 people
EQUIPMENT
- Medium Bowl
- 9 x 13 Casserole Dish
- Small Microwave-Safe Bowl
INGREDIENTS
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, patted dry
- 10 ½ oz. can cream of chicken soup
- 10 ½ oz. water (fill up empty soup can)
- 1 packet of dry onion soup mix
- 1 cup Minute Rice
- 2-4 Tbsp. melted butter
- salt and pepper, to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 350º.
- In a medium bowl, hand mix together cream of chicken soup and water with a whisk.
- Whisk in dry onion soup mix.
- Add rice to the soup mixture and pour into casserole dish.
- Pat chicken dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper on both sides.
- Place chicken breasts on top of the soup mixture in the casserole dish.
- Melt butter in a small microwave safe bowl.
- Spoon melted butter over the chicken.
- Bake covered for 30 minutes on 350 degrees.
- Then bake 30 more minutes uncovered or until tender. (See notes.)
NOTES
- This was one of two Sunday lunch meals for my family growing up. And so my mom would cover it with aluminum foil and put it in the oven on 250 degrees for 3 hours. And it would cook while we were at church. I recommend only doing this if you have a setting on your oven that will turn it off after 3 hours. But it was always delicious and tender!