What can be more comforting than this easy, creamy, cheesy Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole Recipe?!! It's filled with tender chicken and fluffy flavorful rice. The ultimate comfort food and one delicious dinner!
If you love an easy recipe that tastes just like Mom's home cooking then this classic recipe will check all the boxes for you!
Next time try this chicken casserole - Chicken Alfredo Stuffed Shells with Bacon and Ranch!
Jump to:
- Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole
- Ingredients you’ll need
- Creative variations to try
- Instructions
- Essential tools for this recipe
- Frequently asked questions (FAQ’s)
- Deb’s tips for the perfect dish
- How to store leftovers
- More chicken casserole recipes
- Perfect pairings: what to serve with
- Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole
Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole
You'll love it because it's simple to make land uses leftover rotisserie chicken and pantry ingredients. Leftovers are fantastic for lunch and freeze great as well!
This creamy dish is a meal the whole family will love; it's pure comfort food! It's the perfect meal and just delicious.
Ingredients you’ll need
You'll only need a handful of simple ingredients for this great recipe! Please refer to the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for the exact measurements.
- Yellow onion, shallots or white onions.
- cooked leftover chicken - skinless chicken thighs, shredded chicken, sautéed chicken, leftover rotisserie chicken is ideal and you can use white or dark meat.
- ranch dressing mix - that's the powdered stuff!
- Use regular long grain rice, jasmine rice or basmati rice.
- can of cream of chicken soup -
- chicken broth
- evaporated milk
- fresh broccoli
- shredded sharp cheddar cheese - pepper jack cheese would give it a little spice, Monterey Jack cheese would be great too!
- fried onions - the crispy crunchy kind you get in a can.
Creative variations to try
- Substitute brown rice or wild rice in the chicken broccoli casserole, just be sure to adjust the cooking time and amount of liquid accordingly. Do not use instant or minute rice.
- To mix things up, use French Onion Soup mix for flavoring. A tablespoon of Dijon mustard adds a hint of tangy goodness!
- Want a crunchy topping? Add crushed potato chips, panko crumbs, ritz crackers, corn flakes, crushed pretzel sticks or parmesan cheese to the top of the casserole before baking - yum!
Instructions
This is an overview of the instructions. For the complete directions for the Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole just scroll down to the bottom!
- Preheat the oven . Prepare the casserole dish, set aside.
- Dice the onions and chicken.
- Whisk together the chicken soup, evaporated milk, ranch dressing mix and chicken broth. Add the chicken, raw broccoli onion, uncooked rice and half the cheese into the creamy sauce. Stir to combine.
- Spoon into the baking dish. Top with fried onions and sprinkle with remaining cheese.
- Cover with aluminum foil and bake until hot and bubbly.
Essential tools for this recipe
The following are affiliate links. We participate in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
Don't forget to check out my Amazon storefront for some of my favorite products! 🛍️
Frequently asked questions (FAQ’s)
No, there's no need to cook the rice first.
No, it changes the cooking time.Use cooked chicken in this recipe..
Deb’s tips for the perfect dish
If you're making this great meal for a potluck, wrap the casserole in several layers of aluminum foil and a thick towel prior to transporting. Then place it in an insulated cooler. You'll be surprised how long this will stay warm!
- Don't substitute minute, instant rice or cooked rice, raw rice is best in this recipe.
How to store leftovers
Refrigerate - Allow leftovers to cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and place in the refrigerator. It will last up to three days refrigerated.
Freezer - This is a great freezer meal. To freeze, allow leftovers to cool completely. Place in an air tight container, freeze up to three months.
Reheat individual servings in the microwave. If you're reheating the casserole, you may need to add some extra chicken broth or milk so the casserole isn't dry. I'd top it with a ¾ more shredded cheese too.
More chicken casserole recipes
Oh my goodness, are you looking for more amazing casserole recipes? I definitely have you covered! Click on the photos below to take you right to the recipe!
Perfect pairings: what to serve with
Are you wondering what are good recipes to serve with this casserole? I have so many wonderful side dishes and great recipes on the blog!
- a yummy side dish would be a simple green salad!
- served with a side of dinner rolls, sliced ciabatta bread or some easy homemade breadsticks - yum!
- of course you can make some additional veggies to serve alongside like Roasted Brussels Sprouts or Oven Baked Carrots.
If you're still looking for side dishes to go with your meal, click here for What to Serve with Chicken Casserole. There are tons of ideas and recipes!
This is pure comfort food in my book, I hope you enjoy it too! Let me know in the comments below!
Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole
Equipment
- 9x13 casserole dish
Ingredients
- 1 small onion diced
- 3-4 cups cooked chicken cut into small cubes
- 2 teaspoons ranch dressing mix
- 1 ½ cup long grain rice uncooked
- 10 ounce cream of chicken soup
- 14.5 ounce chicken broth
- 12 ounce evaporated milk
- 2 cups broccoli florets
- 1 cup fried onions
- 1 cup cheddar cheese
- minced parsley - optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x11 casserole dish, set aside.
- Dice the onions and cooked chicken breast.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the chicken soup, evaporated milk, ranch dressing mix and chicken broth until creamy. Add in the chicken, raw broccoli, onion, rice and half the cheese. Stir to combine.
- Pour chicken, broccoli rice cheese sauce into prepared casserole dish. Top with fried onions and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 50 minutes until the rice is cooked and the dish is hot and bubbly.
- At the end of the cooking time, remove it from the oven and let it sit for 10 minutes before serving.
- Optional - after resting, remove the foil and place it underneath the broiler for 2-3 minutes until the top is golden brown. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve!
Kelly Powers says
CAn I freeze leftovers?
Debra Clark says
Absolutely Kelly, this casserole freezes well. Just be sure to use an airtight container. Enjoy!
Lois says
We love this Broccoli chicken and rice casserole. So good. And it freezes well if you have a small family and can’t eat it all at one time
Camden says
This chicken broccoli rice casserole reminds me of going back home for dinner when I would visit from college. Love how versatile this is for leftovers too!
Bowl Me Over says
Right? I love those classic casserole recipes.
Debbie says
I can't get enough of this chicken broccoli rice casserole. It is a full, delicious meal in one convenient casserole dish.
Kristen says
This chicken broccoli rice casserole is such a simple holiday side, and a great way to feed a crowd!
Bowl Me Over says
We LOVE this casserole! It's a great substitute for the classic holiday meal. YUM!
Alyssa says
This chicken broccoli rice casserole is a perfect week night dinner. I like to make things that have plenty of leftovers!
Brittany says
This chicken broccoli rice casserole looks delicious! I love making casseroles for holiday potlucks and I look forward to trying this one soon!
Melanie says
From reading the recipe I cooked my rice part way than pulled it at 13 mins. My rice ended up being cooked maybe a little overdone. And so therefore I only used half a cup of broth. I used 1 can of cream of chicken soup like it called for but I think it should of been 2 cans maybe even 3. Because mine didn't turn out creamy at all. Was rather dry. Didn't taste bad but dry. I also added celery salt and used a Lil onion soup mix . 2 teaspoons each. Nice call on the topping of dried onions I used some but I also used panko mixed in . I think mine would of turned out perfect if I would of added another can of chicken soup. If anybody follows what I said I'd like to know how it turned out . Thanks for the recipe .
Amanda H. says
The flavor was incredible; the only difference I had was instead of the regular ranch packet, I used the buffalo chicken ranch packet. Like many others, my rice did not cook fully either, despite following the recipe. We fought through the unwelcomed texture of uncooked rice, and everyone went to bed fed... But it was a disappointing meal. I wish I had read the reviews, as I was hesitant about the uncooked rice. I will cook the rice al dente prior to baking next time and decrease cook time to 35 minutes, I think.
Bowl Me Over says
I'm sorry you had that issue. Was the casserole well sealed? I'm going to make it again here and do some additional recipe testing. Thanks for the feedback Amanda.
Carmen says
I made this recipe last night. I used jasmine rice and it was still crunchy after an extra 15 minutes. The raw onion was really strong as well. Will make again, but will adjust liquid and cooking time for cooke rice, and will use sautéed onions in place of raw.
Bowl Me Over says
Sautéed onions is an excellent substitution Carmen, that sounds great. Make sure you have the oven preheated and seal the casserole well so the rice cooks/steams. Enjoy the recipe and thanks for letting me know.
Noelle says
Unfortunately after 50 minutes, the rice was still crunchy. It’s currently back in the oven. Maybe for 20 more minutes? We will see! But even for crunchy rice, the flavor still was good! I added an extra teaspoon ranch seasoning and used Italian bread crumbs on top since I didn’t have any fried onions. Thank you for the recipe!
Bowl Me Over says
Hmmm.... what type of rice did you use Noelle? And was the casserole covered? That's odd. I hope that rice finally got tender for you and you enjoyed the recipe. Those Italian bread crumbs sound delicious!
Pam says
I made this last night and my rice didn't get fully cooked either. I added another 20 minutes to the already 50 minutes. I covered with foil also. I used regular long grain white rice as instructed. The casserole itself was delicious!!! I'll cook it again but with cooked rice next time.
Jess says
Could I use rotisserie chicken?
Bowl Me Over says
Yes, the chicken is cooked before it is baked, so rotisserie chicken is great for this recipe. Enjoy Jess!
Shawna says
This looks delicious I am going to try this recipe this week! Is it possible to split the casserole between 2 8x8 baking dishes? Should I make any cooking time adjustments?
Bowl Me Over says
That's smart Shawna! Yes, you can split the recipe. The cooking time will be unchanged. Wrap each dish tightly with foil and bake a directed. Enjoy!
Shawna says
Thank you for the response, I split the recipe between two baking dishes and it turned out great! Very flavorful and comforting meal!
Shelley says
Would Jasmine rice be ok?
Bowl Me Over says
Yes, I love jasmine rice and that would be delicious Shelley! You may need to adjust the cooking time but it will work great in this recipe.