Your family will love this easy Chicken Casserole recipe. It's the epitome of comfort food, made with minute rice, chicken, celery, a creamy sauce to hold it together, plus buttered cornflakes crushed on top.
Looking for more kid-friendly recipes? Try Calzones, Cottage Cheese Pancakes, Spaghetti Pie, Meatloaf, or Crispy Bean and Cheese Burritos!
My husband's favorite meal from his childhood was this Chicken and rice casserole recipe. My Mother-in-law is well know for her recipe, and my kids love it just as much as my husband. You can make it ahead of time, so it's great for a quick weeknight, or bringing dinner to someone in need.
How to Make Chicken Casserole:
Combine Ingredients: Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl except for the cornflakes and butter then pour mixture into a greased casserole dish.
Make Topping: Mix crushed cornflakes and melted butter together then sprinkle over casserole mixture.
Bake the chicken casserole with rice at 375 degrees F for 25 minutes then serve with Burrata Salad and Artisan No Knead Bread!
Make Ahead Instructions:
Make the chicken/rice mixture, spread it in the pan, cover and refrigerate. When you're ready to bake this traditional Chicken Casserole, sprinkle the buttered cornflakes on top and bake as directed.
More Budget Friendly Meals:
- Lettuce Wraps
- Tuna Noodle Casserole
- Jerk Chicken Bowls
- Chicken Tetrazzini
- Pink Sauce Pasta
- Mini Meatloaf
- Tamale Pie
- Chicken Tinga
- Orzo Salad
- Chicken Street Tacos
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Recipe
Chicken Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked chicken , diced
- 3/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup celery , diced
- 1 cup minute rice , uncooked*
- 1/4 cup slivered almonds
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
- 3 large eggs , hard boiled, sliced
- 10.5 ounce can cream of chicken soup (or homemade)
- 1 Tablespoon onion , grated
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup corn flakes cereal , crushed
- 1 Tablespoon butter , melted
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl except for the cornflakes and butter. Pour mixture into a greased casserole dish.
- Mix crushed cornflakes and melted butter together. Sprinkle over casserole mixture.
- Bake at 375 degrees F for 25 minutes.
Notes
Nutrition
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I originally shared this recipe November 2014. Updated February 2018 and September 2023.
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I can’t believe I found this recipe. It is the exact as my mom’s recipe she always made. I make it for my family. They love it. Thanks for sharing.
I have been making a similar casserole since I got married almost 38 years ago. Mine is called Chinese Chicken and comes from a Junior League cookbook called Virginia Hospitality, here in Newport News, Va. The only difference in the recipes is mine calls for cooked rice and chopped water chestnuts, and no eggs. This used to be the “go to” recipe for pot lucks, church suppers, or take to your neighbors if they were sick, had a baby, death in the family, etc. You couldn’t go wrong, it was a hit every time. But then that cookbook got so popular, it was scary to take something you made from it because there just might be 2 or 3 of the same dish. I forgot about this recipe for a while until about a month ago. This cookbook is still one of my go to books so I made it again & remembered why it was so popular. It is sooo delicious. I have eaten the leftovers cold right out of the frig. I would definitely stick with the cornflakes on top, they are much crispier than cracker crumbs. I would stick with the recipe just the way it is. It is too delicious to mess with!
Thanks for sharing Susan! And I agree about the cornflake crumbs 🙂 This one is a keeper!
Hi Lauren,
I made this Monday and it was not at all creamy like your picture after I mixed it up.
I substituted 2 C cooked rice and there was so much of it, it wouldn’t all fit in my 9×13. It tastes great, just a little on the dry side. Wondering if I should just stick with the 1 C of minute right next time.
Let me know your thoughts if you have time.
Thanks!
Hi Cindy. What type of cooked rice did you add? Next time I would suggest adding 1 1/2 cups cooked rice and it will be creamier!
Thanks for the reply Lauren. I don’t cook with rice at all and figured out that my 2 C of rice turned out to be 6 C of cooked rice. So therein lies the problem LOL. I will definitely make this again with the proper amount of cooked rice and I am sure it will be GREAT 🙂
I use 2 cups of “rice” cauliflower and my family has NO idea it’s not rice. Seems the texture is “just right” when it’s baked in casseroles. We LOVE this and is one of our favorites in my rotation of recipes.
How many servings would you estimate this to make? I am making for a church dinner and will need to scale to 60 servings. Looks delish and I know everyone will love it!
Hi Jennifer, this casserole makes about 6- 8 servings!
I used crushed up flavored croutons instead of corn flakes. Was very good. Will make this one again.
Will the cornflakes get soggy if I make this and put it in the fridge for the next day?
Hi Megan, if you’re wanting to bake it and serve it the next day I would suggest separating the cornflakes (put them in a ziplock bag on your counter if you want). Then sprinkle them over the cornflakes and bake the next day.
Your recipe sounds yummy but I live solo. I roughly halved everything, with a few substitutions. I didn’t want to go to the store so I used cream of chicken and mushroom soup, plus a little sour cream and one bag of boiling bag rice. I hate celery so substituted sweet green peas instead. Dinner was delicious. I will make the full recipe next time so I can share.
Hm…when I think, “scratch,” I think without pre-made ingredients like canned soup. I live in a rural Asian area where I can’t get things like that, hence my search for “scratch” recipes. 😉
Hi Lindsay, I do make cream of chicken soup from scratch (there is a link to the homemade recipe next to the ingredient.) but I like to offer the canned as an option for a lot of people who want something faster. You can find my homemade version here as well: https://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/2015/03/condensed-cream-anything-soup.html
Have you tried any other veggie other than celery? I was thinking about making this and substituting broccoli.
Hi Cici, you could absolutely include broccoli–yum! Hope you love it! 🙂