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Dinner doesn't get easier or more delicious than this cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole, made in just one pan, with a few simple ingredients.
Here's what a nerd I am when it comes to cooking: for my 14th birthday a friend gave me a cookbook, and it was one of my favorite gifts! It was a compilation of favorite recipes from close friends, and one of the recipes was this cheesy chicken and rice casserole.
What I love about Chicken and Rice Casserole:
- One pan: throw everything together in a casserole dish and bake. This makes for low prep and easy clean-up! I love recipes where the oven does all of the work. Check out my other one-pan recipes!
- Kid friendly: The end result is another kid-friendly recipe that's delicious and flavorful. The perfect comfort food for a fast weeknight meal or Sunday dinner that requires hardly any prep.
- Adaptable: Like most casserole dishes, there are plenty of variations you can make to this recipe. See more ideas below in the post.
How to Make Chicken and Rice Casserole:
1. Prep rice mixture: Add rice, cream of soups, milk, water and onion soup seasoning to a bowl and stir to combine. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Sprinkle with half of the shredded cheddar cheese.
2. Add chicken: nestle chicken breasts into the rice mixture.
3. Bake: Cover the dish with aluminum foil (the pan will be very full!) and bake for 1 hour 30 min to 2 hours , or until rice is tender and chicken is cooked through. (Mine usually bakes in 1.5 hours, but time may vary depending on oven, altitude and other variables).
4. Top with cheese and serve. Remove from oven and sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Allow to cool for 15-20 minutes before serving. Serve with fresh roasted veggies or a green salad.
Recipe Variations:
Cheese: leave it out, or substitute Colby jack, mozzarella or Swiss.
Rice: Minute rice will not work with this recipe. Brown rice would require additional liquid (at least ½ cup) and longer cooking time, so if using brown rice, I suggest using chicken thighs, instead of breasts, so the chicken doesn't overcook/dry out.
Herbs: if you'd like to add additional flavor, consider adding fresh thyme, parsley, freshly minced garlic or garnish with fresh basil.
Broccoli Chicken and Rice: add 2 cups chopped broccoli florets to the casserole before baking.
Veggies: Feel free to add chopped mushrooms, onions, green peppers, green beans, broccoli, etc.
Cream of soup: My homemade version is so easy and delicious but you can use any type of cream of soup for this recipes including chicken, mushroom, or celery.
Instant Pot Chicken and Rice: Reduce water to ½ cup and milk to 1 cup. Only use 1 can of cream of soup. Cook on high pressure/manual setting for 8-10 minutes (depending on thickness of the chicken breasts). Allow to naturally release for 10 minutes.
Make Ahead And Freezing Instructions:
To make ahead: This is a great make-ahead recipe. Prepare the dish but do not bake. Cover it well and store in the refrigerator for 1-2 days before baking.
To freeze: Prepare the dish but do not bake. Cover it well with plastic wrap and tinfoil and store it in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow to thaw overnight in the refrigerator before baking, uncovered.
Consider trying these popular one-pan meals:
- One pan baked salmon and vegetables
- One pan creamy lemon chicken tortellini
- One pan chicken fajita pasta
- One pan skillet lasagna
You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST for more great recipes!
Chicken and Rice Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups long grain white rice
- 2 cans cream of chicken soup or cream of mushroom soup, (or homemade)
- 1 cup water
- 2 cups milk
- 1 batch homemade onion soup mix, , or one envelope Lipton onion soup mix
- 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, , divided
- 3 thick boneless skinless chicken breasts, , or thighs
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9x13'' pan (or similar size casserole dish) with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
- Add rice, cream of soups, milk, water and onion soup seasoning to a bowl and stir to combine. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Sprinkle with half of the shredded cheddar cheese.
- Nestle chicken breasts into the rice mixture. Cover the dish with aluminum foil (the pan will be very full!) and bake for 1 hour 30 min to 2 hours , or until rice is tender and chicken is cooked through. (Mine usually bakes in 1.5 hours, but time may vary depending on oven, altitude and other variables).
- Remove from oven and sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Allow to cool for 15-20 minutes before serving.
- Serve with fresh steamed veggies or a green salad.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Have you tried this recipe?!
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.
I originally shared this recipe March 2017. Updated September 2020.
My family loves this recipe! I cook the rice first in chicken broth and cut the chicken up then mix everything with cheese on top It’s perfection
I cut up the chicken as well but I feel like when I cooked this it was so bland and I had to cook it for over 2 hrs but that’s probably because my oven isn’t very good.
What rice ? The article said don’t use Instant white rice . I may have said their name wrong .
In this recipe, it calls for long-grain white rice.
I use shredded chicken! I have found it is much more flavorful when I have shredded chicken, rather than chicken breasts or big chunks of chicken.
This was a wonderful recipe for a Chicken and Rice casserole. No, it was a fantastic recipe!
Too little chicken to balance other ingredients. Cooked for two hours and rice was uncooked and the chicken was raw. Recommend recipe be updated to higher cook temperature (375-400). Presentation was unattractive and tasted bland. A waste of time and ingredients. These recipes should be reviewed more critically.
I made this recipe last night and followed all directions except I used 2 cups chicken broth and 1 cup whipping cream bc I realized I was out of milk. I put everything in the oven and then I read the reviews and began flip out… maybe I should’ve used less liquid. I did keep the dish in the woven for 1 3/4 hrs and then took off the foil increased the temperature to 375 degrees and continued to bake for an additional 15 minutes. It was perfect— golden on top and everything was cooked to perfection. My family loved it!!
This was just ok, I followed the recipe exactly but I diced up the chicken first, cooked at 350° for 1 hour 45 minutes and the rice was nearly burnt on the bottom of the dish and crunchy and chewy, not what we were looking for, and it was all too salty and I didn’t add any additional salt! I will go back to my original recipe I’ve made in the past.
My husband specifically asked for this recipe. It’s in the oven for tonight’s dinner. So easy, yet so good! I will serve it with steamed broccoli.
Thanks again for another delicious meal idea!
I tried making this tonight, following the instructions for the instant pot. Three times in a row I have gotten a burn notice. I keep adding more liquid and scraping from the bottom, but nothing is working.
Maybe try it in the oven. This recipe might be just better in the oven. Good luck. 🙂
I had to cook this for 2hours. It took forever!!
If only the recipe told you how long to cook this 🤔
The rice on the bottom and edges were lightly browned and hard to chew. What did I do wrong?
Sorry that happened, that’s frustrating. It usually means the heat was a bit too high or the pan wasn’t sealed tightly enough. Next time, try lowering the heat slightly and make sure it’s well covered so the rice can steam and cook evenly.
Way way too much rice. Not enough chicken. Chicken was tender and juicy, flavor was good, not great, but the ratio of chicken to rice was way off.
I found this recipe on a whim because my son asked for chicken and rice. This is a simple, honest recipe, and the results were amazing. We loved it enough to add it to our rotation. I read a few other reviews, so I set the timer for 60 minutes and checked it. I ended up cooking it for another 20 minutes, and then I took the foil off and browned the chicken for 5 minutes more. It was absolutely perfect. Thank you so much!