I am going to start a campaign to bring back the casserole. I just don’t see them (or make them) enough! But growing up, I swear we practically lived on casseroles. And, while I might not have appreciated them then, I sure do now! Easy to put together (made even easier if you use pre-cooked and frozen ingredients), quick to cook, and delicious to eat, I am going to be raving all about the casserole this fall. Especially this one, the OG of casseroles, chicken and rice with veggies, broth, butter, and an easy, homemade cream of chicken soup to tie it all together and of course you can’t skip the corn flakes topping — the best!
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
There are so many reasons why this recipe is perfect, here are just a few! Corn flakes — Yeah, I put that first! It might sound “corny” but this casserole just wouldn’t be the same without some crunchy corn flakes on top. Take my word for it, you won’t want to skip this step. Cream of chicken soup — Use a can if you must, but making your own really will make all the difference. If you’ve ever made a roux before, you can make this soup! Veggies — Chop up some carrots, celery, onions, and toss in a bag of frozen peas, easy, peasy (ha ha see what I did there?) Or use all frozen veggies if you like to save even more time. Leftovers — Play your cards right and you could have some amazing leftovers for tomorrow’s lunch or dinner. Simply reheat in the microwave, and add a few more cornflakes if they’ve lost their crunch in the fridge. Perfecto!
HERE’S HOW YOU MAKE IT
First steps Prepare the veggies Make the cream of chicken soup Prepare the corn flake topping Putting it all together
Ideas for Serving This Dish
While this dish is pretty much an all-in-one entrée, there are a few other side dishes I like to serve with it, such as
An easy green Italian salad Roasted carrots Roasted broccoli Sauteed green beans Homemade breadsticks for when you just need all the carbs And some Cherry Garcia cookies for dessert of course!
Ideas for Customizing This Dish
The great thing about this chicken and rice casserole is that it’s so easy to customize! Here are some ideas for changing this up a bit:
If you’d like to make this with beef instead of chicken, change the chicken broth to beef broth and the cooked, diced chicken to leftover diced beef (or pork would work here too), and follow the rest of the directions as-is. To make a vegetarian rice casserole, swap chicken broth for veggie broth and leave out the chicken, instead doubling the veggies. Ritz crackers or any buttery crackers you have leftover (or even bread crumbs or stuffing) would work as a topping if you don’t have cornflakes. Any kind of onion would work in this easy chicken and rice casserole too, don’t sweat it if you don’t have a yellow onion.
Make-Ahead Instructions
Want to make this dish ahead of time? Prepare the dish all the way through “putting it together” except hold off on buttering the corn flakes until right before you’re ready to bake the dish, then add the buttered corn flakes right before baking for best results.
Freezing Instructions
I love to freeze meals ahead of time. It takes the pressure off those nights when you just don’t know what you want to eat or you’re running low on time or you just don’t want to cook. The directions for freezing this easy chicken and rice casserole are the same as the make-ahead directions. Except, after you make the dish and right before adding the cornflake topping, you’ll let it come to room temperature and cover with a tight-fitting lid, or use plastic wrap and aluminum foil if you don’t have a lid Thaw in the fridge and then make the corn flake topping from scratch before baking. Because you’ll put this chicken and rice casserole in cold (right from the fridge), you’ll need to add about 10-15 minutes extra of baking time.
Expert Tips
My favorite long grain and wild rice boxed mix is from Zatarain’s, but you can use whatever brand you prefer. For the chicken, you can use a shredded rotisserie chicken, or make your own in the slow cooker or Instant Pot. Or, you can purchase already cooked, sliced chicken pieces from Tyson or another brand. In a super hurry? Use all frozen veggies (yep, you can find frozen, diced onions too) in this dish. Just cook them in the butter until they are just thawed. Be careful not to overcook, frozen veggies can go from frozen to mush quickly if you’re not careful. For more ooey, gooey, creamy sauciness in this casserole, add cheese! Stir in 1 cup of shredded cheese like cheddar or Monterey jack to make this a cheesy chicken and rice casserole.
More Easy Dinner Ideas
For more comforting casseroles, check out my popular posts for Cheesy Mashed Potatoes Casserole, Poppy Seed Chicken Casserole, and Baked Chicken Broccoli Alfredo.
BBQ Brisket Tacos Instant Pot Pot Roast Chicken and Potatoes with Dijon Cream Sauce Chicken in Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Sauce Pork Fried Rice Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole
Did you make this Chicken and Rice Casserole recipe? AWESOME! Please rate the recipe below!
