• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Savory Nothings logo

  • Recipe Index
    • Easy Dinner Recipes
      • Slow Cooker
      • One Pot Meals
      • Quick Meals
      • Instant Pot
    • Side Dishes
    • Breakfast
    • Dessert
    • Small Meals
  • Dinner Ideas
  • Thanksgiving
  • About
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Recipes
  • Dinner Ideas
  • Holidays & Occasions
  • About
  • Thanksgiving
×
Home / Recipes / Dinner / Casseroles / Chicken, Broccoli and Rice Casserole

Chicken, Broccoli and Rice Casserole

1 hour hr
| 4 Comments |
5 from 3 votes
Jump to Recipe 11/18/19 | Updated: 09/16/20 | by Nora
Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole Pin

Printable recipe

close up photo of a chicken broccoli rice casserole, top down view
made it? tap the stars to add your rating!
5 from 3 votes
Yield: 8 servings
Ready In: 1 hour hr
There is nothing quite as home-y and comforting as a Chicken, Broccoli and Rice Casserole, if you ask me. It's the dish that reminds me of weeknight meals during my childhood, church potlucks and having babies.
I make mine without any condensed cream soups, but use lean chicken breast, fresh mushrooms and plenty of broccoli instead. If you prefer, you can make this bake with brown rice or a wild rice mix instead of the white my recipe calls for – it's the one traditional ingredient I couldn't break away from.
My kids adore this recipe – the creamy (and not mushy!) rice, picking out their favorite bits (broccoli! I'm not even kidding) and the melty cheese… This is pure soul food to us!
Print Comment Review

Recommended Equipment:

  • Large Skillet
  • Casserole Dish

Ingredients

  • 12- oz package long grain rice (cooked according to package directions)
  • ¼ cup butter (divided)
  • 1 pound chicken breast (diced)
  • 1 small onion (chopped)
  • ½ pound mushrooms (sliced)
  • ½ teaspoon dried garlic powder
  • ¼ teaspoon celery salt
  • ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
  • 4 tablespoons flour
  • 1 ½ – 2 cups chicken broth
  • 1 cup evaporated milk
  • 1 head broccoli (in florets)
  • 8- oz package cream cheese
  • 2 cups shredded cheese (American, cheddar, mozzarella… whatever you like)
Prep Time: 30 minutes mins
Cook Time: 30 minutes mins
Ready In: 1 hour hr

Instructions

  • Prep: Preheat the oven to 375F. Lightly grease a deep 9×13 inch casserole dish.
  • Sauté chicken and aromatics: Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until lightly browned on all sides. Stir in onion and mushrooms, cook until softened, about 5 minutes.Stir in garlic powder, celery salt, dried thyme and remaining butter.
    cooking mushrooms and chicken for a casserole
  • Make sauce:
    Stir in flour, making sure no more streaks of dry flour are visible. Pour in 1.5 cups broth and 1 cup evaporated milk, stirring well until smooth.
    skillet with cream sauce, chicken and mushrooms, red spatula stirring
  • Add broccoli and cheeses:
    Stir in broccoli and simmer for 5 minutes, adding up to ½ cup extra broth if it looks dry. Take off the heat and stir in cream cheese, 1 cup shredded cheese and rice.
    broccoli, mushrooms and chicken in creamy sauce in a sauté pan, red spatula stirring
  • Assemble: Place rice mix into the prepared casserole dish. Top with remaining 1 cup of cheese.
    spreading chicken broccoli rice casserole mix in a white casserole dish
  • Bake: Bake uncovered at 375F for 20-30 minutes, or until cheese has melted and casserole is bubbly.
    filled white casserole dish on a wooden board, spoon in
Add Your Review

Nora’s Tips

Ingredient Notes:

Rice: I used a white parboiled rice, but feel free to use whatever long-grain variety you prefer (wild rice mix, brown rice…). Keep in mind: A brown rice may soak up more liquid from the casserole, so you may need to add some extra broth or evaporated milk.
Chicken: You can use shredded rotisserie chicken, leftover turkey or canned chicken on place of the raw diced chicken breast.
Mushrooms: If you’re not a fan, just leave them out! You can also use canned sliced mushrooms in place of the fresh.
Celery salt: I’m not sure how common it is to have celery salt on hand these days (I’m an old lady in many ways). If you don’t have it, just leave it out. You can also add a few pinches of poultry seasoning instead, if you have that in your pantry.
Evaporated milk: If you don’t have evaporated milk, you can also use regular milk. It will not be quite as creamy though, and the sauce splits a bit more easily, so be careful during cooking. Whole milk works out best, 2% or 1% milk still work though.
Broccoli: Frozen broccoli florets are a good substitute for the fresh. No need to defrost, just simmer them for a few minutes in the sauce as you would fresh broccoli. Frozen broccoli tends to be a bit mushier than fresh, so that’s an outcome you’re going to have to live with if you plan on using frozen.
Note: This recipe can be made gluten free if you use cornstarch instead of the flour called for, HOWEVER, please check ALL of your ingredients to make sure they are certified gf before using them (especially the chicken broth!).

Cooking Tips:

If you have lumps in the sauce: If you have lumps in the sauce, use a whisk to try and get as many out as you can.
To prevent lumps in the first place, make sure to stir in the flour until no more dry streaks are visible!

Make Ahead Instructions:

I make this casserole up to 3 days ahead of time.
Assemble the full casserole right up to the final baking step, let it cool for 30 minutes at room temperature, then cover tightly with cling film and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
To bake, remove the casserole from the oven, unwrap and let sit on the counter while the oven preheats.
Bake as directed in the recipe, though you may need to add an extra 5-10 minutes to the baking time as the casserole is cold from the fridge.

Freezer Instructions:

You can freeze this casserole for up to 3 months.
Assemble the full casserole right up to the final baking step, let it cool for 30 minutes at room temperature, then cover tightly first with cling film and then with aluminum foil. Label with the name and use-by date (freeze for up to 3 months) before placing in the freezer.
To heat from frozen: Remove the casserole from the freezer and unwrap. Loosely cover with aluminum foil and bake in the preheated oven for 60 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 15 minutes, or until the cheese has melted and the casserole is bubbly.

Serve this with:

A Chicken, Broccoli Rice Casserole is generally a full meal packed into one dish. That being said, I do enjoy adding something fresh to the meal.
We’ll either have a leafy green salad with my Homemade Ranch Salad Dressing or Honey Mustard Salad Dressing. Or I’ll serve a fruit salad for dessert – usually my Winter Fruit Salad because we mostly have this casserole during the colder months.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/8 of recipe | Calories: 487kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 130mg | Sodium: 667mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 6g

More recipe information

Cuisine: American
Course: Uncategorized
Join my Newsletter to Get Recipes in Your Inbox
scooping chicken and rice casserole from a dish
close up photo of a plate with chicken broccoli casserole

More Casserole Recipes You’ll Love:

overhead close up view of gnocchi bake in white casserole dish
Easy Bolognese Gnocchi Bake
Chicken Florentine Pasta Casserole in a enamel casserole dish with a silver spoon.
Lazy Mom’s Chicken Florentine Pasta Casserole
black pan with chicken tamale pie, topped with avocado and tomato
Cheesy Cornbread Chicken Tamale Pie Casserole
overhead view of white casserole dish with turkey noodles
Leftover Turkey Noodle Casserole
slice of spaghetti bake scooped out of casserole dish
Baked Spaghetti Casserole
female hand lifting slice of hash brown breakfast casserole out of casserole dish
Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole

Nora Rusev from Savory Nothings
About Nora 
When I got married to my professional chef husband, I realized I had to step up my game in the kitchen. Now I share my favorite foolproof family recipes here on Savory Nothings: Chef-approved, kid-vetted and easy enough for everyday home cooks like you and me!   Learn more.

Reader Interactions

glazed pumpkin scones on white plate

< Previous Post

sliced turkey breast on a platter with lemon slices and fresh rosemary

Next Post >

Add a Review or Ask a Question Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Made this recipe? Rate it:




Comments

  1. Sandy says

    February 24, 2023 at 3:00 am

    5 stars
    Loved! Made it gluten free with just the gluten free flour I had on the ready. Use red heavy whipping cream instead of evaporated and it was still perfect

    Reply
    • Nora says

      March 04, 2023 at 11:47 am

      I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Sandy!

      Reply
  2. Jennifer Piercy says

    November 26, 2019 at 4:14 am

    Hi Nora – made this tonight and it was so good – everyone liked it, even the suddenly-picky 10 year old. Thanks for getting us out of our take-out rut! ❤

    Reply
    • Nora Rusev says

      January 01, 2020 at 11:46 pm

      I’m so happy to hear this, Jennifer! Thank you for coming back to leave a review, I appreciate it very much!

      Reply

Primary Sidebar

Nora Rusev from Savory Nothings

welcome to

logo for the Savory Nothings brand

Hi, I'm Nora! I wasn't always a good cook, but then I fell in love with a professional chef and learned my way around the kitchen. Now I share all my secrets to effortlessly great food here on my blog, bite-sized for home cooks just like me and you.

More about me →

Thanksgiving Recipes

  • female hands holding a white pan filled with dinner rolls
    Easy Homemade Dinner Rolls
  • white bowl with glazed carrots on bright surface
    Honey Butter Thyme Crockpot Glazed Carrots
  • skillet with sautéed green beans and wooden spoon
    Easy Sautéed Green Beans
  • slice of apple pie topped with vanilla ice cream on white plate
    Classic Apple Pie

see all >

Popular

  • overhead close up view of garlic parmesan oven fried chicken piece on black pan
    Garlic Parmesan Crispy Oven Fried Chicken
  • overhead view of three oven baked chicken breasts in white casserole dish
    Oven Baked Chicken Breast
  • overhead close up photo of a piece of oven fried chicken on a black sheet pan
    Crispy Oven Fried Chicken
  • overhead close up photo of chocolate chip baked oats
    TikTok Baked Oats: 6 Ways!
  • white bowl with rigatoni bolognese
    One Pot Rigatoni Bolognese
  • chicken tacos on wooden platter
    Southwestern Crockpot Chicken Tacos
  • casserole dish with shepherd's pie
    Homemade Shepherd’s Pie
  • close up photo of a sliced banana bread
    Whole Wheat Cinnamon Crunch Banana Bread

Trending on Pinterest

  • Balsamic Chicken Marinade
  • Swedish Meatballs
  • Mexican Beef and Rice Skillet
  • Instant Pot Pot Roast
  • Homemade Salisbury Steak
  • About
  • Contact

Footer

Footer

Follow Along













Recipes

Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Sides
Dessert
Appetizers

Instant Pot
Slow Cooker
One Pot
Casseroles
Ground Beef
Chicken

Featured On

different logos of publications Savory Nothings' content has been featured on

↑ back to top

About | Contact | Work with Us

Copyright Savory Nothings © 2023

Made with lots of love and spices ♥︎
PRIVACY POLICY | ACCESSIBILITY STATEMENT |
As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Email
  • Yummly
  • Mix