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This Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole is made with rice, chicken breasts, cheddar cheese, cream of chicken soup, water, and seasonings. You will love this easy and delicious comfort food meal.
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This Chicken and Rice Casserole has been in our family for years. Whenever I serve it to my family, I am reminded of my Grandma Edwards. She made this dish all the time. It was always a favorite of ours when we went to her home for dinner. Isn’t it interesting that food can take you back to a time and place? One bite of this casserole and I am a 7-year old girl sitting with my parents and siblings around my Grandma’s kitchen table eating delicious food, enjoying the conversation, and wondering what delightful dessert is awaiting us. I love food memories!
Not only does this chicken and rice casserole taste good, the aroma that fills the house while it is cooking will have everyone asking when dinner will be ready. This is definitely a dish I would label as comfort food. The rice mixture is warm and creamy, and the chicken always turns out perfectly moist, never dry.
How to Make Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole
Putting this chicken and rice casserole all together couldn’t be easier! Here’s how to layer all the ingredients before baking:
- Spray 9×13 pan with cooking spray.
- Layer uncooked rice, 1 cup shredded cheese, salt, and pepper in pan.
- Place chicken breasts on top. Drop rounded teaspoons of cream of chicken soup over the chicken breasts and rice.
- Pour water on top and sprinkle with onion soup mix.
That’s it! The casserole is ready to put in the oven! Simply bake at 350-degrees F for 1 hour, uncovered.
Recipe Tips and Variations
Choose the right chicken: You can use boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs. If the chicken is more than 1″ thick, pound them flat or cut them in half lengthwise. You can also cut the chicken into smaller portioned pieces for easier eating. Before removing the chicken from the oven, use a meat thermometer in the thickest part of the chicken breast to ensure the chicken reaches the USDA recommended safe internal temperature of 165 degrees (Fahrenheit).
Use the right rice: Long-grain white rice is a good choice for casseroles as it tends to absorb flavors well. You can also use Jasmine rice, basmati rice, or even wild rice. We have tried making this with brown rice and we can never get it to cook well enough without also drying out the chicken.
Add vegetables: Enhance the flavor and nutrition of your casserole by adding vegetables like carrots, peas, bell peppers, broccoli, or mushrooms.
Seasoning: Try using a mix of herbs and spices such as thyme, rosemary, garlic, onion powder, and paprika to season the dish. You can also add onion powder and garlic powder. Salt and pepper are essential for flavor.
Broth or stock: Instead of just water, use chicken broth or stock to cook the rice. This adds depth of flavor to the dish.
Try a different soup: You don’t necessarily need to stick to cream of chicken soup for the creamy sauce. Cream of mushroom soup, cheese soup, and cream of celery soup also taste great in this casserole.
Cream of chicken substitute: If you are not a fan of using “cream of” soups from a can, try our recipe for Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup Substitute. It is creamy and flavorful without the modified food starch and/or monosodium glutamate (MSG).
Save a little time: If you want to save a little time and also ensure you don’t get crunchy rice, boil the water/chicken broth or stock evenly over the casserole ingredients before baking. Cover with aluminum foil to trap in the heat and then bake– you can cut the time by 10-15 minutes by doing this trick.
Rest before serving: Allow the casserole to rest for a few minutes after removing it from the oven. This helps the flavors meld and makes it easier to serve.
Garnish: Garnish with fresh parsley or chopped green onion or chives to add a little color to the dish.
Shredding the Chicken Before Serving
If you have younger kids at home or just want to make this casserole easier to eat, try shredding the chicken before serving. Shredding the chicken after cooking makes the chicken have an even distribution throughout the dish. It also creates a tender texture and helps the chicken get more of the flavors from the creamy sauce. Shredded chicken blends seamlessly with the other ingredients, making it easier to serve and appealing to picky eaters, especially kids. Plus it helps you get all the flavors of the casserole in each bite!
5-Star Reviews
“I made this for a dinner party last night. It was DELICIOUS. I followed the recipe exactly but gave it 5-10 more minutes to bake. So very easy, I put it in the oven just before folks showed up and it was ready an hour later! YUM” – Nan
“I’ve been coming back to this recipe very often since I’ve found it! It’s delicious and really easy:)” – Lizzy P
“This was delicious and easy to make! I used chicken broth instead of water and added a little more cheese then recommended. I will definitely be making this again! Thank you for the recipe!” – Erica
Frequently Asked Questions
As you can see from the number of comments below, this has been a very popular and loved recipe by our readers. To save you some time going through the comments, here are some quick answers to some of the commonly asked questions about our Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole.
Yes, cream of mushroom and cream of celery both taste great in this recipe.
Yes, chicken broth will add even more flavor. You can also use a combination of water and chicken broth.
No. That is one of the great things about this recipe! The chicken cooks along with the rice.
Read Next: Spaghetti Casserole
What to Serve with this Casserole
I prefer to serve this Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole with cooked vegetables on the side in the winter months, and in the summer months, I serve it with a large garden salad. Try some of these delicious recipes that go perfectly with this casserole:
Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole
Video
Ingredients
- 6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
- 2 cups uncooked rice not Minute Rice
- 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese divided
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 2 (10.5 oz) cans cream of chicken soup undiluted
- 3 cups water
- 1 packet Lipton Onion Soup Mix
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 9×13 pan with cooking spray. Layer rice, 1 cup shredded cheese, salt, and pepper in pan.If your chicken breasts are thicker than 1", cut them in half lengthwise or pound them flat with a mallet so they cook thoroughly and evenly. Place chicken breasts on top. Daub rounded teaspoons of cream of chicken soup over the chicken breasts and rice.
- Pour water on top and sprinkle with onion soup mix.
- Bake uncovered for 1 hour.
- Remove from oven, and stir excess sauce into the rice. Sprinkle with remaining ½ cup cheese.
Notes
- If using brown rice, add 15 minutes to baking time.
- In a hurry? Boil the water before pouring over the top. Quickly cover with foil to trap in the heat and bake as directed. This can save you up to 15 minutes of cooking time.
- The USDA recommends keeping leftover cooked chicken for a maximum of four days.
- After cooking and consuming your tender chicken, take your leftovers from your baking dish or your casserole dish and place in an airtight container where it can remain safely for up to four days in the fridge. Enjoy!
Would there be any way you could use hash browns
Instead of rice? Not a rice lover? Thanks for advice.
I don’t see why not? That actually sounds really good!
Would you recommend adding broccoli to it?
Yes, its great with broccoli!
My mom used to make this when we were growing up, only she tightly covered the casserole with foil before baking. Also, the addition of salt is unnecessary since the onion soup mix is already salty.
Just wondering if you don’t use Minute Rice what rice would you suggest?
Just the regular long-grain white rice…
What if all I have is minute rice ?
It will work with minute rice, you will just want to stir it in after the chicken has already been cooking for about 30 minutes. Thanks for asking!
Did anyone try using milk instead of water?
This looks delicious! Do have any advice on how I could go about adding zucchini and squash to this recipe? Or would you advise against it all together? I’m just trying to save time and not have to prepare veggies separately and any recipe I can find where zucchini and squash are included doesn’t look anywhere near as good as this does 🙂
I would just chop them up and add them in before you cook it, they will cook in the casserole. That actually sounds really yummy!
I’m sick. When I feel like this I want salt, a lot of salt. Taking advantage of a casserole for dinner is a perfect answer for the exhaustion from a cold. There isn’t an easier recipe for Chicken and Rice anywhere! It turned out perfect! There is quite a bit of left overs, because it is just two ofus eating. Recommend stirring before serving.
Made this tonight. Everyone enjoyed it! Thanks! I think next time I’ll mix the rice, seasonings, and soup together first though, there were too many patches of dry rice and then others of straight cream of chicken. Thanks for the easy and delicious dinner!!
I am preparing to cook this this evening. I know the hubby will love it! Thanks fo sharing it
Any chance anyone has tried freezing this? We love this recipe and I make it every other week or so. I wanted to make up a few dishes to throw in the freezer before baby arrives, but wasn’t sure.
Yes, I have frozen it! It worked out great.
I noticed you did not mention to cover with foil while baking. I was just curious why you did not cover with foil?
You read correctly, this recipe does not require covering with foil.
I substituted organic brown Texmati rice, cream of mushroom soup and chicken broth for the water. I did add 1/2 cup broth after an hour in order to finish the rice and then cooked it for another 15 minutes. Delicious!
I tried this tonight, and it turned out wonderful! I did substitute a can of Campbell’s Cheddar Cheese soup for one of the Cream of Chicken, and didn’t add any of the cheese. Also added a can of Rotel!
Do you think it would tastes as good made with a ranch packet instead of the onion packet???
It is not going to taste the same, but give it a try and let us know how it turns out!
I was going to ask the same thing. I have an onion allergy, and sub ranch for onion soup mix when I can. I’ll try it and let you know. 🙂
This was really good.I made it easier and used a rotisserie chicken.Cooked the rice separate then added all the other ingredients ,including shredded chicken, in a casserole and baked with a panko bread topping.I did only use a little of the package of onion soup as the chicken already had seasonings.My family loved it.It’s also a winner at potlucks.
How much of the water did you use?
Does this rice cook all the way? I have a chicken/rice recipe that someone gave me that I tried a couple of times and my rice was never cooked all the way through. I would just like to know before I cook it.
It should cook all the way through. I have never made it and had the rice NOT cooked through. If you are worried about it, add more liquid and cooking time.
I mixed my liquids poured over rice and then laid chicken on top – make sure pan or casserole dish is large enough – need room for liquid and rice to cook
I just cooked this and it looked so good . I must say to make sure that you first put some liquid on the bottom of your dish because my rice did not cook at all
I’m just learning how to cook and I made this for my family tonight! My two kids under five LOVED it. I think I might skip the salt next time – the onion soup mix and crm of ckn seemed to have plenty of sodium…I don’t think the recipe would miss it! Thanks for the post!
Just wanted you to know I found this recipe on Pinterest, had the chicken thawed out so made it last night for dinner. My entire family loved it, even my son who hates rice, he had 2 servings! This is a new family favorite, fast, easy and loved by all. Thanks so much for sharing it!
i love your recipes but, i would love to know how many people it would feed. with a big family i usually need to know if i have to double or triple recipes
It makes 4-6 pretty good sized servings. It would be one full chicken breast half for each person.
Could I add chicken broth to it for moisture?
Yes, that would be the perfect thing to add if you want more moisture. Thanks for asking!
Have you ever added veggies to this? Broccoli, green beans or frozen peas?
We haven’t done that before but I don’t see why not if you think it is something you and your family would enjoy! If you try it, come back and let us know how it turns out 🙂
I make this for my family alot. I have a fanly of 7 and sometimes 9. I just cut the chicken breasts in half so you use 4 chicken breasts for 8 people and i use 2 cups of rice. It is usually PLENTY. Use a nice big pan for this dinner. ♡
Making this tonight! Thank you for posting. Looks good! I love your website!
I just put the chicken and rice in the oven. It seems like there is a lot of water in this recipe,, eg, 3 cups. Does it evaporate?
The rice actually absorbs the water. It makes the rice nice and fluffy. Be sure not to drain any of the water out or it will for sure get too dry. Hope this helps!
Can this be made in a instapot?
I’ve never used an instant pot for this recipe, but I’m sure you could! Let me know how it goes if you try it!