We may earn a commission when you click on the affiliate links in this post.
Easy Chicken Casserole lives up to its name; easy to make, easy to eat and easy to clean up! Perfect dinner for busy weeknights when nothing but “easy” will do.
An Easy Chicken Dinner
Every family has a go-to chicken casserole, and this is mine! Just layer uncooked chicken, uncooked instant rice, condensed soups, and butter into one pan, then cover and bake. The rice cooks right into the creamy sauce and the chicken is tender and juicy. It’s a true dump-and-bake dinner with almost no prep.
I have used this recipe for the past twenty-five years as a simple weeknight meal. My family loves it and it works great during the school year when we are juggling homework, sports, church activities, and chores. The delicious taste and ease of the meal keeps it on the menu.
❤️ Echo
Ingredients
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts – Cut into uniform bite-size pieces.
- Instant white rice – I use Minute Rice.
- Condensed soups – Cream of Chicken, Cream of Celery, Cream of Mushroom, French Onion. The French Onion soup adds a deeper savory flavor to the cream soups.
- Butter – Melted and drizzled over the chicken and rice.
No Precooked Chicken or Rice Required
This is the beauty of this casserole – nothing has to be precooked! It is a dump-and-bake casserole. It’s so easy to make, I don’t recommend making it ahead or freezing it for later. The rice will start to soften in the soups and it will throw off the cooking time. The cream soups also don’t freeze well.
Using instant rice is essential in this recipe. Don’t substitute for another type of rice or it won’t cook evenly with the chicken.
Substitutes for Canned Soups
If you’re not keen on using condensed soups in a recipe, we have created two delicious homemade versions of Cream of Chicken and Cream of Mushroom Soups. They’re super easy to make, and taste much richer and fresher and have way less sodium than canned brands. For the other canned soups called for, you can opt for low sodium options, which still taste delicious.
Step by Step Instructions
- Coat a 9×13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. For easier clean-up, line the pan with foil and spray the foil.
- Whisk the soups together with water in a mixing bowl.
- Pour half of the soup mixture into the prepared casserole dish.
- Layer the rice evenly over the soup.
- Distribute cut chicken over the rice evenly and in a single layer.
- Drizzle melted butter over the chicken and rice.
- Pour the remaining soup mixture over the chicken, rice, and butter.
- Cover the casserole with foil sealing the edges tightly. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Don’t peek while baking.
- Remove the foil and using a wooden spoon, gently stir the casserole.
- Sprinkle with parsley as a garnish. Optionally add salt and pepper as desired.
Frequently Asked Questions
I don’t recommend using cooked chicken as it will toughen and dry out. This recipe was designed for the chicken to cook at the same pace as the rice so it is tender and juicy.
Store leftover casserole in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Use within 3 days.
No, this recipe works best with instant rice. It cooks to perfection along with the chicken and absorbs the flavors of the soups beautifully. It surprisingly doesn’t have the taste or consistency of instant rice in the casserole.
The rice can be crunchy if it isn’t fully mixed in with the soups. It needs to absorb the moisture. It can also be crunchy if it hasn’t cooked for the full time or if the foil wasn’t sealed tightly enough to trap the steam as it cooks.
Read Next: Spaghetti Casserole
What to Serve with Easy Chicken Casserole
I always serve this casserole with a side vegetable and a large green salad to keep the overall meal on the healthier side. Try a few of these delicious side dish recipes that pair perfectly with this casserole:
- Waldorf Salad
- Best Oven Roasted Asparagus
- Oven Roasted Green Beans
- Creamy Pea Salad with Bacon
- How to Cook Frozen Corn
- How to Cook Frozen Peas
- Oven Roasted Vegetables
Easy Chicken Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts , cut into bite size pieces
- 3 1/2 cups instant white rice, I use Minute Rice
- 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
- 1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
- 1 can condensed cream of celery soup
- 1 can condensed French onion soup
- 1 can water, use empty soup can to measure
- 1/4 cup butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare 9×13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Optional to line with aluminum foil for easy clean up.
- In a bowl, whisk together all the soups and the water. Pour half of soup mixture in the bottom of the baking dish.
- Add rice evenly over the soup mixture.
- Evenly place the chicken pieces on top of the rice.
- Drizzle the melted butter over the chicken.
- Pour remaining soup mixture over chicken and rice. Be sure the rice is completely covered.
- Cover entire dish with aluminum foil, sealing it well around the edges of the pan. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
- Remove aluminum foil cover from the pan. Use a wooden spoon to stir the casserole before serving. If using foil on the bottom of the pan, be careful not to tear the foil.
Equipment
- 9×13 inch pan
Notes
Recipe Tips:
- We have created two delicious homemade versions of Cream of Chicken and Cream of Mushroom Soups if you prefer homemade soups in this recipe. They’re super easy to make, and taste much richer and fresher and have way less sodium than those canned brands.
- For the other canned soups called for, you can opt for low sodium options, which still taste delicious.
- Cleanup with be so easy if you line the bottom of the pan with foil. It can be removed after serving and the baking dish needs little to no cleaning, scrubbing, or soaking.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Love this recipe?
We want to hear from you! Please leave a review.
I love this recipe.
This is the perfect weeknight meal! So easy and always a family favorite!
This casserole is straight up comfort food! Yummy and cozy!
This came out so good! We followed the directions exactly and it was perfect! The whole family loved it!
Love all the different flavors in this! The rice makes it filling & hearty. We added some veggies too!
This is exactly what I needed at this busy time of year! Great flavors and so darn easy!!
An all in one dinner! Love that the rice is combined with the chicken. Great combo! Would love this paired with some vegetables.
Mmm this is one of my favorite fall recipes. Just warm, delicious, comforting dish that fills you up for a day.
I love casseroles and chicken and rice is my favorite! Great recipe
This seriously couldn’t have been any easier to make. Delicious, too!
Delicious and great flavor. Super easy!!
What size of cans of soup did you guys use? I don’t want to use too much or too little.
It’s the 10.5 ounce soup can (the smaller size soup can, not the family size). Thanks for asking!
Typically the cans are 10.5 ounces. Hope this helps!
oh my goodness! Just make it as written! Yum!
Can this be made with pre cooked chicken?
Yes 🙂 The chicken might be a little dry though depending on what kind of pre cooked chicken you are using.
If I wanted to add a layer of veggies to it, would it be before or after the chicken?
You could do it with the chicken.. or before. If you do it after the veggies will get too dried out I think
I’m cooking this as we speak… I’m on like the last 15 minutes… And I checked it and it still looks pretty soupy. Is that just because I haven’t stirred it? ????
Yes, stir it once it’s done cooking and it should be fine. Thanks for asking!
I have made this dish many times. I love it. However, the only difference in mine is that it called for 8oz of sour cream.
How much sour cream? Add to the soup mixture?
Can you substitute the cream of mushroom with cream if chicken instead (so 2 cream of chicken instead of 1?)
Yes, you can just do a direct substitute chicken for mushroom 🙂
Ok, so I can use regular rice instead of instant, just reduce the amount to 2 cups?
Going to make it tonight.
Yes! I hope you enjoy it.
How about just using a disposable aluminum pan?
That would work great if you have one on hand. Be sure to support the bottom when taking it out of the oven – or use a cookie sheet underneath. Thanks for asking!
Have you tried freezing this casserole? If yes, did you freeze it prior to or post baking? Thanks!
Yes- you want to freeze it before baking. Then you can thaw it out and bake it when you are ready.
Is the rice already cooked, or straight out of the box?
The rice is un-cooked. It cooks as it bakes.
What’s the sodium content? It seems like it may be a bit high. If that’s the case, are their ways to reduce it?
You can use low sodium versions of all of the canned soups to reduce the sodium content. Thanks for asking!
Can this be made in the crockpot? Please reply. Thank you!
Anything can be made in a crockpot
I am assuming that this is “raw” chicken that you are putting in this dish? Sounds very good, but want to make sure about chicken.
Yes! The chicken is raw. Thanks for asking!
I was just asking myself the same question…. Glad to see I wasn’t the only one thinking that…. LOL
Can you use long grain rice instead?
Yes, but reduce the amount of rice in the casserole to 2 cups instead of 3 1/2. Thank you for asking!
Is there a way to make this in the crockpot?
This is a good question Cindy! I’d love to know the answer too.
What is the sodium content in this casserole? It seems as though it would be very high per serving, seeing that the recipe calls for 4 cans of condensed soup.
Use sodium free if ur concerned and will be just as yummy.
Thanks Angela for asking! My hands swell when I have too much sodium!!!