I’ll bet that if you live in the South (and probably most anywhere in the US), you’ve had something akin to the Broccoli, Chicken & Rice Casserole. It’s just such a simple and tasty classic! Naturally, anything with tons of melted cheese and covered in buttery crackers is going to garner a great deal of attention, and rightfully so!
We really loved this dish! I really like that it’s a whole meal in itself, and it’s so filling! Plus, with only a few ingredients, many of which you already have on hand, this is a great budget-friendly dish too. Like any casserole, it’s simple to put together, only taking about 10 minutes to prepare and then 30ish minutes to cook. Great for weeknights!
Broccoli Chicken & Rice Casserole
Ingredients
- 8 oz. bag of frozen broccoli, thawed
- 4 chicken tenderloins (or breasts, about 1 lb total)
- 1 1/2 c grated cheddar cheese
- 1 can cream of chicken soup
- 1/2 sleeve Ritz crackers, crushed
- 1 c rice
- 3/4 c milk
- 2 Tbsp melted butter
Directions
- Cut chicken into cubes and cook them halfway in a skillet with salt and pepper and set aside. It's okay that they're still pink inside, they'll finish cooking in the oven.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- In a large bowl, combine broccoli, cream of chicken, 1 cup of cheese, rice, and milk. Then add chicken.
- Pour mixture into a sprayed casserole dish. Top with remaining 1/2 cup of cheese.
- Crush the Ritz crackers in a Ziploc bag. Mix together crumbs and melted butter. Sprinkle on top of the casserole.
- Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the rice is completely cooked and the casserole is bubbling.
All images copyright Normal Cooking (http://normalcooking.com)
Source: Table for Two
When I had a mall brick and mortar diner about 8 years ago, I had run out of some ingredients for the day’s special so took a chance on what I had on hand and came up with a recipe similar to this – though yours sounds even better!
To make a long story short, as they say, I took a chance serving my Rice with Chicken & Broccoli special and it became one of the most “asked for” things I offered there.
Great recipe, thanks!
Jan 🙂
YUM!!!
I HAVE ALL THE IGREDIENTS EXCEPT BROCOLLI I WILL TRT
Let us know what you think!
I want to try this, but do you use uncooked rice? Just want to be sure I do it right the first time 🙂
Hi Sam! Yes you do use uncooked rice. It will cook in the oven. Before you serve it, just test and make sure the rice is not still crunchy! If it is, it just needs to bake a little longer. Happy cooking!
Regular old fashioned rice or minuet rice? I used old fashioned plane jane white rice and never could get it cooked all the way through. Tried with foil covering and without foil and neither seemed to help 🙁
I used minute rice (because that’s usually the only kind I have in the house), but I didn’t think it would matter! I’m so sorry it didn’t work for you! Anyone else experience this? Just didn’t know if I should change it on the recipe if many people are having trouble with rice cooking through.
I looked at several recipes like this one, and the rice was cooked first before it was added to the casserole. Of course the most used rice was brown rice because it is much better for you.
this can be made vegetarian. by using cream of celery soup and adding tofu and/or additional vegs. cauliflower, carrots, peas etc. I have a vegetarian wife and she loves this when made with the veggies.
Thanks for the tip, Pat! Definitely good to know if you’re cooking for vegetarians.
Can I use cooked rice? This looks so good I am going to make it.
I think that would be fine! You could probably bake it for less time than the recipe says. Just make sure the chicken is cooked all the way through and the crackers get a little golden on top.
Just as a heads up for all. I use boxed rice mix from either Rice a Roni or Knorr’s. This already has the seasoning in it.
Did you like it with the seasoning in it? Would you recommend using the boxed rice?
I would boil or poach the chicken breasts, season with a little salt (may add a little chicken broth or Swanson’s flavor boost packet) to water, cook until tender…usually 30-40 minutes (test with fork), drain, cool, & cube. Also, cook rice ahead of time plus broccoli ahead of time. Will take about 30 minutes to bake in oven. Bake a chicken pot pie in oven for 1 hour & always cook chicken like this the night before…..cool & put in ziplock bag overnight so easier to put together next day. Do broccoli casserole & cook broccoli night before & put together in casserole dish, cover, & refridge night before & set out 30 minutes prior to baking. Could put this one together night before, also.
Sorry comment sooo long …….you are welcome to omit, shorten or whatever. Thought “TIP” may be of help. ENJOY YOUR RECIPES….FROM SOUTHEAST KY.
Thanks Linda!
I made this tonight and it was so good! My husband loved it. Thank you for sharing.
Kim
Thanks Kim! Glad it was a hit!
Cover it?
No need to cover. You want those cracker crumbs to get nice and golden.
This looks delicious! I love the fact that the ingredients are all easy to find and there’s not too much preparation required.
Your photos are lovely too 😀
These rice recipes are so good; However, rice drives your blood sugar so bad.
You could use crumbled cauliflower rather than the rice. You can buy it in the produce department at a Wal-Mart.
I’ve actually wanted to try several recipes with crumbled cauliflower but always thought it looked like way too much work. So thank you for sharing that it’s available at Wal Mart! I’ll definitely check that out!
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