This classic chicken and rice casserole recipe is a one pan meal that’s full of tender chicken and creamy rice, all baked together to golden brown perfection. A classic dinner that the whole family will enjoy.
Casseroles always hit the spot, my family enjoys chicken enchilada casserole, beef noodle casserole and this creamy chicken and rice dish.
This chicken and rice casserole is actually a family recipe that comes from my mother-in-law. It was my husband’s favorite dish growing up, and his mom always made it for company. It’s pretty old school with the canned soups, but sometimes you just need a little classic comfort food, and this casserole definitely fits the bill. How can you go wrong with tender chicken and ultra creamy rice?
How do you make chicken and rice casserole?
The other thing I love about this dish is that it can be made in one pan. The rice and soup mixture gets stirred together in the pan, then the chicken goes on top and gets drizzled with butter and seasonings. You may be wondering why this dish includes butter since it also has creamy soup. The butter helps the chicken brown during the last part of the baking process, and it adds such great flavor to the rice! I season my chicken with salt, pepper and a little smoked paprika. If you have a favorite seasoning blend that would also be great on the chicken.
This chicken and rice casserole works best with bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces. If you use something like boneless skinless chicken breasts, they’ll dry out during the long bake time. I prefer to use dark meat chicken, like chicken thighs, drumsticks or legs. Here I’ve used a combination of thighs and drumsticks so that there’s something for everyone!
Chicken and rice casserole variations
You can add other flavors into this dish to make it your own, I often add other ingredients that I have on hand to spice things up a bit.
- Vegetables: Add 1 cup of vegetables such as sliced mushrooms, carrots or broccoli to the dish before it goes into the oven.
- Cheese: Sprinkle 3/4 cup of shredded cheese over the top during the last 10 minutes of the baking time.
My husband is thrilled that our kids love this casserole as much as he does. Add a green veggie on the side and you’ve got an easy dinner for those times when nothing will do except comfort food!
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More great chicken recipes
- Garlic & Herb Roasted Chicken
- Cajun Chicken Pasta
- Bacon Wrapped Chicken
- Honey Mustard Chicken
- Chicken Santa Fe
Chicken and rice casserole video
Chicken and Rice Casserole
Ingredients
- 6 bone-in skin-on chicken pieces such as legs, thighs or drumsticks
- 2 cups white rice
- 2 cups water
- 1 can cream of chicken soup
- 1 can cream of celery soup
- 1 can cream of mushroom soup
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon paprika regular or smoked paprika
- 3 tablespoons butter melted
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
- cooking spray
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9"x13" baking pan with cooking spray.
- Add the rice, water, and 3 cans of soup to the pan. Stir to combine.
- Place the chicken pieces on top of the rice mixture. Drizzle the butter over the chicken and rice.
- Season the chicken with salt, pepper and paprika.
- Cover with foil and bake for 1 1/2 hours. Increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Uncover and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes until all of the liquid is absorbed and chicken is browned. If you like extra crispy chicken skin, broil the casserole for 3-5 minutes after it's done baking.
- Sprinkle with parsley and serve.
Annette says
June 15, 2019 at 3:50 pmMy Aunt used to make something very similar to this that was one of my favorite recipes when growing up.
Can you cook this slightly longer (3 hours) at a slower temperature… like if you wanted to put it in before leaving for church to have ready for Sunday dinner?
Sara says
June 15, 2019 at 4:45 pmYes that should be just fine!
Dee says
May 20, 2019 at 12:45 pmSounds delicious and I want to try it but I don’t want to cook the chicken with the rice so how do I do this do I reduce the the liquid in the rice or do I just leave everything in the same except cooking chicken on the side
Sara says
May 20, 2019 at 2:20 pmSo you’re looking to cook the chicken in a separate dish? I”m not sure I understand the question.
Angel says
May 11, 2019 at 1:51 pmWanting to try tonight but wondering if I can use a different soup beside celery
Sara says
May 11, 2019 at 7:17 pmAny flavor cream soup will work!
Christy says
May 10, 2019 at 10:30 pmI made this in the middle of a super busy week but didnt have the 2+ hours to get it done so I used rotisserie chicken that i pulled apart real quick, boil in a bag rice, and also added some steamed mixed veggies. Baked it for 45 mins, added some cheese, baked a few more mins and it turned out delicious!!
Sharon Burgos says
May 2, 2019 at 5:38 amMade this last night with only a couple of tweaks. I used a 2nd pan (my cast iron skillet) and browned the chicken (thighs, bone-in, skin on) for 2-3 minutes on each side after sprinkling with seasonings (garlic powder, thyme, paprika and salt). The only other tweak I used: 2 cups of chicken broth, instead of water, AND I deglazed the cast iron skillet, after browning the chicken, with a little bit of the broth, about half a cup. Scraped up the brown bits and poured that back into the 2 cup measure before adding to the soups and rice. One more thing, I did not have Cream of Celery soup, so I used Cream of Corn soup instead. It was awesome! Cooked perfectly in just under 2 hours, but I did have to use a larger casserole dish than a 9×13. I had a few extra pieces of chicken that would have overflowed the 9×13.
Sara says
May 2, 2019 at 12:41 pmSo happy to hear you enjoyed it, thanks for reporting back!!
Bea says
April 29, 2019 at 2:49 pmThese family style recipes are always a crowd pleaser! I have updated this recipe and now use brown rice. Still tastes just as good and no one notices.
Diane says
April 11, 2019 at 3:05 pmMy mother, and I, have always made this with 1 cup of rice, the same 3 soups, and no water. Fabulous!
Lauren Palmer says
March 21, 2019 at 7:01 pmThis recipe is so good I used boneless skinless chicken breasts and added, mushrooms,onion,and broccoli to it. It’s sooooo good even my picky toddler eats it.
Sara says
March 21, 2019 at 8:58 pmSounds amazing, so glad you enjoyed it!
Laura says
March 4, 2019 at 8:17 amHi there. Assuming that regular rice means long grain? Sounds delicious and plan to make this evening.
Sara says
March 4, 2019 at 2:25 pmYes long grain rice!
Suzan says
March 2, 2019 at 3:54 pmHi there. I just came across you while searching for an answer. I am on a low carb food plan. I want to try substituting brown rice for white. In all my hours of searching I have only found one answer. I would like to get your opinion. It was suggested to parboil the brown rice for 9 minutes, strain, and continue with the recipe. What are your thoughts on this? I may try this with 1/2 cup of brown rice first to see how well it does. I don’t want to ruin the cassarole. Food prices are high enough. Thank you in advance.
Xoxo
Suzan
Sara says
March 3, 2019 at 1:53 pmI think that sounds totally fine to parboil the rice first, you could parboil for 10 minutes and that should work!
Robin says
February 28, 2019 at 3:32 pmLove this recipe! It’s one of my husband’s faves too:) I would really like to make in a Dutch oven because once all ingredients are combined in my largest Pyrex casserole dish it’s extremely full. If it’s not too much trouble can you advise on temperature and timing for a Dutch oven. It is a staple for our fam but does get a little old cleaning the overflow off the oven floor. Thanks for the help!
Sara says
February 28, 2019 at 5:46 pmIf you’re baking it, you can bake it the same way as you would in a casserole dish!
Amanda says
February 10, 2019 at 7:00 amCan you freeze? If so do you cook all the way through or cut off any steps?
Sara says
February 10, 2019 at 8:20 amYou can freeze it, just be aware the rice will be softer upon thawing and reheating!
Elesha says
November 26, 2018 at 4:12 pmKudos for such a great chicken and rice recipe! I added poultry seasoning and a little thyme. Instead of water , I used chicken broth and 1/2 cup more liquid than what’s called for. Wonderful! Thanks!
Sara says
November 26, 2018 at 8:38 pmSo glad to hear you enjoyed it, thanks for reporting back!
Pilar Williams says
January 14, 2019 at 9:57 amCan you use Boneless chicken for this?
Sara says
January 14, 2019 at 1:12 pmYes but you’ll need to reduce the cooking time accordingly!
Tom Young says
December 29, 2018 at 1:09 pmWe watch our Sodium intake because of history of heart issues. This is very high and assume it’s all the canned soups. Any suggestions for lowering the sodium level?
Sara says
December 29, 2018 at 7:58 amThey do make low sodium versions of the canned soup, I’d recommend trying it that way!
Frank says
November 12, 2018 at 12:29 pmI live in Colorado and it turns out very tasty but the texture was gluey. Served it up to raves but had to cover it in gravy. The baking pan is full when you bake so adding extra fluid is out. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll make it again but does anyone have a solution? Less rice?
Sara says
November 14, 2018 at 7:00 amThe rice is on the softer side due to the long baking time. You’d have to use smaller chicken pieces and reduce the baking time if you’re looking for firmer rice!
KENDRA says
January 13, 2019 at 10:05 pmTry minute rice, another half a can or whole can of soup and more water. I also use aluminum pans large enough for a turkey.
Paul says
March 11, 2019 at 2:48 pmSo I am guessing that I should not cook the minute rice prior to mixing it with the soups?
Sara says
March 11, 2019 at 9:01 pmThe rice goes in uncooked!
Rachel says
November 7, 2018 at 10:43 amAbsolutely delicious!! I’m a new mom, my husband and I both work, and I believe in eating a home cooked meal at least most nights of the week… This recipe is so simple, doesn’t take much effort to throw it together, and tastes awesome! It’s become one of my go-to dinners when I want a good dinner but don’t have much time. You can easily stir in some brocolli or other veggies for a complete, wholesome meal.
Sara says
November 7, 2018 at 12:16 pmSo glad you enjoy this one, thanks for reporting back!
Deb says
November 5, 2018 at 9:31 pmMy family loves this recipe!
Cheryl says
November 5, 2018 at 11:09 amThis looks so good but I’m allergic to mushrooms. Can I use 2 cans of cream of chicken soup or use cream of asparagus or cream of broccoli in place of the cream of mushroom soup?
Sara says
November 5, 2018 at 9:23 pmYes, any cream soup will work!
Jeff Kneser says
October 29, 2018 at 5:24 pmI make this similarly but use a mix of wild rice, brown, and jasmine. The rice and chicken are both cooked ahead of time in the chicken broth. I then add the soup, broccoli florets, and cover it all with grated cheese. Bake for about an hour. Tastes great.
Sara says
October 29, 2018 at 8:17 pmSounds great I’ll have to try it your way next time!