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!
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?
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!
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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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.
Elesha says
Kudos 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
So glad to hear you enjoyed it, thanks for reporting back!
Frank says
I 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
The 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!
Rachel says
Absolutely 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
So glad you enjoy this one, thanks for reporting back!
Deb says
My family loves this recipe!
Cheryl says
This 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
Yes, any cream soup will work!
Jeff Kneser says
I 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
Sounds great I’ll have to try it your way next time!
Mattie says
If iused mintue rice can i add it the last ten minutes of cooking time?
Sara says
My only concern with that is that the rice may not soak up the liquid in the same way that regular rice would over a longer baking time. You may end up with a soupy casserole.
Donna says
Can you add broccoli to the rice mixture? If so do I need to add more water? This looks so much like a recipe I had over 35 years ago.
Sara says
Yes you can add broccoli, you shouldn’t need to add more water!
Pam says
Can you substitute the cream of celery with on of the other soups?
Sara says
Absolutely, you can use whichever cream soup flavors you like!
Nancy says
Could I make this ahead of time? Thanks!
Sara says
Yes you can!
Sandra May says
All I have is boneless/skinless chicken thighs on hand. Should I cut the baking time down so they don’t dry out? Or add them later after the rice cooks a bit?
Sara says
You can cut down the cooking time and it should work just fine!
terri says
Cut the baking time down to what? (For boneless, skinless, chicken thighs)
Sara says
I’d bake it for an hour, then uncover and bake for 15 minutes.
Lydia says
About to try this recipe! Would I have to use a rice measuring cup, or a regular measuring cup?
Sara says
I just use a regular measuring cup!
Momfromaz says
This was really good. First time I have made this kind of recipe and the rice did not turn out greasy. The rice was perfect and the chicken so tender. Definitely going to make again.
Tyler says
Can u put cooked rice in the cassoulet or it has to be uncooked
Tyler says
Can u use cooked rice or not or does it have to be un cooked
Sara says
It should be uncooked rice!
Katherine says
Best recipe I’ve tried in a long time! Have made this about 4 times in the past 6 weeks or so. It took a little experimenting to cut it down to 2-4 servings and still have the rice come out perfectly, but Wow! this is good. My husband and I like garlic, so added a few cloves diced fine. If you like Tarragon, try it with a few shakes in the rice mixture plus a little sprinkled on the chicken, makes a world of difference taste-wise plus the smell while it’s baking is mouth-watering!
Janet says
Lay chicken breasts on top of cooked yellow rice, add soups/ cup of wine, lay a slice of swiss cheese on top of each chicken, add bread crumbs then drizzle with melted butter. Delicious.
Stephanie Migletz says
Couldn’t I brown the chicken first which would probably cut the baking time?
Sara says
Yes you can brown the chicken first!
Jessica says
If I browned the chicken how much can I reduce the baking time? 1 hour covered, and half hour uncovered?
Sara says
Yes that should work!
Lynne says
I make a similar casserole using brown rice, chicken, celery, mushrooms, bullion cubes and water….Everything cooks up quite nice. Wonderful flavors…
Jerry says
Can I use minute rice?
Sara says
Regular rice is best as minute rice may be mushy due to the long cook time.
Eloisa says
Can you use any other meats like pork chops?
Sara says
I have not tried pork chops but would be concerned that they could dry out during the bake time unless you used a thick cut bone in chop.
Lara says
Can you use brown rice or jasmine rice? I’m assuming this isn’t instant rice?
Sara says
Yes any variety except instant will work!
Courtney says
Would this dish be ok to freeze? Reheat in oven or microwave?
Sara says
I have never tried freezing it before, if you decide to try it, please report back and let me know how it goes!
Krysten says
This sounds so incredibly good! Could you use brown rice instead of white? All I have on hand is brown.
Sara says
Brown rice should work just fine!
Margy says
Have you ever made this with boneless chicken breasts?
Sara says
I would recommend bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts, only because the boneless breasts will dry out during the long bake time.
Melissa @ Insider The Kitchen says
How long would it need to be cooked if I were to double the ingredients?
Sara says
This recipe as written fills up a 9×13 dish, you could probably squeeze in another couple of pieces of chicken with no ill effects but there likely wouldn’t be enough room in that size dish to double the rice. If you have a larger baking dish than 9×13 you can double the recipe, the cook time should be the same.
Darlene says
I know this will taste great but the amount of sodium in it is so very bad for my family due to congestion heart failure! I will need to figure out how to make it 38th less sodium!
Sara says
You can buy low sodium soups!
Bonnie Matthews says
You can make your own homemade condensed cream of soups also.
Char Stastny says
You could make a white sauce and use it instead of the soups, then you would be able to control the sodium. You could use the sauce that’s used in chicken a la king. I use the recipe in the Better Homes & Gardens cookbook.
Niki-Nik says
Agreed. The cream soups add a lot of salt. I will have to adjust it. Otherwise good weeknight dish.
Sharron Mankus says
My suggestion would be to combine a white sauce with low sodium soups for the liquid, use unsalted butter, and instead of salt & pepper, a no-salt seasoning (like Mrs. Dash.
Margaret says
Well done! Speaking as you mother in law, I have to say you have improved the old family recipe and made it even better! Yum!