This Creamy Cheesy Chicken and Rice is the ULTIMATE comfort food recipe. A rich cheesy sauce, coats wholesome brown rice and tender chicken. This chicken and rice casserole is one recipe that everyone loves.
I start this recipe with shredded leftover homemade rotisserie chicken and homemade chicken stock, but feel free to speed this meal up with store-bought stock and rotisserie chicken.
Creamy Cheesy Chicken and Rice
Do you have a favorite family recipe?
My family's all time favorite is Creamy Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole. It is a simple chicken and rice casserole that is easy to make, tastes extremely indulgent, and appeals to just about every palate--including children!!
Every single time I make this chicken and rice casserole, my family grins ear to ear! In fact, I have NEVER served this casserole to ANYONE who didn't love it. Truly, what is not to love? Tender chicken and rice are swimming in a rich, cheesy sauce. It is absolute comfort food!
Notes and Substitutions on Ingredients
- Chicken: Use pre-cooked chicken. This is a great time to use leftover Rotisserie Chicken, Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken, or Instant Pot Shredded Chicken.
- Chicken Stock: Use homemade chicken stock or store-bought stock. Low sodium is best to control the sodium content.
- White Wine: I love adding white wine to elevate the sauce, but it is completely optional. Feel free to use additional chicken stock in its place. If using wine, use a dry white wine such as chardonnay or pinot grigio.
- Herbs: I add in fresh thyme and garlic to really season this sauce. Both are optional and can be omitted for a more basic chicken and rice casserole.
- Cheese: I recommend shredded Colby or Cheddar cheese for the most flavor impact in this recipe.
- Rice: Use cooked white or brown rice. Whatever your family likes! You will need 4 cups of cooked rice, which is equivalent to about 1 cup of uncooked rice.
How to Make Chicken and Rice Casserole
This is a super simple chicken and rice casserole to prepare. Especially if you have leftover chicken and rice to start with.
Step One: Prepare the Sauce
This cheesy sauce starts with a roux. A roux is just a fancy term for a mixture of equal parts fat and flour and is used to thicken up sauces. It is as simple as melting the butter in a saucepan and whisking in flour. My tip is to always cook the roux for 1 minute to cook off raw flour taste, before adding in additional liquid.
Once the roux is made, whisk in wine and stock, seasonings and simmer until thickened.
Step Two: Prepare the Casserole
Mix in the cooked rice and chicken into the cheese sauce and then transfer to a buttered casserole dish. Top with additional cheese and bake until the cheese is melted through.
Variations on Cheesy Chicken and Rice
- Gluten-Free Chicken and Rice Casserole: If you need this to be gluten-free, use an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend in place of the all-purpose flour.
- Cheesy Chicken and Rice with Broccoli: Add in 2 cups of chopped steamed broccoli to the casserole before baking.
- Buffalo Chicken and Rice Casserole: Omit the thyme, white wine, and minced garlic from the recipe. Stir in ½ cup bleu cheese or ranch dressing, ⅓ cup hot sauce, 1 teaspoon paprika, and ½ teaspoon garlic powder into the cheese sauce along with the rice and chicken. Bake as directed.
- Lower Fat: To keep this recipe a bit on the lighter side, reduce the amount of cheese in half.
To Prepare in Advance
This chicken casserole is a great one to stock in your freezer. It bakes up perfectly from frozen, making it perfect to pop on a busy night or to take to a friend in need of a meal.
To prepare this casserole in advance, prepare up to baking. Cover tightly with 2 layers of foil. Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze up to 3 months.
- To bake from the fridge, remove casserole from the fridge and remove 1 layer of foil. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, letting the casserole sit on the counter while the oven preheats. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until warmed through.
- To bake from the freezer, remove casserole from freeze and remove 1 layer of foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 60 minutes covered and then uncovered for 15 additional minutes.
More Chicken and Rice Recipes
- Slow Cooker Lemon Garlic Chicken and Rice
- Mediterranean Chicken and Rice Skillet
- Homemade Orange Chicken
- Instant Pot Sweet and Sour Chicken
Creamy and Cheesy Chicken and Rice
Ingredients
- 4 Tbs butter
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped thyme optional
- ½ tablespoon fresh minced garlic
- ¼ cup all purpose unbleached flour
- ¼ cup white wine or additional chicken stock
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
- 4 cups cooked brown rice
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 3 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese divided
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter a 2 quart or 9x13 baking sheet.
- Melt butter into a medium saucepan over medium high heat.
- Stir in garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Whisk in flour, chopped thyme, salt and pepper and cook for 1 minute to cook off raw flour taste.
- Slowly pour in wine and chicken broth whisking continuously. Whisk until thick and nearly boiling.
- Reduce heat to medium low and then stir in 2 cups of cheese until melted. Turn off heat and stir in cooked rice and chicken.
- Transfer to a 9×13 inch baking dish. Top with remaining cheddar cheese and bake for 25-30 minutes or until cheese is melted through.
Equipment Needed
Notes
- If you don't have fresh thyme--do not worry!! It adds an extra layer of flavor that I enjoy but is completely not necessary. You can substitute ½ to 1 teaspoon of dried thyme leaves works as well. Do not use ground thyme. The flavor is overwhelming.
- White wine adds a rich depth of flavor to this chicken and rice casserole, but is not necessary, just replace it with an additional ¼ cup of chicken stock.
- This recipe has a lot of added garlic, feel free to cut the amount in half, if you are sensitive to high amounts of garlic.
- Store leftover chicken and rice casserole in a covered container for up to 3 days. Freeze for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
This recipe was the very first recipe published on my blog in February 2014. The pictures and recipe remain the same, but the post has been updated with tips, variations, and a new video in January of 2020.
Briana
Do you cook and mix everything such as butter, salt/pepper and broth into the man before putting it into the casserole dish????
Briana
Sorry I mean pan not man
Kristen Chidsey
Yes Briana, as stated in directions. Melt butter into a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Stir in garlic and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in flour, chopped thyme, salt and pepper then slowly pour in chicken broth whisking continuously. Whisk until thick and nearly boiling then stir in cheese until melted. Stir in rice and chicken and then transfer to a 9×13 inch baking dish. That allows the sauce to thicken up and coat the rice and chicken well. Enjoy!
sandra
It looks so good. The kids will love this. Going to make this tomorrow nights supper.
Kristen Chidsey
I hope you and your children enjoy this Sandra!
Jenn K
I made this last night! I did add some heavy cream, and used less flour. VERY rich, but very good. I also added uncooked broccoli, and it was the perfect texture once it baked and soaked in all the flavors. I think without the broccoli added, I would need a veggie on the side.
Kristen Chidsey
Jenn, so glad you liked it. I can imagine with the heavy cream it was very rich, but tasty!! And I always serve lots of veggies on the side 🙂
Cathy
If I use wine, do I reduce the amount of Chicken broth by 1/4 ?
Kristen Chidsey
Yes. I hope you enjoy...and using the wine adds so much flavor
Marissa
Making this tonight. I'm so excited! I'm adding sautéed broccoli and a little bit of sautéed onions! I'm super excited to try it after reading all the reviews????
Kristen Chidsey
Thank you so much Marissa. I hope you love it!! I love to serve it with a side of broccoli and mix it into the dish myself (my kids like it on the side)
Kristen
Do you cook the chicken first?
Kristen Chidsey
Yes!
Brianna
I literarily just made this for dinner for my mom and I and had some sweet corn on the side and it's so good! Thanks for the recipe! I've been wanting to trying this out for a while now and finally did and turned out so well! Will definitely make it again in the future! Best part is the left overs 🙂
Kristen Chidsey
YEA!!! I am so happy you loved it and will be making it again. (And great left-over!!)
Petra
Hi I'd like to try this but how much cheese (weight) do you use before it's shredded ☺️ Here in the Netherlands cheddar is not that common. What kind of cheddar do you use e.g. Mature or some other type?
Kristen Chidsey
Petra, I use 16 ounces, which would be about 450 grams of mature, sharp cheddar. Enjoy!
Kate
I'm in NL as well and use grated or shredded oudkaas. It has a similar strong flavor. If you have access to MACRO market, they do have block cheddar cheese. Only place I've found it 🙂
Kristen Chidsey
Thanks so much Kate for helping Petra out!
Sophia Smith
Cheesy chicken is so tasty, yum yum.
Kristen Chidsey
Thanks Sophia.
Kelti
For the rice, is it 4 cups after cooking it or 4 cups before cooking?
Kristen Chidsey
Kelti--it is 4 cups after cooking! Enjoy!
Lindsey
I accidentally cooked it with four cups of uncooked rice. It was a lot of rice... 🙁 You should include that in your tutorial...be sure it's four cups after cooking, not before!
Kristen Chidsey
Lindsey, I am sorry you misunderstood the directions. The recipe calls for "4 cups cooked rice" but I will state it clearly in the directions as well.