Chicken Rice Casserole makes for a crowd-pleasing dinner that comes together in under 5 minutes of prep time.
Made with only 4 ingredients, this dish has juicy chicken breasts and tender rice in a deliciously creamy sauce. This is a casserole that meal packs a lot of flavor in a filling one dish dinner and a meal that everyone will love!
Enjoy!
There is nothing like Chicken Rice Casserole for dinner. This dish is deliciously easy, creamy and totally satisfying and you’ll never believe it needs just 4 ingredients!
This is a special dish because the recipe comes from my BFF, Penny and she’s been making this for years. It’s her go-to, must have, favorite easy weeknight meal that I just had to try.
I have to admit, when I first made it I knew it would be tasty but… I had NO idea what I was in for and it’d definitely become a regular in our rotation!
This easy dish comes together in under 5 minutes, it’s one of the quickest dinner preps on my whole site (along with One Pot Pizza Tortellini Bake).
This dish is belly warming and comforting while being simple and easy to make, it’s like serving a nice warm hug from your Mom!
The chicken comes out incredibly tender and juicy, the rice is perfectly cooked in a rich and creamy sauce and the whole thing is loaded with flavor!
This easy Chicken Rice Casserole takes about an hour to bake (depending on your oven, you may need a few extra minutes but for me it’s about an hour), but that is one of the things that make it kind of the perfect dish.
We’ve made this just as written over and over but I’ve also added a little bit of onion to the bottom of the pan or a couple of handfuls of fresh mushrooms.
With very little minimal prep time, you can slide this casserole into the oven and relax, or maybe help with homework without feeling the usual dinner time rush!
5 minutes of work, and then perhaps a glass of wine or read your book for an hour? I feel like that’s a good idea for ALL weeknights!
I use homemade onion soup mix in this recipe, but you can use the kind in the envelope if you haven’t had a chance to mix up a batch yet. The flavor will be amazing either way!
My friend Penny also said she sometimes replaces the onion soup mix with a packet of gravy mix depending on what she has on hand!
If you are lucky enough to have leftovers, this makes for a delicious lunch the following day.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup long grain white rice uncooked
- 1 ½ cups water
- 1 ounce dry onion soup mix 1 packet or use homemade
- 10.5 ounces condensed cream of mushroom soup 1 can
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F.
- Spray a 9×13-inch casserole dish or glass baking pan with cooking spray (the rice doesn't cook well in a metal pan). Add chicken breasts and season with salt & pepper.
- Pour uncooked rice over chicken. Sprinkle with onion soup mix.
- Combine mushrooms soup and 1 ½ cups of water. Pour over chicken.
- Cover and bake 1 hour 15 minutes or until rice is tender.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Casserole, Main Course
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Loved it!!! Only change was I used cream of chicken and mushroom vs just C.O.M. cause my kids hate mushrooms…
Falllll apart chicken!!
Just to add, made it in a metal cake pan with uncle Ben’s boxed white long grain rice. Done to perfection at 1:10 at 325.
Some rices (ie jasmine, basmati) take more liquid??
Can I use a pyrex pan
You sure can Jay. Enjoy the casserole!
Should have used 1/2 the onion soup mix. It was to strong.
Wouldn’t this be 5 ingredient chicken and rice casserole? There’s 5 ingredients listed. Just sayin.
If you consider water to be an ingredient then yes there would be 5.
This turned out great. I used frozen chicken breasts, so had to increase the cooking time by 1/2, which in my opinion, made the rice even better.
My first casserole.
It was amazing. To perfection. I will be trying more of ur recipes for sure.
My husband was more than delighted with this casserole. Definitely be making this agian. Thanku for sharing this.
Oh Bonnie, you just made my day today! I’m so happy to hear how much you and your husband loved this casserole! Enjoy the recipes! So glad you found us here!
Delicious. Turned out great and tasted like home. Didn’t change a thing besides cutting my chicken thinner so it cooked faster. Loved it.
I substituted mushroom for chicken and it was so fricking good!!!!! Thanks for the recipe!
You’re welcome, so glad you enjoyed it so much Emily!
I’m reviewing this after my entire casserole disappeared. My picky teenage son was even licking the spoon and wiping the dish clean. I used fresh boneless chicken breasts cut into chunks (with meat scissors) and long grain rice pilaf (Near East brand) along with the cream of mushroom soup. It was a hit with my entire family! Thanks so much for this recipe!
You’re welcome Rita, that makes my day!
It’s delicious! I made no changes. My long-grain rice took a little longer to cook so I put a little water at a time and some chicken broth another time so I could keep the flavors. It sounds odd but it worked and the flavors were still there. I turned up the heat from 325 after awhile to 375 because I had to go to work and I needed the rice to cook faster. The chicken was already done and soft.
forgot rating. Super simple delicious recipe.
I have been making this recipe for over 40 years and have never had a problem with my rice not cooking. The only thing I can think of is that people are not using enough liquid and maybe their oven is not hot enough. I do use a higher temp. 375degrees and I remove the tinfoil halfway thru so the chicken browned up. I use chicken thi\ghs with a paprika rub.
I made this tonight and it was delicious! I had to modify slightly (no cream of mushroom on hand, so I used cream of broccoli/cheese instead). I was trying to find something different to make with chicken, and this was perfect. (Note for those that were having issues with cooking time/rice – I used a roasting pan instead of glass, and I mixed the rice in with the soup/water/gravy packet and dumped into the pan first, as per another person’s suggestion – it was perfect at 325/an hour and 15! I had to stir the rice a little when I took it out of the oven, as it still looked a little watery, but it thickened up as it set/cooled while I finished prepping the rest of dinner.)
It’s it possible to prepare this ahead of time and have in fridge to cook later?
Hi Ashely, I haven’t tried making it ahead. Let us know how it works for you if you do make it ahead.
So I have made this dish completely. Then refrigerated it over night then reheat it the following night and it’s much more tastier doing it that way let’s the flavors bind for the perfect ready to go dinner, served with cottage cheese and your choice of green. And I use milk instead of water helps with the binding of the flavors as well as texture
Thank you for sharing Nathan!
Recipe did not work for me. This might have worked if I’d used instant rice. As written, the rice did not cook in the time allowed and was hard, while the chicken was done. And I was very careful to make the foil right on my baking dish. Ans I know my oven is the right temp. Because I did not have another hour to cook the rice, I had to remove the chicken and make some quick instant rice to eat with our meal. Maybe if I’d used a baking dish that came with a heavy lid it would have cooked properly. Will not try making this again.
Sorry that the rice didn’t turn out for you. This has been a family favorite of ours. Thanks for trying it.
I love this recipe. It is perfect for those evenings you really don’t feel up to cooking. A much better option than takeout. Inexpensive, delicious, and comforting. I add broccoli. Sometimes I top with crushed crackers and butter! Yum! I really enjoy your site! Thank you!
So happy to hear that Kitty! You’re very welcome!
Made this with minute rice. The rice turned out good, I mixed all ingredients together first then put in cass dish. My advice on the chicken, and next time I make this, I will marinate or tenderize the chicken first, it was kinda tough. I think I will also bake covered at 350′ instead of 325. If the rice looks absorbed halfway through, I will add more water or broth.
One hour and 15 minutes is nowhere near long enough for the chicken to cook. I just made this, waited my hour and 15 minutes at 325, the chicken is very pink in the middle, still. There’s something off with your estimates. Will not be trying any other recipes of yours.
Did you use boneless chicken breasts? After 1 hour and 15 minutes, the chicken should be cooked. I’d recommend that you check your oven temperature with an oven thermometer.
That wasn’t nice! It was pretty rude.
Agreed
How would you adjust your measurements if you were making six chicken breasts?
It should take a similar amount of time so long as the breasts have space around them and are not squished together (then it would take longer). You’ll want to ensure your chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F. Enjoy Janet!
Can I double this in the same baking dish or should I just make 2? If I can double in same dish, how much does the cooking time change? Same question if I make 2 & cook at same time . . . how long?
I have only made the recipe as written. To double, you may want to do a separate dish with a second recipe. I haven’t tried baking two at the same time, so can’t say for sure how long it may take. I’d suggest checking about 10 minutes after the time listed in the recipe and adjust from there. Enjoy Robin!
I forgot to rate this delicious meal so I gave it 5 stars which it deserves.
I made the chicken and rice casserole dish that you posted for my Dad on his birthday March 27th 2021. Everyone loved it and I enjoyed making this dish because I have difficulty cooking and this was an easy dish for me to make. This recipe is definitely a keeper for me and my family. Thank you. I hope to find other recipes and hopefully I can make those good as well.
That just made my day Kristina! Truly so happy to hear that you were successful in making this chicken casserole! Keep it up!