Chicken Green Bean Casserole with Rice

This easy chicken green bean casserole is hearty, downhome comfort food! You just can’t beat the convenience of a make-ahead one dish meal, complete with chicken, green beans, diced pimentos, rice, and cheddar cheese in a creamy sauce made from cream of celery soup. Top it off with crushed potato chips and serve it alongside a simple green salad, a loaf of crusty bread, a skillet of cornbread, or a basket of buttermilk biscuits!

Chicken and Green Bean Casserole

This chicken green bean casserole is the ultimate in family-friendly dinners! The creamy, cheesy, dish takes advantage of simple, wholesome ingredients for a flavorful meal that you can assemble in advance. It’s a basic supper that can be tweaked in a variety of ways to suit your family’s taste preferences and schedule. Use leftover chicken, rotisserie chicken, or baked chicken — anything goes. The kids will go crazy for the comforting meal that’s finished with a crunchy potato chip topping!

Ingredients

This is just a quick overview of the simple ingredients that you’ll need for an old fashioned chicken and rice casserole. As always, specific measurements and complete cooking instructions are included in the printable recipe box at the bottom of the post.

• Butter: to sauté the vegetables.
• Onion, celery, and garlic: savory aromatics that create a flavorful base for the casserole. If you don’t have fresh garlic, you can add a little bit of garlic powder to the sauce instead.
• Condensed cream of celery soup: substitute with other flavors of condensed soup if you prefer. Good alternatives include cream of chicken soup or cream of mushroom soup.
• Mayonnaise: adds creamy texture and rich flavor to the sauce.
• Sour cream: for a subtle touch of “tang.”
• Chives, parsley, and thyme: fresh herbs are my preference, but you can substitute with dried herbs in a pinch.
• Sharp cheddar cheese: if possible, grate the cheese by hand so that it melts smoother into the dish.
• Milk: to thin the creamy sauce. You can also use chicken broth.
• Rice: I prefer long-grain white rice in this casserole, but any variety of cooked rice will work.
• Chicken: you’ll need cooked, shredded chicken, so pickup a store-bought rotisserie chicken for a shortcut, or cook your own chicken at home.
• Frozen French-cut green beans: no need to thaw them first — just stir them straight into the filling. You can substitute with frozen cut green beans, canned cut green beans, or canned French-style green beans. If using fresh green beans, you’ll need to parboil them before adding them to the casserole.
• Diced pimentos: just a small jar of drained diced pimentos adds lovely color and subtle flavor to the casserole.
• Kosher salt and ground black pepper: season the filling to taste.
• Potato chips: lightly crushed for a salty, crunchy topping.

How to Cook Chicken for a Casserole

While it’s possible to cook a casserole with raw chicken, you’ll need cooked chicken for this recipe, and a variety of options will work. Pick the most convenient method for you:

• Boiled and Pulled Chicken: Boil about 1 lb. of boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs until cooked through (about 15 minutes). When cool enough to handle, chop or pull the chicken into bite size pieces. You’ll need a total of about 2 cups shredded. I find that 1 lb. of raw chicken breasts yields about 2 cups of pulled chicken, but there’s some flexibility here — it doesn’t need to be exact.
• Rotisserie Chicken: This is a great shortcut! Purchase a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, shred the meat, and use in the recipe as instructed. One large rotisserie chicken should yield about 3-4 cups of meat, so you might have some extra to use in a different dish.
• Leftover Chicken: If you have leftover grilled or baked chicken from a previous meal, put those extras to good use in this casserole.
• Canned Chicken: Yep, you can even use canned chicken in this casserole.

Do I cook the rice before adding it to the casserole?

Yes! This recipe calls for 2 cups of cooked rice. You can boil your own rice on the stovetop, use leftovers from a previous meal, or cook parboiled rice (such as Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice) in the microwave for a shortcut. If using the microwaveable rice or Minute Rice, cook the rice according to the package instructions before using it in this casserole.

Do you have to cook green beans before putting them in a casserole?

No, this recipe calls for frozen French-cut green beans, which you do not need to thaw or cook before stirring them directly into the casserole filling. So convenient! You can substitute with frozen cut green beans, canned French-style green beans, or canned cut green beans. None of these options need to be pre-cooked.

If you’re using fresh green beans, however, I recommend parboiling them before adding them to the casserole. Otherwise, the fresh green beans will not become tender before the casserole is done baking.

How to Make Chicken Green Bean Casserole

While we love a made-from-scratch chicken casserole, there are many busy nights when we just need quicker, easier solutions. That’s where this dish comes in! Thanks to help from a handful of store-bought shortcuts like condensed cream of celery soup and rotisserie chicken, the casserole is ready for the oven in about 20 minutes.

1. Sauté onion, celery, and garlic in butter.
2. Reduce the heat to low, and stir in the condensed soup, mayonnaise, sour cream, cheese, milk, and herbs.
3. Whisk or stir until the cheese melts, about 2 minutes.
4. Add the rice, chicken, green beans, and pimentos to the creamy sauce mixture. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
5. Transfer to a greased 2-quart baking dish.
6. Sprinkle additional cheese and crushed chips on top.
7. Bake, uncovered, in a 350°F oven for about 25 minutes, or until the filling is hot and bubbly and the topping is lightly browned.

What to Serve with Chicken Green Bean Rice Casserole

Here are some easy sides that go well with chicken green bean casserole:

• 3-Ingredient Buttermilk Biscuits, Sweet Potato Biscuits, Flaky Biscuits, Cheese Biscuits or Drop Biscuits
• Skillet Cornbread, Sweet Cornbread, Corn Sticks, Mexican Cornbread, Honey Cornbread or Corn Muffins
• Cranberry Muffins or Apple Muffins
• Crusty French Baguette, Soft Dinner Rolls, or Homemade Crescent Rolls
• 3-Ingredient Sour Cream Muffins, Applesauce Pumpkin Muffins or Pumpkin Bread
• Mixed Greens with Dijon Vinaigrette, Green Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette, Caesar Salad, or our favorite House Salad with Candied Pecans
• Fried Corn
• Southern Fried Apples, Baked Apple Slices, or Applesauce
• Roasted Asparagus or Sauteed Asparagus
• Broccoli and Cheese or Broccoli Cauliflower Salad
• Sauteed Zucchini
• Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots
• Cranberry Sauce
• Mashed Potatoes with Sour Cream and Chives or 3-Ingredient Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes

Preparation and Storage

• This is a great make-ahead dinner. You can assemble the casserole up to 24 hours in advance and keep it covered in the refrigerator until ready to bake. When ready to bake, allow the dish to sit on the counter and come to room temperature for at least 30-60 minutes. Wait to add the chips on top until it’s ready to go in the oven.
• You can freeze the casserole before baking. Wrapped tightly, the assembled casserole will keep in the freezer for up to 2 months.
• Leftover chicken casserole will keep in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
• How to Reheat: If reheating an entire casserole, cover the dish loosely with foil and bake in a 350°F oven until warmed through (about 20-30 minutes). Individual portions can be reheated in the microwave for 1-2 minutes.

Chicken and Green Bean Bake — Recipe Variations

• Instead of French-cut green beans, use frozen cut green beans, canned cut green beans, or canned French-style green beans. If using fresh green beans, you’ll need to parboil them or steam them briefly so that they’re crisp tender before adding them to the dish.
• Swap out the green beans and use other veggies instead. Good options include frozen baby broccoli florets (or parboiled fresh broccoli florets), frozen peas, corn, asparagus, or sauteed mushrooms.
• Instead of cream of celery soup, you can use cream of mushroom soup or cream of chicken soup for this casserole.
• Don’t have potato chips? Substitute with crushed Ritz crackers, crushed Corn Flakes cereal mixed with melted butter, or other buttery crackers (like Keebler Club crackers). You can also use buttered panko bread crumbs for a crispy topping.
• Try other types of cheese instead of cheddar. Good options include Monterey Jack, Pepper Jack, Colby, Colby Jack, Swiss, mozzarella cheese, and American. Even a little bit of Parmesan cheese would be good.
• Any variety of cooked rice will work. I like long-grain white rice, but a short grain rice, basmati rice, wild rice, or brown rice are fine, too. Just make sure that your rice is cooked before adding it to the casserole. For more of a low carb dish, try using cauliflower rice instead.

Tips for the Best Chicken Green Bean Casserole Recipe

• To serve a larger group, double all of the ingredients and bake the casserole in a deep 9 x 13-inch casserole dish.
• Use an oven-proof large skillet to sauté the vegetables, and then just bake the casserole in the same pan. This eliminates washing an extra dish!
• Quick prep: to help this casserole come together quickly and easily, use store-bought rotisserie chicken and microwaveable packets of rice.
• Bake the casserole just until it’s heated through. All of the ingredients are already cooked, so you just want to warm it in the oven until bubbly. Don’t bake it for too long or it will dry out and the rice will get mushy. You know a casserole is done when the filling is hot and bubbly and the topping is toasted and golden brown.
• Garnish with fresh parsley, chives, or other herbs for a bright, colorful touch at the end.

More Chicken and Rice Casserole Recipes to Try

• Chicken Broccoli and Rice Casserole
• Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Casserole with Rice — from scratch, no cream of mushroom soup!
• Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole
• Dump-and-Bake Aloha Chicken and Rice
• Classic Chicken and Rice Casserole
• Chicken and Rice Casserole with Cream of Mushroom Soup

Chicken Green Bean Casserole with Rice

Prep: 20 minutes minutes

Cook: 25 minutes minutes

Total: 45 minutes minutes

Servings 4 – 6 people

Calories 667 kcal

This easy chicken green bean casserole is hearty, downhome comfort food!

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Ingredients

  

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• 2 tablespoons salted butter
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 celery stalk, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
• 1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed cream of celery soup, not diluted
• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons sour cream
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh chives (or ¼ teaspoon dried chives)
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley (or ¼ teaspoon dried parsley flakes)
• ½ teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (or ⅛ teaspoon dried thyme)
• 1 ½ cups grated sharp cheddar cheese, divided
• ¾ cup 2% or whole milk
• 2 cups cooked rice
• 2 cups cooked, diced chicken
• 1 ½ cups frozen French-cut green beans (or sub with 1 14.5-ounce can, drained)
• 1 (4 ounce) jar diced pimentos, drained
• Kosher salt and black pepper
• 1 cup coarsely crushed potato chips, or more to taste

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 2-quart baking dish; set aside.
• In a large skillet or Dutch oven, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add onion and celery; cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic; cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
• Reduce the heat to a very low flame. Stir in soup, mayonnaise, sour cream, chives, parsley, thyme, 1 cup of the cheese, and milk. Cook, stirring constantly, until the cheese melts, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Add cooked rice, chicken, green beans, and pimentos; stir to combine. Taste and season with salt and pepper, if necessary.
• Transfer mixture to the prepared baking dish. Top with remaining ½ cup of cheese and crushed potato chips.
• Bake, uncovered, for about 25 minutes, or until the filling is hot and bubbly and the topping is lightly browned.

Notes

• Instead of French-cut green beans, use frozen cut green beans, canned cut green beans, or canned French-style green beans. If using fresh green beans, you’ll need to parboil them or steam them briefly before adding them to the dish.
• Swap out the green beans and use other vegetables instead. Good options include frozen baby broccoli florets (or parboiled fresh broccoli florets), frozen peas, corn, asparagus, or sauteed mushrooms.
• Instead of cream of celery soup, you can use cream of mushroom soup or cream of chicken soup for this casserole.
• Don’t have potato chips? Substitute with crushed Ritz crackers, crushed Corn Flakes cereal mixed with melted butter, or other buttery crackers (like Keebler Club crackers). You can also use buttered panko bread crumbs for a crispy topping.
• Try other types of cheese instead of cheddar. Good options include Monterey Jack, Pepper Jack, Colby, Colby Jack, Swiss, and American.
• Any variety of cooked rice will work. I like long-grain white rice, but a short grain rice, basmati rice, wild rice, or brown rice are fine, too. Just make sure that your rice is cooked before adding it to the casserole.
• To serve a larger group, double all of the ingredients and bake the casserole in a deep 9 x 13-inch casserole dish.
• Use an oven-proof skillet to sauté the vegetables, and then just bake the casserole in the same pan. This eliminates washing an extra dish!
• Quick prep: to help this casserole come together quickly and easily, use store-bought rotisserie chicken and microwaveable packets of rice.
• Bake the casserole just until it’s heated through. All of the ingredients are already cooked, so you just want to warm it in the oven until bubbly. Don’t bake it for too long or it will dry out and the rice will get mushy. You know a casserole is done when the filling is hot and bubbly and the topping is toasted and golden brown.
• Garnish with fresh parsley, chives, or other herbs for a bright, colorful touch at the end.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/4 of the casseroleCalories: 667kcalCarbohydrates: 43gProtein: 38gFat: 38gSaturated Fat: 16gPolyunsaturated Fat: 6gMonounsaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 129mgSodium: 556mgPotassium: 710mgFiber: 3gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 1045IUVitamin C: 13mgCalcium: 412mgIron: 2mg

Keyword: chicken and rice casserole, chicken green bean casserole, Chicken Rice Casserole

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American, Southern

Author: Blair Lonergan

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