There is a reason these chicken casseroles have stuck around for generations! They start with cooked chicken you probably already have, they lean on a can or two from the pantry, and they turn into a full supper in one dish with hardly any fuss. That combination is tough to beat on a weeknight.
I pulled together the ones I make most and grouped them by what goes on top, since that is usually what you are deciding between anyway. Whether you are feeding your own crew or dropping a meal off for someone who needs one, there is something here for it.
⭢ The Ones With Something Crunchy on Top
If you are picturing a chicken casserole right now, odds are good it has crushed crackers on top. This is the group that built the reputation. The topping goes on right before baking so it stays crisp against the creamy filling underneath.
Ritz Chicken Casserole
Buttery cracker crumbs over a creamy chicken filling. If you grew up eating this one, it tastes exactly the way you remember it tasting. {Reader Favorite}
Poppy Seed Chicken
A church cookbook staple that earns its reputation. Sour cream, cream of chicken soup, and a crushed cracker topping that turns deep golden in the oven.
Prefer it stretched a little further? My Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole builds the same flavors over rice.
Cool Ranch Dorito Chicken Casserole
Yes, the chips go right on top. They soften just enough underneath and stay crisp on the surface, and my kids have never once left leftovers. {Kid-Favorite}
Want the original flavor instead? My Dorito Chicken Casserole is the nacho cheese version of the same idea.
Baked Swiss Chicken
Five ingredients and one dish. The Swiss melts down into the chicken while the stuffing topping browns, and it tastes far more involved than it is. {5 Ingredients or Less}
Chicken Tater Tot Casserole
Tots crisp up on top while everything underneath goes creamy. It is the supper my kids request more often than almost anything else I make. {Kid-Favorite}
⭢ The Creamy, Filling Ones
This is where the real workhorses live. A can of soup, a box of stuffing or a cup of rice, and whatever cooked chicken you have on hand turns into a full supper. Nothing here needs a side dish, which is most of the appeal.
Chicken and Stuffing Casserole
The one readers come back to more than any other. Boxed stuffing, cream of chicken soup, and shredded chicken, layered into a dish and baked until it bubbles. {Most Popular}
Want it hands-off?
My Crockpot Chicken and Stuffing gets you the same supper without turning on the oven.
Chicken Divan with Curry
Broccoli and chicken under a curry-warmed cream sauce and melted cheese. The curry is subtle, and it is exactly what sets this apart from every other broccoli bake.
Chicken and Rice Casserole
Tender chicken and rice baked in a creamy sauce until everything is warm and comforting. This is the plain, old-fashioned favorite my family has been making for decades.
For a nuttier, more special-occasion take, my Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole swaps in a wild rice blend.
Chicken and Rice Casserole with Cream of Mushroom Soup
The pantry version. Cream of mushroom soup does all the work, and there is a good chance you already have every single ingredient in the house. {Pantry Staples}
Chicken Broccoli Stuffing Casserole
Stuffing mix on top, broccoli and chicken in a creamy sauce underneath. Vegetable and protein in the same dish means dinner is genuinely finished when the timer goes off.
Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole
Chicken, ham, and Swiss in a creamy sauce with a buttery breadcrumb topping, and no need to boil the pasta first. All the old cordon bleu flavor without any of the fuss. {Dump-and-Bake}
⭢ Golden Tops and Creamy Bottoms
Anything with bread baked over the top belongs in its own category, because that is what everybody reaches for first at the table. Biscuits go on raw and puff up over the filling, and cornbread does the same thing with a little more Southern accent. Give these a few minutes to settle before you serve them.
Chicken and Biscuits
A creamy chicken filling with biscuits baked right on top until golden. Nothing about it is fussy, and it disappears from the pan every single time. {Reader Favorite}
Try it another way
If you’d rather have a crust than biscuits, my Bisquick Chicken Pot Pie uses the same shortcut logic with a soft baked top.
Chicken Cornbread Casserole
Cornbread and chicken baked together into something that lands halfway between a casserole and a dressing. Very Southern, very filling, very hard to stop eating.
Crescent Roll Chicken Casserole
Crescent rolls wrapped around a creamy chicken filling and baked in sauce. Five ingredients, and it still looks like you fussed a great deal more than you did. {5 Ingredients or Less}
Amish Chicken and Corn Casserole
Sweet corn, tender chicken, and a buttery crumb topping. It is simple in the very best way, which is exactly why it keeps turning up at potluck tables.
Creamed Chicken and Biscuits
Rich creamed chicken spooned over warm split biscuits. This is what I make when I want a Tuesday night to feel like a Sunday dinner.
Cowboy Chicken Cornbread Casserole
Day-old cornbread gets a second life here, layered up with chicken, veggies, and cheese. A good answer to half a pan you would rather not throw out. {Uses Leftovers}
⭢ The Ones You Know by Name
These are the dishes people ask for by name. Tetrazzini, King Ranch, chicken à la king, all of them were somebody’s company dinner at some point and all of them still hold up. If you are cooking for people who grew up in the seventies or eighties, start here.
Old-Fashioned Chicken Pot Pie
A flaky crust over a creamy filling with vegetables that actually taste like something. Made from scratch, the way pot pie was meant to be made.
Short on time?
My Chicken Pot Pie with Pie Crust uses a refrigerated crust and gets you there in a fraction of the time.
King Ranch Chicken
Corn tortillas, chicken, green chiles, and a great deal of cheese, all layered and baked. A Texas classic that has been feeding crowds since the sixties. {Feeds a Crowd}
For a similar warmth with a curry lean, my Dump-and-Bake Country Captain Chicken is another Southern dish with a long history.
Easy Chicken Tetrazzini
Spaghetti, mushrooms, and chicken in a creamy Parmesan sauce. The retro pasta bake that still turns up at every single covered-dish supper.
Chicken Spaghetti Casserole
Creamy, cheesy, and gently spiced, with the spaghetti baked right into the sauce. This is the dish people ask you to bring back next time.
Try it another way
My Chicken and Noodle Casserole is the milder, egg noodle version if that suits your table better.
Dump-and-Bake Chicken à la King
Chicken, peas, and pimientos in a creamy sauce, lifted straight from the diner menus of decades past. Everything goes in one dish and into the oven.
Chicken Kiev Casserole
Garlicky, buttery, and topped with golden crumbs, this is the retro chicken Kiev reworked into a casserole. All the old flavor, none of the rolling and stuffing.
There is a reason these recipes have lasted this long, and I hope one of them becomes a regular at your table too.
Bookmark this page so it is easy to find the next time you need a warm, easy supper.
