The Best Baked Chicken and Rice Casserole is made completely from scratch in this easy one pan recipe that’s sure to please the whole family!
Chicken and Rice Casserole is a classic family favorite here in the United States. It is total comfort food. In this recipe, we’ve stuck with a completely “from scratch” concept. In addition, this recipe is made in just ONE pan.
A lot of times nowadays, chicken and rice casserole comes from a box or is made from a bunch of canned ingredients. Not here! We are bringing you completely from scratch deliciousness for your family to enjoy. You still get to dump everything in a pan, but this time it’s all whole, real ingredients. There is ABSOLUTELY NO cream of chicken in this dish.
Rice Options:
We recommend using only regular white rice in this recipe. Instant rice is not a good option and will overcook in this casserole. Brown rice requires a much longer cooking time than white rice and is also not recommended for this recipe.
Is Best Baked Chicken and Rice Casserole really made in only one pan?
This recipe is made directly in a 9×13 baking dish. There’s no need to dirty any bowls or pots or pans. Simply stir everything together directly in the 9×13 pan, add in your chicken, season, and bake. It’s that simple!
Chicken Options?
Chicken thighs are used in this recipe because they will stay moist during the long baking process. If you prefer, chicken breasts can be used instead, but you’ll want to check the chicken and rice to see if both are done after baking for 1 hour. The additional 30 minutes of cooking may be unnecessary for chicken breasts. Use thick chicken breasts for best results.
Storage and Reheating Instructions:
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat in the microwave in 30-second increments until warmed through.
If you like this recipe, you may be interested in these other delicious chicken thigh recipes:
- Crispy Oven Baked Chicken Thighs
- Easy Garlic Lime Skillet Chicken
- Mom’s Chicken Cacciatore
- Mexican-Spiced Chicken Thighs
Watch the video below where Rachel will walk you through every step of this recipe. Sometimes it helps to have a visual, and we’ve always got you covered with our cooking show. You can find the complete collection of recipes on YouTube, Facebook Watch, or our Facebook Page, or right here on our website with their corresponding recipes.
Thank you for the recipe
Hi…I cooked this tonight…only problem i had was it was to much liquid so letting it sit for a few minutes….but love the taste, it is a keeper…thank you
Love her recipes I tried about 4 of them now and thumbs up on all
I made this and used long grain rice with 5 cups broth but it is very soupy . I would reduce broth to 4 cups next time. I also added one can mushroom soup it taste great just a little to much liquid .
Closer to 4.5 stars, except I changed some things because I was going to make Chipotle chicken, but wanted rice, so I added chipotle powder with paprika and cayenne instead of Italian and parsley. Got 4 bone-in thighs on sale, so used an 8×8 dish with 1 cup jasmine rice and 1.5 cups broth plus 1/2 cup cream. Still took 1.5 hours, but very tasty, even the skins, despite not usually being a dark meat eater, and the rice delish.
This is my go-to chicken and rice recipe. It is truly amazing! I make it for pot-lucks, company, as well as family meals. And just now, made it for probably the 15th time and taking it to a sick friend. Delicious!!
can frozen thighs be used?
I tried this recipe, and like any that I find I try to stay as close to the original as possible to give it an honest rating. Unfortunately (please don’t hate on me) the only rice I ever buy is Minute Rice, so I tweaked the broth accordingly, and the cook time by about 15 minutes. The flavors were there, and the aroma was awesome, but it came out a bit dry (obviously my bad), but that is an easy fix and we liked it enough to keep and try again.
I left out the cream because once I put the 4 cups of stock I realized this would be never cook out. So, it took 2 hours to cook as it was. I pulled the chicken out at temp, and left the rice to try and dry out some. It’s way too much liquid, and left gummy, overdone rice. Flavors were good. Will tweak amount of liquid and try again.
I altered the recipe a bit. I used Jasmine rice since a specific rice was not mentioned in the recipe. I made it dairy free by subbing out dairy free butter and instead of half and half I used unsweetened almond milk. I only used 4 cups chicken stock. I used thick chicken breasts and laid them over the top and sprinkled with the seasoning. I put the foil on and baked for about 70 minutes. It was perfect.
Thank you for sharing the recipe! I always enjoy how easy your recipes are!
I haven’t tried the recipe yet but watching the video I’m thinking of tweaking it a bit.
1. Marinate the chicken for at least couple hours instead of sprinkling the seasonings right before it’s put in the oven. I think it will make the chicken more flavorful.
2. Thinking of replacing the heavy cream with coconut cream (or half heavy cream half coconut cream) and maybe add some grated ginger in it to add some aromatics. Coconut cream and ginger is a perfect combination. Then maybe add some minced chills. Yum 😋
The crispy skin tip is bomb! Thanks again 👍