Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole – a warm, filling and healthy one-pan meal that is Super Easy to make, delicious and an excellent choice for a healthy dinner. Perfect for those crazy weeknights!
I have been pushing myself to eat healthy. Working at home doesn’t actually guarantee ME eating healthy food choices all the time especially when I’m always swamped with blogging work, house chores and motherly/wife duties.
Please tell me this is healthy- this right right ? Look at those veggies.
And when you have kid(s) in the house, you bet you want them to go the healthy route, too! But who says veggies and kids are absolute besties? My little fella would say it upfront that he doesn’t like a particular food. He used to love broccoli but not so much recently.
So I’m up for a healthy mission A.K.A sneak-in-those-broccoli and make ‘em look kid-friendly.
Oh boy, and never did I fail. I even tried this recipe twice before posting it up here and they both get the same approval rate from hubby and my kiddo. You should see me dancing “The Imma Way” as my son made a huge serving of this Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole onto his plate. 😀
Mission accomplished!!
Now onto my second mission — that is to make you and your family love this to the point of making it frequently.
Well, aside from the fact that this dish has all the food group in one skillet, it’s also filling and money-saver. This is freezer-friendly, too. Oh yes!! Now, where are those frugal Mamas here?
You can actually cook this in big batches and in advance, transfer to freezer-safe dish, cover tightly and freeze. Just thaw it overnight in the refrigerator and dump it in a greased casserole dish and reheat for lunches and dinners throughout the week.
The flavors in dish is simple yet sooo appealing. You don’t even need to sweat out during the prep stage.
This Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole could be your new favorite one-pan meal that is quick, healthy and tasty. Before you know it, dinner is ready to be served and devoured.
Enjoy!
Tips and Notes
- For a healthier option, you may opt to use brown rice over white rice for this recipe.
- Feel free to swap rice with quinoa or another whole grain substitute and the broccoli for any sauteed vegetables. It all depends on your and your family’s preference.
- In freezing this dish, let it cool down before transferring to a freezer-safe dish. Cover it tightly and freeze for up to 2 months. If you’re ready to serve it up, thaw it in the refrigerator for about 8 hours before baking it at 350 degrees for 25-35 minutes. Or you can also bake it directly from the fridge and just add another 10 minutes or so when baking.
Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole
Ingredients
- 1-2 tablespoons oil
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1 large or 2 chicken breasts cut into chunks(about 2 cups)
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 1/2 cup cooked rice
- 1 -2 teaspoons cajun/creole seasoning (salt free) (see notes)
- 2-3 cups broccoli florets
- 1 cup cheddar cheese
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ½ cup milk
- Parsley to garnish
- 3/4 teaspoon or more salt adjust to taste.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Season chicken cubes with salt , followed by cajun creole seasoning – salt free. Stir until thoroughly mixed
- Heat oil in a skillet, stir in the chicken , cook the chicken for 3 to 5 minutes .
- Add minced garlic , stir for about a minute, followed by chopped onion , cook until onions wilted – about 4 more minutes . Remove and set aside.
- In a 10 inch oven safe skillet add butter , as soon as butter melts whisk in flour . Continue whisking until flour is fully mixed with butter, then cook for about a minute
- Slowly add chicken broth, a little at the time, followed by the milk , you do not want to mixture to form any lumps , bring to simmer then turn down to medium so it simmers gently and thickens into a cream sauce -about 6 -8 minutes.
- An easy way to gauge this is if the sauce coats the back of a wooden spoon, and a path with your finger.
- Turn off the heat and stir in the rice, broccoli , and ½ cup cheese and chicken. Stir add creole seasoning,salt , mix – adjust seasonings to liking .Top with remaining cheese .
- Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 15-30 minutes or until heated through.
- Serve warm.
Nutrition Information:
CATHY C TARR says
Thank you for this recipe it was wonderful. I love that your recipes are real cooking and don’t use canned soups. Thanks again
Imma says
Thank you so much Cathy for your valuable feedback:) Stay tuned and enjoy more soup recipes:)
Sue says
Can I leave off the butter and flour?
Imma says
The butter and flour make a roux that thickens the sauce. If you want to leave it out, I would stir 1½ tablespoons of cornstarch (or into the unheated chicken broth to replace the 3 tablespoons of flour. Hope that makes sense. Let me know how it goes.