Freezer-Friendly Chicken Rice Casserole
This make-ahead chicken rice casserole lets you cook once and eat twice! Make 2 - 3 pans of this creamy chicken and rice casserole loaded with veggies all at once and you'll have food to bring to a friend in need or to stock your freezer for later.
This school year has really kicked me in the behind. We signed up for too many activities for the kids which meant that too many of our evenings I've had to resort to the super simple dishes from this list of 30 "soccer night" meals.
I know as the girls get older, our schedule is only going to get worse. So I'm trying to break some of my bad habits and do a better job of dinner prepping.
I finally carved out some time this week to cook a make ahead chicken rice casserole.
One round of big batch cooking makes 2 - 3 good sized casserole dishes ready for the freezer.
It's also perfect for those times you need to bring a meal train dinner to a friend but still need to cook dinner for your own family! In one fell swoop, you've got enough to feed your kids and the family in need.
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Why This is the Best Recipe
I love big batch recipes that let me prep dinner in advance. I think this is the best freezer friendly chicken casserole recipe because:
- Fresh Chicken and LOTS of Veggies: Unlike some casseroles, this one is loaded with protein and big chunks of healthy vegeetables.
- No Noodles: There are so many pasta-based casseroles, a chicken rice casserole is a nice change of pace!
- Lots of Flavor: The creamy sauce and seasonings plus grated parmesan and fresh tomato add so much flavor to this recipe.
- Big Batch: I can make several pans to freeze or share with friends in just one baking session.
Do Kids Like It?
I was a little nervous about how the enormous chunks of broccoli would go over with my kids but we tried it anyway.
I was pleasantly surprised to see they both gobbled it up!
Little Pea mentioned she liked the chicken part the best, but there were very few complaints about the large amount of veggies here from either girl.
I think it had something to do with the rich and creamy parmesan sauce that covers everything!
Ingredients
All you need to make this easy recipe is:
- Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
- White Rice
- Cream of Chicken Soup
- Chicken Broth
- Frozen Broccoli Florets
- Fresh Tomato
- Onion
- Butter
- Olive Oil
- Minced Garlic
- Grated Parmesan Cheese
- Italian Seasoning Blend
- Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
- Salt & Pepper
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Cook the Rice
Cook the rice according to the package directions but add the butter to the pan as it cooks.
Once the rice is tender, remove it from the heat.
Fluff the rice with a fork and stir in HALF of the chopped onion and HALF of the Italian seasoning.
Divide the rice evenly among your freezer pans and gently smooth it out to form a solid bottom layer.
Cook the Chicken
In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium heat.
Add the remaining onion, Italian seasoning, sliced chicken, garlic, and crushed red pepper flakes.
Sauté for 4 to 6 minutes or until the chicken is no longer pink. Turn the heat off on the burner but keep the skillet over the warm burner.
Assemble the Casserole
Add the chicken soup and chicken broth and stir until the chicken is evenly coated.
Add the broccoli and tomato and toss to combine.
Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the top and stir gently to coat.
Transfer the chicken mixture evenly among the casserole pans.
Then Freeze or Bake.
How to Freeze a Chicken Rice Casserole
You can divide the recipe into 2 or 3 pans.
After separating it into 2, I had enough to feed our family of 4 and at least 1/3 of the pan for leftovers for hearty lunches the next day.
Next time, I'll likely split it into 3 smaller pans.
To freeze the chicken rice casserole, let the dish cool and the cover it in a double layer of tin foil.
I like to label my casseroles with heating instructions so I don't forget how to cook it once it's been frozen.
Mark your freezer casserole pan with a label that says:
- The date you prepared it
- Remind yourself to thaw it in the fridge 24 - 48 hours before baking
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
- Bake covered for 30 minutes and uncovered for another 30 minutes
- Freezes well for up to 3 months
How to Bake the Casserole
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Bake covered for 30 minutes and then another 30 minutes uncovered, 1 hour total.
Serving Suggestions
I always think a fresh dinner roll or piece of fresh bread tastes great with a freezer casserole.
You can actually bake these breads and freeze them along with the chicken casserole or you can just plan to bake them fresh before putting the casserole in the oven.
More Freezer Casseroles
If you love prepping dinners for the freezer, you don't want to miss my list of meals to freeze and reheat.
Here are a few of our favorite freezer casseroles, too:
If you love this chicken and rice casserole with broccoli, you will also love this chicken wild rice casserole with celery and almonds on top.
Chicken enchiladas are a fun and spicy casserole when you're in the mood for Mexican food.
My mom is famous for her Italian sausage pasta casserole, it is the dinner she always brings to friends who need a little help.
And my saucy pork and noodle bake is one of the TOP requested recipes on this whole site!
📖 Recipe
Freezer-Friendly Chicken and Rice Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 cups rice
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 large onion chopped
- 2 tsp dried Italian herb blend
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 pounds skinless boneless chicken breasts cut into bite sized strips
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 cans of cream of chicken soup
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 (24 oz) package frozen cut broccoli
- 1 large tomato seeds removed and diced
- 2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the rice according to the package directions but add the butter to the pan as it cooks. Once the rice is tender, remove it from the heat. Fluff the rice with a fork and stir in HALF of the chopped onion and HALF of the Italian seasoning. Divide the rice evenly among your freezer pans and gently smooth it out to form a solid bottom layer.
- In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the remaining onion, Italian seasoning, sliced chicken, garlic, and crushed red pepper flakes. Sauté for 4 to 6 minutes or until the chicken is no longer pink. Turn the heat off on the burner but keep the skillet over the warm burner.
- Add the chicken soup and chicken broth and stir until the chicken is evenly coated. Add the broccoli and tomato and toss to combine. Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the top and stir gently to coat.
- Transfer the chicken mixture evenly among the casserole pans. Then Freeze or Bake.
To Freeze:
- To freeze the chicken rice casserole, let the dish cool and the cover it in a double layer of tin foil.
Mark your freezer casserole pan with a label that says:
- The date you prepared it.
- Remind yourself to thaw it in the fridge 24 - 48 hours before baking.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Bake covered for 30 minutes and uncovered for another 30 minutes.
- Freezes well for up to 3 months.
To Bake:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake covered for 30 minutes and then another 30 minutes uncovered, 1 hour total.
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Have a question. I'm about to make the chicken and rice casserole. Do you saute the onions before putting them in the cooked rice or put them in raw?
For texture, the recipe calls for sautéing half of the onion and leaving half raw when you stir it in. It will cook in the oven but retain a firmer bite than the sautéed onion will. My husband struggles with heartburn, so I cook all the onion in the saute pan before adding to the casserole since he prefers it that way. The choice is yours, it will work either way! Hope that helps.
Tiffany