I wanted to make a chicken casserole the other day, but I wanted one that I’d never made before. After pondering for a while, I decided to alter Chicken and Cheesy Rice Casserole and give it an Italian spin. Everyone liked it. We had leftovers for lunch the next day and I thought it was even better leftover.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- 2-3 cups cooked, chopped chicken
- 1 cup rice, uncooked
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- handful of chopped fresh parsley
- 1 cup Italian blend shredded cheese
- 2 cans chicken broth
- 1 can cream of chicken soup
- 1/2-1 tsp. oregano
- 1/2-1 tsp. basil
- 1 garlic clove, minced or crushed
- black pepper to taste
Put the chicken in the bottom of a 9×13 casserole dish. Sprinkle the rice, red pepper and parsley over the top. Spread the cheese evenly over the top.
In a small bowl, combine the broth, chicken soup,, oregano, basil, garlic and pepper. Pour evenly over the top of the other ingredients. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour – 1 hour and 15 minutes. Let it stand for a few minutes before serving.
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yum! i make one using alfredo sauce which is a nice different take on a rice casserole. tfs
do you cook the rice first?
I presume the rice is uncooked when you put it in the casserole?
Trudy, yes it is uncooked. I’ll edit the recipe to show that.
Great recipe! I think I’ll try it using some of the chicken that is currently cooking in my crockpot. Have you even tried freezing this type of casserole? I’m on the lookout for simple, tasty casseroles that can be frozen and eaten after our baby is born.
Ashley, I haven’t tried freezing a casserole with rice, but I bet it would work. I recently added a lot of freezer recipes and even a menu and grocery list full of freezer foods. Here’s the link to the Frozen Food category.
guess it’s time to get the bag-o-chicken parts (leg quarters) out of the freezer and ‘crock’ them. I’m out of cooked chicken. Then I could cook this in the toaster oven.
Thx for the inspi!
That looks quite tasty!!
Just wanted to say this looks yummy and I’m going to make it this next week. I really enjoy your website and appreciate simple but tasty recipes that motivate me to cook more. Too bad my kids don’t always appreciate my efforts. God bless you and thank you.
This is in my oven! I completely messed it up though!!
I added 1/2 cup extra rice then added more broth to compensate…now 75 mintues later it still looks like soup. Debating on whether to take it out and calm our growling bellies or wait till the rice soaks it all up…
Your picture makes it loook sooooo good and my house smells equally as good…That’s what I get for not following the recipe – not a first for me LOL
Oh, this picture makes it look soooooo yummy! Since my hubby is not a chicken fan, I’ve been waiting to try it while he was on duty…..and being the frugal mom that I am, I thought I would make it in 2 9×9 pans rather than a 9×13, so that I could freeze one for another day when its just me and the kids — that kinda messed up the liquid parts — so, I’ll have to practice a little more to get it right!! I also added mushrooms just because I saw them in the fridge while I was getting the bell pepper out! But, it is a wonderful dish and a definite keeper…..thanks so much for your great ideas. I come here often looking for dinner inspiration!
I just made this for dinner 2 nights ago and thought it was great. Living overseas I didn’t have cream of chicken soup or canned broth on hand. I used about 6 cups home made broth, with about 1 cup sour cream stirred in. It was great!! So glad I put it on my menu plan last week!
Thanks for the great recipe.
I just made this in my rice cooker.
I left the cover open, hit STEAM to cook the (frozen) peppers.
Added the soup, chicken, rice, spices and 1 1/2 c water with 2 tsp of chicken bouillon.
Closed lid, set to “WHITE RICE” to cook. It beeped as done much too early, stirred and set to “WHITE RICE” again. When it was done, I topped with cheese and all0wed it to melt on the “WARM” cycle.
I have an Aroma 10 cup basic rice cooker with White, Brown, and Steam options.
Bernice, now I really want a rice cooker. I didn’t know you could do things like a casserole in one. Cool!
My casserole is in the oven right now!! Can’t wait to try it. I did use fresh basil instead of dried…..only because my garden is brimming with it! Hoping it turns out okay with that. Thank you for posting. Truly enjoying your blog…just recently stumbled upon it.
Kristi, fresh basil will be fantastic!
I can not wait to try this recipe out on the family. It will be a wonderful change from the usual chicken casserole.