Chicken and Rice Casserole with Cream of Mushroom Soup

Name: Chicken and Rice Casserole
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 100 min
Total time: 110 min
Ingredients: 1 ½ cups long-grain white rice; 2 cans cream of mushroom soup; 2 cups milk; 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (divided); 6 chicken thighs; Salt and pepper; Fresh parsley (chopped (for serving))

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Chicken and Rice Casserole with Cream of Mushroom Soup is what I make when I want one dish the whole table will eat without a fuss, usually when I’m tired and don’t want to stand over the stove to make it. Everything goes into a single baking dish: the chicken thighs, uncooked rice, cream of mushroom soup, milk, and cheddar, and the oven does the rest.

The one golden rule I always follow is to cover it with foil and press it tight to the rim, because the trapped steam is what cooks the rice through right in the sauce, with no second pan to wash(which is such a bonus). It takes a couple of cans and a few things from the cupboard, feeds six, and the leftovers reheat well, so one bake usually covers dinner and a lunch or two after it.

Baked chicken and rice casserole dish filled with creamy chicken and rice, topped with melted cheese and chopped parsley, with a spoon scooping a serving. — Chicken & Rice Casserole. Photo Credit: Pocket Friendly Recipes.

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe

It’s mild enough for fussy eaters and cheesy enough to still feel like a treat
Barely any hands-on work. You stir, assemble, cover, and bake
The rice cooks straight in the cream of mushroom sauce, so there’s no separate pan
I use thighs on purpose, because they stay juicy over the long covered bake where breast tends to dry out
One dish feeds six from a couple of cans and pantry staples
Leftovers reheat well for lunches later in the week

What You’ll Need

You’ll need all the ingredients shown in the photograph below.

A flat lay of raw chicken thighs, shredded cheddar cheese, white rice, milk, mushroom soup, chopped parsley, salt, and pepper in separate bowls—perfect for preparing a classic Chicken and Rice Casserole. — Chicken & Rice Casserole Ingredients. Photo Credit: Pocket Friendly Recipes.

Boneless, skinless chicken thighs. I use chicken thighs here because they hold up to the hour and a half under foil and come out tender. Breast still works if it’s what you have. Just keep an eye on it and start checking the temperature a little sooner.
Long-grain white rice. This is the rice that behaves in a bake like this, and I don’t rinse it. Skip instant rice, which turns to mush, and skip brown or parboiled, which need more liquid and time. Using the wrong rice is the usual reason a batch comes out crunchy.
Cream of mushroom soup, condensed. You want two standard condensed cans, about 10.5 ounces each. Use it as it comes, without adding water, because the milk is the only extra liquid it needs. It’s the base the dish is named for and does most of the seasoning.
Milk. Loosens the condensed soup into a sauce that coats the rice.
Shredded cheddar cheese, divided. Half goes into the base so it melts through, and half goes on top to brown. Parmesan or pepper jack can stand in for some of it.
Salt and pepper, for the chicken and the base.
Fresh parsley, chopped, to finish after baking.

How to Make Chicken and Rice Casserole

Scroll down for the full recipe card containing a full printable recipe and measurements in both US customary and metric units.

Prep the Oven and Rice Base

Heat the oven to 350°F (180°C). In a large bowl, stir together the cream of mushroom soup, milk, uncooked rice, and half the cheddar until the rice is evenly coated.

Uncooked rice and grated cheese in a ceramic dish for chicken and rice casserole. — Mix the rice with soup, milk, and half the cheese until evenly coated.

Chicken and rice casserole being covered by foil. — Spread the rice mixture in the casserole dish, top with chicken, season, cover with foil, and bake for 1½ hours.

Assemble the casserole

Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking dish and spread the rice mixture out evenly. Nestle the chicken thighs on top with a little space between them, then season with salt and pepper.

Cover the dish tightly with foil and press it down to the rim; I’m obsessed with this step, please don’t skip it. That seal is doing the real work, so don’t leave it loose.

Bake it covered

Bake covered for 1½ hours. The rice soaks up the liquid and turns tender while the chicken cooks through under the steam. Try not to lift the foil to peek, because the steam that escapes is the water the rice needs.

Add Cheese and Finish

Carefully take off the foil, scatter the rest of the cheddar over the top, and put the dish back in uncovered for about 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and bubbling. Check the thickest thigh has reached 165°F (74°C) rather than going by the clock, since all ovens vary.

An oval casserole dish with uncooked shredded cheese topping a chicken and rice casserole on a wooden board. — Remove foil, top with cheddar, and bake uncovered for 10 minutes until melted and bubbling.

A person serving a freshly baked chicken and rice casserole, garnished with parsley, on a wooden board. — Rest for 5 minutes, garnish with parsley, then serve.

Rest and serve

Let it sit for 5 minutes so the sauce settles, scatter over the parsley, then scoop it out and serve.

Recipe Notes and Expert Tips

Press the foil tight to the rim. A loose seal is the main reason the rice comes out firm, because the steam just escapes instead of cooking it.
Stick to long-grain white rice and keep the soup and milk amounts as they are. The whole timing is built around that rice.
If it’s still firm when the time is up, cover it again and give it another 10 to 15 minutes. It wants more steam, not more heat.
Use a thermometer on the thickest thigh. Colour won’t tell you it’s cooked, but 165°F (74°C) will. If you don’t have an instant-read thermometer, it’s worth buying a cheap one, because with chicken it’s the only reliable way to be sure.
Go easy on any extra vegetables so the sauce doesn’t turn watery.
Let it rest 5 minutes before serving, so the sauce holds together when you scoop.
Cooking for one or two? Halve everything and use an 8-inch square dish, keep the same covered-then-uncovered method, and start checking a little earlier.

Recipe Variations

Cream of chicken or cream of celery soup in place of the mushroom. Either one works without changing the method.
A clove of minced garlic or a pinch of garlic powder stirred into the base. A small addition that lifts the whole dish.
A buttery cracker or crispy fried onion topping. Scatter crushed crackers or fried onions over the cheese when the foil comes off, so they crisp up during the last uncovered bake.
Cooked or rotisserie chicken. This bake cooks raw rice under the chicken over the full time, so if your chicken is already cooked, stir it through near the end instead, just long enough to heat it up.

How to Store Leftovers

Get leftovers into the fridge within 2 hours of baking, and don’t leave the dish out to cool to room temperature first. To cool it down quickly and safely, split it into shallow containers and refrigerate straight away. It keeps for 3 to 4 days.

To freeze, pack it into portions and freeze for up to 3 months, then thaw it overnight in the fridge before reheating. Portions are so

Reheat single portions in the microwave, or the whole dish covered at 350°F, until it’s steaming hot all the way through (165°F/74°C). Stir in a splash of milk or broth first to bring the sauce back.

To make it ahead, assemble it the night before at the most. The rice and chicken go in raw, so keep it tightly covered in the fridge, bake it within a day, add a few extra minutes from cold, and check for 165°F before serving.

What to Serve With Chicken and Rice Casserole

I find that this casserole is filling on its own, so it only needs a simple side. A green salad with olive oil and lemon, or a cucumber and tomato salad with a sharp vinaigrette, cuts through the richness.

If you’d rather something warm, roasted green beans with garlic, air fryer broccoli or glazed carrots all go well with it, and garlic bread or a dinner roll is good for mopping up that delicious sauce.

Can I use chicken breast instead of thighs?

You can, and plenty of people do, but breast dries out faster over the long covered bake. Cut the pieces evenly and start checking for 165°F (74°C) a little sooner than you would with thighs.

Can I use instant or minute rice?

No. It collapses to mush over a bake this long. The timing is built around uncooked long-grain white rice.

Why is my rice still crunchy?

It’s nearly always a loose foil seal or the wrong rice. Cover it again and give it another 10 to 15 minutes. Next time, press the foil tight to the rim and stick with long-grain white.

Can I make this ahead?

Up to a point. Because the rice and chicken go in raw, assemble it no more than the night before, keep it tightly covered in the fridge, and bake it within a day. Bake it straight from cold rather than leaving it out on the counter first, and add a few minutes to the covered time since it starts chilled. Check for 165°F (74°C) before serving.

Can I make it with shredded or rotisserie chicken?

Yes. Stir cooked, shredded chicken through near the end of baking instead of starting with raw thighs, so it warms without drying out.

More Chicken Dinners to Try

If this one earns a spot on your regular list, these are worth a look too.

Chicken and Broccoli Casserole. The closest cousin to this one: chicken, rice and broccoli in a creamy, cheesy sauce, if you want the vegetable built in.
Chicken and Dumpling Casserole. Homemade dumplings bake right on top until golden, with no separate simmering.
Chicken Pot Pie Casserole. Three layers of puff pastry, so you get flaky pastry in every bite instead of just on top.
Easy Chicken Casserole. Creamy chicken and egg noodles finished with bacon and fried shallots, ready in about 25 minutes because the chicken starts cooked.