Healthy Chicken and Rice Casserole Recipe

This Healthy Chicken and Rice Casserole combines brown rice with broccoli and chicken, no canned soup in sight. Best of all, this recipe uses just 10 ingredients and one pot!

Other chicken and rice recipes we love are this slow cooker chicken and rice and Instant Pot chicken and rice.

Using brown rice, omitting canned soup, and using yogurt makes this a delicious yet healthy chicken and rice casserole that the whole family will enjoy!

This recipe has actually been one of the healthy casseroles I’ve been making for years. However, initially, it involved searing the chicken in one pan, cooking the rice in another, and then combining them in a separate dish to bake in the oven. I was giving myself extra work (and dishes!) for no reason!

Now, I re-tested this one pot meal in 2024 and it uses minimal effort for maximum flavor!

Why You Will Love This Recipe

• No condensed soup: Unlike many chicken and rice casserole recipes, this healthy version contains no canned soup to avoid excess salt and preservatives.
• One pot meal: This casserole comes together in a single Dutch oven. Fewer dishes, less cleanup, happy me and you!
• It’s delicious: When combined with the creamy sauce, chicken, and cheese, even veggie-skeptics will find it hard to find fault with this healthy casserole recipe.
• It’s wholesome: It offers everything you need – lean protein, fiber, and complex carbohydrates.  
• Quick prep: This recipe requires under 20 minutes of hands-on prep and then is ready to go in the oven.
• Serve year round: It’s comforting and hearty enough for winter, yet light enough to enjoy year round.

Ingredients for Healthy Chicken and Rice Casserole

This recipe requires just 10 simple ingredients, most of which are likely already in your kitchen.

• Chicken: Use boneless skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs. Chicken breast tends to to be more dry than chicken thighs, though use what you have.
• Rice: I like to use brown basmati, jasmine or long grain rice as the rice grains are a little more tough and remain as individual grains even after baking. Short grain rice will come out more mushy although still delicious. I haven’t tried this casserole with wild rice or white rice, so I’m not sure it would work well.
• Broth: Use low sodium vegetable broth, chicken broth or Instant Pot chicken broth. I used organic low sodium bouillon cubes to prepare vegetable broth.
• Oil: I used avocado oil, but any neutral cooking oil will work.
• Broccoli: Fresh broccoli cut into smaller pieces. However, you could also use frozen broccoli (add at the end).
• Yogurt: Use 2% and higher fat yogurt for the best results. Avoid skim yogurt as it lacks flavor.
• Cheese: Use marble cheese or any hard shredded cheese like cheddar, Parmesan, colby jack, etc.  
• Spices: This casserole uses a combination of dried oregano (Italian seasoning would be even better), garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
• Green onion: For garnish.

How to Make Healthy Chicken and Rice Casserole

• Preheat large Dutch oven: First, preheat the oven to 400 F. Then on the stovetop preheat the Dutch oven over medium-high heat with a bit of oil.
• Sear the chicken: Add the raw chicken,oregano or Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Add the rice and veggies: Add the rice and stock to the pan and stir, bringing to a boil. Then, add the broccoli over the top (do not stir), cover, and bake in the oven for 40 minutes.

• Add the “sauce”: Remove pot from the oven, add the yogurt, chopped green onion, and stir well. Then sprinkle cheese over the top, cover and let stand for 5 minutes to allow cheese to melt.

Tips for Best Results

• Using the right pot: I use this Lodge Dutch oven and I love it. Cast iron Dutch oven cooks food evenly and retains heat better than other baking dishes. It also helps you make simple one pot meals from stovetop to oven.
• If you don’t have Dutch oven: A ceramic or glass baking dish could work. Though I imagine it would need longer to cook and a little more broth. I recommend cooking everything in the skillet, then transferring it to a baking dish. Make sure to wrap tightly with several layers of foil, and add an extra 10 minutes of baking time, and it may need more.
• To avoid mushy rice: Use only brown rice, and only varieties like jasmine, basmati or long grain rice.
• Cooking the broccoli your way: When baking the recipe as written, the broccoli will come out very soft. If you prefer broccoli with a little crunch, then add the broccoli florets at the same time as the yogurt.
• Using pre-cooked chicken: To save on prep time further, you can swap out the raw chicken for chicken leftovers. I recommend shredded chicken cooked in Instant Pot, baked chicken breast, or Instant Pot chicken breast. I would not reduce the baking time because brown rice needs time to cook, but you can skip sauteing the chicken.

Variations

Below are a few optional seasoning variations for this healthy chicken and rice casserole.  

• Mayonnaise: You can add 2-3 tablespoons of mayonnaise for extra creaminess at the end.
• Mustard: Just 1-2 tablespoons of Dijon mustard is enough to add an extra dimension of flavor.
• Cream cheese: Like the mayonnaise, using just a little cream cheese can enhance the creaminess without adding too much fat to the dish.
• Other vegetables: There are several vegetables you can add to this healthy casserole recipe. These include sauteed mushrooms with chicken, peas, spinach, cauliflower, finely chopped carrots, celery, green beans, etc.
• Seasonings: Feel free to experiment with the dried herbs. You could also experiment with seasonings like Cajun seasoning or curry powder.

Serving Recommendations

This casserole is a hearty enough meal on its own. However, you could enjoy it alongside some cottage cheese bread or Greek yogurt bread, or a leafy green salad.

You could also serve this with additional veggie sides like sauteed zucchini, garlic green beans, baked asparagus, or roasted cauliflower.

How to Store and Reheat

Store: Allow the chicken broccoli rice casserole to cool, then store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Freeze: Cool completely, then freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.   

Reheat: You can reheat smaller portions in the microwave or the oven at 375 F for 10 minutes or until warmed through. After reheating, you might want to add a bit more yogurt to bring back extra creaminess. Sprinkle fresh herbs too, as they always add another layer of flavor.

FAQs

More Healthy Rice Recipes to Try

• Healthy chicken broccoli casserole
• Turkey pasta bake
• Healthy Mexican casserole
• Mexican chicken and rice
• Skillet enchiladas
• Cilantro lime chicken rice skillet
• Healthy chicken wild rice soup