This million dollar chicken casserole starts with shredded chicken baked in a creamy mix of cream cheese, sour cream, cottage cheese, and cream of chicken soup, then topped with buttery crushed Ritz crackers. With cooked or rotisserie chicken, it takes about 10 minutes to stir together and 35 minutes in the oven.
Casserole Queen, reporting for duty.
I’m back and I have another winner for ya. 😁
You already know I’m a real big fan of casseroles, but I usually stir the pasta or rice right inside the casserole. We’re mixing it up this time around with a creamy, cheesy chicken casserole that is topped off with buttery Ritz crackers and served over a pile of mashed potatoes, rice, or pasta! (Try it on my Instant Pot jasmine rice or over my Amish egg noodles!)
If you’ve already made our Million Dollar Pasta or Million Dollar Baked Tortellini, you already know the deal. Cream cheese, cottage cheese, + sour cream come together to make the sauce that tastes like a million bucks. Even the cottage cheese haters love this type of casserole because the cottage cheese just melts right into the casserole and no one actually knows it’s there!
3 Reasons You’ll Love This Million Dollar Chicken Bake:
Tastes like a million bucks. Cream cheese, sour cream, and cottage cheese team up for a rich, saucy filling that’s perfect spooned over rice or noodles.
That Ritz cracker topping. Butter-soaked crackers bake up golden and crunchy. They add the perfect salty crunch!
It’s a leftover chicken hero. Rotisserie chicken, leftover baked chicken, or that bag of shredded chicken in the freezer all work.
Swaps & Tips:
- Rotisserie chicken is your shortcut. Shred the chicken as soon as you get it home from the store. It’ll shred easier while warm vs. straight outta the fridge.
- Not a fan of canned soup? Use my cream of chicken soup substitute, or leave it out entirely. Without it, the filling is thicker and you’ll want to add a pinch of salt.
- Taste before you bake. There’s no added salt in this recipe because the soup, crackers, and butter bring plenty. Give the filling a taste and adjust, but go easy since the topping adds more salt.
- Worried about cottage cheese texture? Use small curd cottage cheese, or blend it smooth before mixing it in. Honestly though, it just melts in and no one will notice it either way.
- Sneak in some veggies. A drained can of mixed vegetables, a cup of frozen peas, or some chopped steamed broccoli stir right into the filling.
- Skip the green onions if you’ve got picky eaters. They’re completely optional.
- Out of Ritz? Club crackers or any store-brand butter crackers work the same way.
- Feeding a crowd? Double the recipe and bake it in a 9×13 dish. Start checking at 35 minutes, but it may need a few extra minutes to get bubbly in the center.
- Stir in noodles. A pound of cooked egg noodles can get mixed right in here. If you do so, you’ll want to double the garlic + pepper and add in a bit of salt.
Step by Step Instructions:
Storage:
- Refrigerator: Store leftovers in an airtight container for 4-5 days. Reheat in the microwave until hot and bubbly.
- Freezer: For best results, freeze the filling without the cracker topping for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge, stir, add the buttered crackers, and bake as directed. Things might get a bit grainy after freezing.
- Make ahead: Stir together the filling, spread it in the baking dish, cover, and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Add the buttered crackers right before baking so they stay crunchy, and add 5 to 10 minutes to the bake time since it’s starting cold.
Recipe FAQs:
The combo of sour cream, cream cheese, and cottage cheese is the classic mix for a million dollar casserole, but it won’t hurt anything to swap the cottage cheese for ricotta! That said, the cottage cheese melts right into the casserole and no one really notices it.
You can either leave out the cream soup entirely for a thicker casserole filling or you can swap it for my cream of chicken substitute if you’re trying to avoid the processed canned stuff.
More Casserole Favorites:
Million Dollar Chicken Casserole
Ingredients
- 5 cups cooked chopped or shredded chicken
- 3 green onions chopped
- 1 cup cottage cheese
- 10.5 ounces cream of chicken soup see notes
- ½ cup sour cream
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon cracked pepper
- 30 Ritz crackers crushed
- 4 tablespoons melted butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×9 baking dish with non-stick spray.
- Add the chicken and green onions to a mixing bowl.
- Add the cottage cheese, cream of chicken soup, sour cream, cream cheese, garlic powder, and pepper to a small bowl and stir well to combine.
- Pour the cottage cheese mixture over the chicken and stir to coat. Spread the mixture into the prepared baking dish.
- Add the Ritz crackers to a small bowl and pour the melted butter over the top. Stir to coat the crackers in the butter.
- Sprinkle the crackers over the casserole.
- Bake, uncovered, for 30-35 minutes, until the edges are bubbly and the top is browned.
- Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.
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