Million Dollar Chicken Casserole
This Million Dollar Chicken Casserole is total comfort food! Tender chicken is coated in a creamy sauce and sprinkled with a buttery cracker topping before baking in the oven. It’s the perfect comforting dinner, and is the one chicken casserole you will want to make again and again!
For more delicious Chicken Casserole Recipes, be sure to check out my Chicken Cobbler, Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole, and King Ranch Chicken Recipe.
Easy chicken casseroles are my jam these days and this Million Dollar Chicken Casserole recipe is a new favorite.
We stay pretty busy during the evenings with my kids’ sports schedules, so I like to make an easy dinner ahead of time during the day and reheat portions when each person is ready to eat.
For that reason, I love easy casserole recipes like this one. It’s full of simple ingredients and is actually a play on my super popular Million Dollar Dip Recipe. I added a few more ingredients, adapted it for the oven, and turned it into a Million Dollar Chicken Bake instead!
It’s the perfect dinner for busy weeknights and is really easy to make ahead of time, too. But most importantly it tastes SO DARN GOOD!
Seriously y’all, bacon, chicken, and green onions, all wrapped up in a creamy, cheesy sauce? And topped with a buttery ritz cracker topping? To die for! My whole family gave this million dollar chicken two thumbs up!
Ingredients for Million Dollar Chicken Casserole
- Chicken breast – you will need two pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into small cubes.
- Cream cheese – you will need one 8 oz package of cream cheese softened to room temperature. I like full fat for maximum creaminess, but this will also work fine with light cream cheese, too.
- Cream of chicken soup – my favorite brand (and what I always recommend) for cream soups is Pacific Foods. Most grocery stores carry it. It’s a bit more expensive than Campbell’s or store brand versions of condensed soup, but the flavor and simplicity of ingredients (no weird chemicals) is well worth it.
- Mayonnaise – this adds savory flavor and creaminess to your million dollar chicken casserole. You could swap it with sour cream or plain Greek yogurt though, if you prefer.
- Bacon – I ended up using about 10 crispy bacon slices and then chopped them. You will use half for the filling and half for topping at the end.
- Green onions – add so much to flavor to the recipe. You’ll need about 1/2 cup for the whole recipe which is around 4 four whole green onions.
- Cheese – you will need two cups of sharp cheddar cheese, shredded. I recommend shredding the cheese yourself from an 8 ounce block.
- Spices – a combination of garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper works nicely for seasoning the casserole.
- Ritz crackers – about 30 crushed crackers will be used to make the crispy topping.
- Butter – you will need half a stick of melted, unsalted butter. I recommend using unsalted as the other ingredients add enough saltiness to the dish.
A full list of ingredients, measurements, and instructions are located in the recipe card below.
How to Make Million Dollar Chicken Casserole – Step by Step
Add the cubed chicken breast pieces to a large mixing bowl and sprinkle with the garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper, mixing carefully to coat evenly. Add the cheddar cheese, cream of chicken soup, cream cheese, mayonnaise, half the chopped bacon, and half the green onions and everything well.
Spoon chicken mixture into the prepared casserole dish and spread into an even layer.
In a small bowl, stir together the Ritz cracker crumbs and the melted butter. Sprinkle the cracker mixture over the chicken.
Bake in the preheated oven for 45-55 minutes until the casserole is bubbly, and the topping is golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow the casserole to cool for at least 10-15 minutes before serving. Sprinkle the remaining bacon crumbles and green onions over the top of the casserole right before serving.
Serving Suggestions
This chicken casserole is a very hearty dish all on its own, but it does taste great over a bed of rice or egg noodles.
For side dishes, I recommend keeping it simple with a green side salad or veggies like Air Fryer Green Beans. You can also soak up that delicious sauce with some homemade Dutch Oven Bread.
Tips and Notes
- What kind of chicken to use: as written, this recipe uses raw, boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into chunks. You could also use leftover chicken or store-bought rotisserie chicken. If using already cooked chicken, your baking time will be reduced to 30 minutes.
- Making ahead of time: You can prep your casserole ahead of time for the same day or the next day and store it in the refrigerator covered with plastic wrap. Just wait to add the cracker mixture right before baking and follow the baking instructions in the recipe. It makes a great make-ahead dish to send to a family member or friend.
- Freezer Instructions: Cover the casserole dish with a layer of plastic wrap and then a layer of aluminum foil and freeze for up to 3 months. If freezing as a make-ahead, prepare the casserole as directed but don’t add the cracker topping. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and aluminum foil and freeze. It is best to thaw the frozen casserole in the refrigerator overnight before baking, and it is even better if you can let it come to room temperature before placing it in the oven. Add the cracker mixture to the thawed casserole right before baking.
- To Reheat: If reheating the remaining casserole, place it in the oven at 350°F for 15-20 minutes or until thoroughly heated through. If heating a single serving, you can heat it in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes at a time until warm.
- For a Keto or Low Carb option, you can omit the Ritz cracker topping. For a gluten-free option, you could use gluten-free crackers instead. All of the other ingredients are gluten-free as is (check the condensed soup to be sure, though.)
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
More Easy Dinner Recipes You Should Try!
If you try this recipe, please leave a comment and rating below. I love to hear from you and always appreciate your feedback!
Recipe: Million Dollar Chicken Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 10.5 ounce can cream of chicken soup
- 8 ounce block cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 10 slices bacon, cooked until crispy, chopped, and divided
- 1/2 cup green onions, sliced and divided
- 30 Ritz crackers, crushed
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°Fahrenheit and spray a 9 x 13 inch casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- Add the cubed chicken breast pieces to a large mixing bowl and sprinkle with the garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper, mixing carefully to coat evenly. Add the cheddar cheese, cream of chicken soup, cream cheese, mayonnaise, half the chopped bacon, and half the green onions and everything well.
- Spoon chicken mixture into the prepared casserole dish and spread into an even layer.
- In a small bowl, stir together the Ritz cracker crumbs and the melted butter. Sprinkle the cracker mixture over the chicken.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 45-55 minutes until the casserole is bubbly, and the topping is golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and allow the casserole to cool for at least 10-15 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining bacon crumbles and green onions over the top of the casserole right before serving.
Notes
- What kind of chicken to use: as written, this recipe uses raw, boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into chunks. You could also use leftover chicken or store-bought rotisserie chicken. If using already cooked chicken, your baking time will be reduced to 30 minutes.
- Making ahead of time: You can prep your casserole ahead of time for the same day or the next day and store it in the refrigerator covered with plastic wrap. Just wait to add the cracker mixture right before baking and follow the baking instructions in the recipe. It makes a great make-ahead dish to send to a family member or friend.
- Freezer Instructions: Cover the casserole dish with a layer of plastic wrap and then a layer of aluminum foil and freeze for up to 3 months. If freezing as a make-ahead, prepare the casserole as directed but don’t add the cracker topping. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and aluminum foil and freeze. It is best to thaw the frozen casserole in the refrigerator overnight before baking, and it is even better if you can let it come to room temperature before placing it in the oven. Add the cracker mixture to the thawed casserole right before baking.
- To Reheat: If reheating the remaining casserole, place it in the oven at 350°F for 15-20 minutes or until thoroughly heated through. If heating a single serving, you can heat it in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes at a time until warm.
- For a Keto or Low Carb option, you can omit the Ritz cracker topping. For a gluten-free option, you could use gluten-free crackers instead. All of the other ingredients are gluten-free as is (check the condensed soup to be sure, though.)
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
OMG this was so good! I’m going to make it again for when family comes over. Thank you for this recipe!!
We loved this so much. It’s just in time for fall and winter, too. I’ll be making this one A LOT.