Ritz Cracker Chicken Casserole

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This delicious Ritz Cracker Chicken Casserole with rice and creamy sauce is the perfect comfort food for any occasion. Serve it for dinner tonight and watch everyone come back for seconds!

This is a delicious meal to make ahead and heat up when you are ready to eat. It’s a great dinner to make on a cold day and serve with hot bread.

Ritz cracker chicken casserole in a glass baking dish and a serving on a plate.

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What Makes Ritz Cracker Chicken Casserole So Good? 

A casserole may not be the most exciting dinner option, but it is quick, cheap, and easy to make. Besides, if you choose the right one, it can be awfully tasty.

This Ritz Cracker Chicken Casserole recipe combines chunks of tender chicken, creamy mushroom and chicken soup, tangy sour cream, filling rice, and crunchy Ritz crackers into a delicious and convenient one-dish dinner your family will love. 

Why You Should Try This Ritz Cracker Chicken Casserole Recipe

Having another casserole recipe on hand is never a bad thing, especially when it is as tasty as this one. Unlike other versions of this recipe that use a ton of seasonings, this casserole is pretty mild, which makes it great for mealtime with kids.

Adding the rice to this recipe helps to stretch the chicken to feed more people and makes the casserole easy to cut. Check out the section below for a few ways to change up the recipe for more variety. 

Cracker Topped Chicken and Rice Casserole Ingredients

To prepare this recipe, you’ll need:

  • Cooked chicken – can be boiled, baked, pan-fried, or rotisserie chicken
  • Chicken broth
  • Minute Rice
  • Sour cream
  • Condensed cream of chicken soup or cream of mushroom soup or one of each
  • Chopped onion sautéed (optional)
  • Butter,
  • Ritz crackers

You can use other instant rice brands like Target’s Good & Gather or Walmart’s Great Value in place of Minute Rice. 

Club Crackers make an excellent substitution for Ritz Crackers. 

Ritz cracker chicken casserole ingredients on a tray.

How to Make Chicken Casserole With Ritz Crackers and Rice

To prepare this casserole:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease or spray a 9 X 13-inch baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
  2. Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces and place them in a large bowl. Or use shredded chicken if you prefer.
Diced cooked chicken in a mixing bowl.
  1. Add chicken broth, rice, sour cream, and two cans of creamed soup.
Ritz cracker chicken casserole ingredients in a mixing bowl.
  1. Add the sauteed onions, if using. Stir to combine.
  2. Pour the chicken mixture into the prepared baking dish. Shake the baking dish back and forth to spread out the mixture and pop any bubbles. 
  3. Bake on the middle rack in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.  
Adding sauteed onions to Ritz cracker chicken casserole ingredients in a mixing bowl.
  1. While the casserole is in the oven, melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat.
  2. Crush Ritz crackers and place the crushed crumbs into a medium bowl. Add the melted butter and toss to coat. Reserve the coated crackers for later. 
Crushed Ritz crackers and melted butter in a bowl.
  1. After the casserole has been in the oven for 20 minutes, remove it and top the filling with crumbled Ritz crackers. 
Ritz cracker topping on a chicken and rice casserole.
  1. Return the casserole to the oven and bake for 15 more minutes, until the Ritz cracker topping is golden brown.
  2. Let the casserole cool for a few minutes on a wire rack before serving. Garnish with fresh parsley if desired.
Ritz cracker chicken casserole on a plate next to the casserole in a glass baking dish.

Recipe Variations

Casseroles are ideal for customizing. Here are three suggestions for this recipe that you may want to play around with:

  • Ritz Cracker Chicken Casserole With Vegetables. Replace some or all of the instant rice with a bag of thawed mixed vegetables or peas. Chop up any large pieces. 
  • Ritz Cracker Chicken Broccoli Casserole. Replace some or all of the instant rice with chopped broccoli, 
  • Cheesy Chicken Ritz Cracker Casserole, Swap out one of the cans of creamed soup for a can of cheese soup. 

What to Serve With Chicken and Rice Casserole With Ritz Crackers

Since this casserole already includes rice, choosing a low-carb side dish like a fresh salad, green beans, or a bowl of soup is a good idea. 

How to Store Chicken and Rice Casserole

Keep any leftovers in the casserole dish and cover it with plastic wrap or transfer them to an airtight container. Pop the dish in the refrigerator for up to three days.

If you want to freeze any leftovers, add a layer of aluminum foil on top of the plastic wrap. Keep the chicken casserole with Ritz crackers and rice in the freezer for up to a month. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating. 

What Is the Best Way to Reheat This Casserole?

Heating leftover chicken and rice casserole with Ritz crackers on top is easiest in the oven:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
  2. Slice the casserole into serving portions and spread them out on the bottom of a new baking dish. Do not try to reheat the casserole in a cold baking dish. It will take longer to heat up, and the quick temperature change can crack the baking dish. 
  3. Allow the casserole to sit out for about ten minutes to warm up a little before reheating. 
  4. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and heat for 20 to 30 minutes. Start checking if the casserole is hot enough after 20 minutes. 
Overhead view of Ritz cracker chicken casserole in a baking dish and a serving on a plate.

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Ritz Cracker Chicken Casserole

This recipe for chicken and rice casserole features a buttery Ritz cracker crumb topping.
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Keyword Chicken and Rice, Chicken Recipes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings 8
Calories 347kcal

Ingredients

  • 4 cups cooked chicken diced
  • 3 cups chicken broth
  • 2 cups Minute Rice
  • 8 ounces sour cream
  • 2 cans cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup or one of each
  • 1 cup chopped onion sautéed (optional)
  • 1 stick butter (4 ounces) melted
  • 2 tubes Ritz crackers crushed

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F.
  • Combine the chicken, chicken broth, rice, sour cream, and soup.
  • Add the sautéed onion, if using, and mix well.
  • Transfer the mixture to a greased 9×13-inch casserole dish and bake for 20 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, pour the melted butter over the crushed crackers and mix until well coated.
  • After the casserole has baked for 20 minutes, sprinkle the buttered crackers on top and bake for an additional 15 minutes, until the crackers are browned and the casserole is bubbly.

Nutrition

Calories: 347kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 67mg | Sodium: 1002mg | Potassium: 274mg | Fiber: 0g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 675IU | Vitamin C: 8.2mg | Calcium: 60mg | Iron: 2.5mg

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