Million Dollar Chicken Bake is one of the best ways to get million-dollar flavors on your supper table. With easy ingredients like chicken, cheese, sour cream, and creamy soup as your delicious filling, and a buttery topping of crushed Ritz crackers, this is a chicken casserole that will become one of your family’s favorites.
And by the way, this happens to be a great use for a rotisserie chicken or even in a pinch, some canned chicken from the pantry.
Million Dollar Chicken – Your Family’s New Favorite!
Why You’ll Love This Classic Chicken Casserole
Three great factors that make this a popular dinner:
- Makes your chicken go further to feed more people and can make even leftover chicken taste amazing.
- It’s a pure comfort food winner when you need a good comfort food dish on a cold winter’s night.
- Paired with a green vegetable and/or a yummy vegetable side, this casserole is all you need for a complete meal.
Groceries Needed For This Chicken Bake
Chopped Cooked Chicken: You can cook the chicken you need for this recipe, but I find the easiest is to use leftover roast chicken or rotisserie chicken. You can even use cooked, grilled, and packaged (the kind for salads) or canned chicken if you have it on hand.
Cream Cheese: You’ll want it softened, so leave it at room temp for a while to soften up or you can use the microwave on half power to make it more workable.
Cottage cheese: This helps with a nice cheesy factor in the casserole, and for those who don’t like cottage cheese, trust me when I say you don’t taste it or know it’s there after baking.
Sour Cream: Adds even more to the creaminess of the recipe.
Cream of Mushroom Soup: More flavor and sauciness. No need to use a specific brand. Just use your favorite, and you’ll be good to go.
Garlic powder: Use regular garlic if you’d like.
Dried onion powder
Ritz crackers: These crackers are crushed and buttered for the most delicious topping to this chicken casserole. If you don’t have Ritz, use any of your favorite kinds. Even crushed goldfish crackers would work.
Butter: Added to the crushed crackers to make the most buttery topping. Don’t skip this part!
How to Make Million-Dollar Chicken Bake
- Preheat your oven.
- Combine cream cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, cream of mushroom soup, garlic powder, and onion powder.
- Fold in the shredded chicken into the mixture.
- Make the cracker crumb topping.
- In a greased casserole dish, spread the chicken and cheese mixture evenly.
- Sprinkle the buttered cracker crumbs evenly over the top of the casserole.
- Place the casserole in the preheated oven.
- Bake!
***** SaltyPot Tip: All the exact ingredient amounts and directions will be in the printable recipe card below.
Suggestions for Putting a Twist on It
Try bulking it up with vegetables like zucchini, corn, or potatoes to make the meal more filling and help make the meal go further. This is great if you are meal-prepping lunches for the week to feed more people.
Try adding other crunchy toppings like fried onions, or crushed corn chips to give a satisfying crunch.
Forgo the cracker topping and instead top with cheddar cheese. I love to add shredded cheese on the top to add a gooey cheesy comfort food twist.
What Can I Serve this Chicken Casserole With?
This dish goes great with any of your favorite sides. From a fresh crisp salad to perfectly creamy mashed potatoes.
This is a great dish to serve with a side of green peas if your family enjoys them, or you can try my 3 Minute Maple Cinnamon Instant Pot Carrots for a mapley-sweet touch.
Storing Leftovers
Storing your leftovers is easy. This chicken bake will freeze well if you wish to make frozen meals to heat up when you have a time crunch. Reheating in the microwave is the easiest option, but if you want the crispy crunchy top, it’s best to reheat in the oven.
If you are storing your leftovers for just a few days you can keep them in an air-tight container for 3 to 4 days, chilled in the fridge.
Questions You Might Have
Can I use leftover cooked turkey instead of chicken?
That’s not a problem. Just shred the turkey the same way the chicken is shredded for use. Freezing and fridge storage times are the same.
I want to save some calories, can I use yogurt instead of sour cream?
You can, that’s not a problem. I recommend using Greek yogurt instead of regular yogurt, as there is more liquid in the regular king.
Can I switch out the cream of mushroom soup for another cream soup?
Absolutely. Cream of chicken, cream of celery, cream of asparagus, and believe it or not, cheddar cheese soup would all be fantastic substitutions.
Did you make this million-dollar chicken casserole recipe? If so, I’d love to hear what you thought about it! Did you change it up at all? Please leave a comment below and a *****star rating***** on the recipe card. Thank you so much for stopping by The Salty Pot today, and I hope you have a fantastic week!
~Joanne
Million Dollar Chicken Bake
A delicious rich chicken casserole that has buttery crunchy topping. You basically mix together and bake. Don't let the easy directions food you, this recipe is a winner!
Ingredients
- 4 - 5 cups chopped cooked chicken
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened. (Half a brick)
- 1 cup cottage cheese (see notes)
- ½ cup sour cream (see notes)
- 1 (10.5-oz) can cream of Mushroom Soup (see body of the post for variations on this ingredient.
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon dried onion powder
- As desired, salt and pepper
- 1 sleeve crackers, crushed
- 6 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). This will ensure that it's ready when you need to bake the casserole.
- If you haven't already, cook and shred the chicken. You can use leftover roasted chicken, grilled chicken breasts, or any pre-cooked chicken you have on hand.
- Combine cream cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, cream of chicken soup, garlic powder, and onion powder.
- Use a whisk or a spatula to thoroughly mix all the ingredients. You want a smooth and well-incorporated mixture.
- Fold in the shredded chicken into the mixture. Make sure it's evenly distributed.
- Melt the butter.
- Crush the crackers in a zip-top bag if they're not crushed already. You can use a rolling pin or your hands. You want a coarse crumb texture.
- Pour the melted butter into the crushed crackers. Mix them until the crumbs are evenly coated.
- In a greased 9 x 9 casserole dish, spread the chicken and cheese mixture evenly.
- Sprinkle the buttered cracker crumbs evenly over the top of the casserole.
- Place the casserole in the preheated oven.
- Bake for approximately 25-30 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the casserole is bubbling around the edges.
- Allow the casserole to cool for a few minutes before serving. This dish pairs well with a simple salad or steamed vegetables.
- Enjoy!
Notes
You can substitute different cream soups for the cream of mushroom soup. If you have extra turkey, feel free to use that instead of chicken.
If you're not crazy about the texture of cottage cheese, feel free to use an immersion blender and blend it smooth. But honestly, when you bake it, the curds melt and you don't notice the texture.
The sour cream can be substituted for thick Greek yogurt.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1 cupAmount Per Serving: Calories: 1304Total Fat: 86gSaturated Fat: 31gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 46gCholesterol: 494mgSodium: 1037mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 0gSugar: 5gProtein: 116g
All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods, and portion sizes per household.
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