Million Dollar Chicken Casserole is the best chicken casserole ever! With creamy, cheesy, shredded chicken underneath a rich layer of buttery crackers, it tastes like a million bucks, and everyone always comes back for seconds.
A rich and creamy chicken filling is only half of the best thing about this recipe – The real star of the show might be the crispy topping, made with buttered Ritz crackers!
They help to create the perfect crunch to chicken ratio, so I definitely won’t recommend skipping them.
Serve this delicious creamy chicken casserole with a side of vegetables and some homemade dinner rolls or biscuits to create a meal that your family will not soon forget.
Looking for more comforting creamy chicken dinner ideas? I have plenty for you to try! Start with Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole, Creamy Mushroom Chicken, One Pot Creamy Parmesan Chicken, King Ranch Chicken Casserole, or Creamy Crockpot White Chicken Chili.
Easy Weeknight Dinner Casserole
- It’s Delicious Comfort Food – Million Dollar Chicken Casserole is made with cream of chicken soup, cream cheese, cottage cheese, AND sour cream. The sauce is so creamy and rich, and when this dish is baked and bubbly it will absolutely warm you up from head to toe.
- Made with pre-cooked chicken – I won’t stop you from poaching a few chicken breasts to use in this recipe, but it’s much easier and sometimes cheaper to use a grocery store rotisserie chicken instead. I grab at least one chicken every time I’m in Costco – it’s perfect for million dollar chicken casserole, and many other recipes.
- You can make it in advance – You can prep this chicken casserole and keep it in the fridge or freezer. When you’re ready for a delicious and easy dinner, just pop it in the oven!
Ingredients In Million Dollar Chicken Casserole
Here’s what you need to make this dish:
- Chicken: You’ll need about 4 cups of shredded cooked chicken. You can pull this from a rotisserie chicken or cook about two pounds of chicken ahead of time.
- Crackers: Ritz crackers are the best choice for the crunchy, salty topping. You’ll want to use a whole sleeve of them along with a half stick of butter to make them extra crispy.
- Cream of Chicken Soup: A can of condensed cream of chicken soup gives this casserole a silky texture and plenty of savory flavor.
- Dairy Products: I mentioned that this casserole was creamy, right? Sour cream, softened cream cheese, and cottage cheese blended with the soup make all the magic happen.
- Seasonings: Garlic powder, onion powder, dried parsley, salt, and pepper
Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
How To Make Ritz cracker Chicken Casserole
Before you get started, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and lightly grease a 9×9-inch baking dish.
- Make the Creamy Chicken Filling: In a large mixing bowl, combine the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, cream cheese, cottage cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, parsley, salt, and black pepper. Stir well. Then add the cooked shredded chicken and mix until combined. Add the chicken to the prepared baking dish.
- Make the Ritz Cracker Topping: In a separate bowl, mix the crushed Ritz crackers with melted butter. Sprinkle buttery crumbs all over the chicken in an even layer.
- Bake: Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, or until the Ritz and chicken casserole is bubbly and the cracker topping is golden brown.
Tip!
Let it cool down! The casserole will be extremely hot right out of the oven. Give it just a few minutes to cool before serving.
Recipe Tips
- Instead of Ritz crackers, you might enjoy this casserole topped with crushed crackers, corn flakes, or saltine crackers.
- Shredding the chicken: Be sure to shred the chicken into small enough pieces, but not so small that you loose all of the meaty texture.
- Add ins to try: Some people like to add cooked bacon to this chicken casserole. It’s also easy to add frozen mixed vegetables too.
Storing Tips
If you happen to find yourself with any leftovers, they can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. You can easily reheat leftovers in the microwave.
What To Serve With Chicken Casserole
Because this dish doesn’t include any vegetables, I like to serve some on the side. Make it easy by serving your family’s favorite steamed veggies, or try one of these easy sides and salads:
Recipe FAQs
Can I make this casserole ahead of time?
Yes, you can! Once you’ve assembled the filling, add it to your baking dish, cover it with plastic wrap and keep it in the fridge. You can do this up to a day in advance. Add fresh cracker topping before baking.
You can also do the exact same thing, but store the chicken filling in the freezer instead for up to 4 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then add the buttery cracker topping before baking.
With either make-ahead method, you may need to add a few minutes to the bake time since the mixture starts off cold rather than at room temperature.
Does the chicken need to be cooked before adding it to the casserole?
For this recipe, yes it does. Raw chicken will not cook properly using this method.
How Can I Add Veggies to this?
Stir in some frozen chopped broccoli, mixed vegetables, green beans, or peas. They’ll cook in the sauce and be perfectly tender when the casserole is done baking.
This easy chicken casserole is so good, it tastes like a million bucks! Luckily, it doesn’t cost nearly that much to make, and is a quick and inexpensive way to feed your whole family. Be sure to pin this recipe – You’ll want to make it again soon!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Million Dollar Chicken Casserole
Equipment
- 9 inch square pan
Ingredients
- 1 10.5 ounce can (300 g) cream of chicken soup
- ½ cup (120 ml) sour cream
- 4 ounces (113 g) cream cheese softened
- 1 cup (240 ml) cottage cheese
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 4 cups (900 g) cooked, shredded chicken
- 1 sleeve Ritz crackers crushed (32 crackers)
- 4 tablespoons (60 g) butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C) and grease a 9×9 inch baking dish lightly.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, softened cream cheese, cottage cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, dried parsley, salt, and black pepper. Stir until the mixture is smooth and well combined.
- Stir the cooked shredded chicken into the creamy seasoned mixture until the chicken is completely coated and the ingredients are well combined.
- Spread the chicken mixture evenly in the prepared baking dish.
- In a separate bowl, mix the crushed Ritz crackers with the melted butter until the crackers are fully coated.
- Sprinkle the buttery cracker mixture evenly over the chicken mixture in the baking dish.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, or until the casserole is bubbly and the cracker topping is golden brown.
- Allow the casserole to cool for a few minutes after removing it from the oven before serving.
Notes:
- Instead of Ritz crackers, you might enjoy this casserole topped with crushed crackers, corn flakes, or saltine crackers.
- Shredding the chicken: Be sure to shred the chicken into small enough pieces, but not so small that you loose all of the meaty texture.
- Add-ins to try: Some people like to add cooked bacon to this chicken casserole. It’s also easy to add frozen mixed vegetables too.
- Storage: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 or 4 days.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
Joy Tweedt says
Why does this recipe call for canned Cream of Chicken Soup? You state, “Made entirely from Scratch: No canned soup is needed when you use my casserole recipes! “
Little Sunny Kitchen says
Hi Joy, Many of my casseroles are made from scratch and without canned soup, but this one is one of the exceptions. The cream of chicken soup is part of what makes this a traditional Million Dollar Casserole!
Sandy says
Delicious! I made wild rice, and added poppy seeds. I put the chicken mix over the top and it was great.
Little Sunny Kitchen says
I’m going to have to try this with wild rice, sounds delicious! Thank you for stopping back to let me know how the recipe worked for you.
Ginny says
Can I use a substitute for cottage cheese (also not yogurt)
Little Sunny Kitchen says
Ricotta cheese can be used to get a similar, but smoother consistency.
Shelbie says
This was SO good! Tastes very similar to a chicken pot pie, but creamier and without the soggy crust! Will totally be adding this to our regular meal schedule!
Little Sunny Kitchen says
Thanks Shelbie! I’m glad to hear that you loved the casserole!
Ross says
This looks wonderful!! My problem is I cook for just me with no one to share with, so I wondered if I could make recipe as written, but put into two six-inch cake pans (and freeze one) putting on the cracker crumbs just before baking? Six servings is just too much to have leftover.
Little Sunny Kitchen says
I think that’s a great idea!