Grandma's Chicken and Rice Casserole is a classic family favorite. This casserole is a great way to use a rotisserie or leftover chicken. A creamy sauce with peas and carrots tie this together for a complete meal. Oven, Slow Cooker & Instant Pot Directions!

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Believe it or not years and years ago I wasn't the cook/baker that I am today. We ate a lot of boxed and frozen meals. I cringe at the thought of what we used to eat.

I'm no saint when it comes to food now, but I do try and make most things from scratch, or nearly like this Grandma's Chicken and Rice Casserole.

This idea came from a frozen meal that we really enjoyed, because to us, the flavors were as close to home made as possible.

Now, I keep walking past the frozen meals, and buy the ingredients to make this myself from scratch, or at least semi-homemade as Sandra Lee would say.

What you need to make Grandma's Chicken and Rice Casserole:

• Chicken breasts
• Chicken flavored Rice A Roni
• Cream of chicken soup
• Sour cream
• peas and carrots
• fried onions
• salt and pepper

How to make Grandma's Chicken and Rice Casserole:

1. Cook and shred chicken (about 2 cups). Set aside. This is an excellent way to use a rotisserie or leftover chicken.
2. Prepare the rice, according to the directions on the box.
3. While the rice is cooking, preheat the oven to 350 degrees, and grease a 9X13 inch baking dish.
4. When the rice is cooked, stir in the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and peas and carrots.
5. Pour into the prepared pan, and season the top with salt and pepper.
6. Sprinkle with the fried onions, and bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the casserole is heated through.

How to make Grandma's Chicken and Rice Bake in the Slow Cooker:

1. Lightly grease the slow cooker. Add the rice and arrange 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts on top of the rice.
2. Pour the seasoning packet from the rice over the top of the rice and chicken.
3. Pour in the water, adding an additional ½ cup of water. You can also substitute the water with chicken broth.
4. Stir in the cream of chicken soup.
5. Cover and cook on high for 1 ½ to 2 ½ hours, until the chicken is cooked through.
6. Remove the chicken and shred it.
7. If the rice isn't cooked through yet, cover and continue cooking for an additional hour.
8. Once the rice is cooked, stir in the thawed peas and carrots, sour cream and chicken.
9. Top with the fried onions before serving.

A note about making this in the slow cooker. I find the rice to be rather mushy. A lot of slow cooker recipes that include rice have this I find. It's not something that I'm really fond of. However, so many do love recipes in the slow cooker, so I wanted to include this recipe for y'all.

How to cook chicken and rice casserole in the instant pot:

1. Set your instant pot to the saute function. Add the butter and saute the rice, as the directions on the box call for. Turn the pot off.
2. Pour in the water. You can also use stock instead.
3. Add the chicken.
4. Close the pot and set to high temperature for 10 minutes. Allow for the pot to naturally release pressure for 10 minutes. Then manually release the rest.
5. Remove the chicken and shred. Return the chicken to the pot.
6. Stir in the thawed peas and carrots, cream of chicken soup, sour cream, season with salt and pepper. Top with fried onions and enjoy!

Can I put raw chicken in a casserole?

You can, and in fact I've done it. However, I have not tried it in this particular recipe. If you do want to try it, I would suggest adding an additional 20 minutes to the oven bake time.

Can I substitute broccoli for the peas and carrots?

Of course! I've done it, and it's delicious.

Can I substitute the cream of chicken soup?

Yes. I've made this with cream of mushroom soup several times. You could also try out cream of celery.

I don't like onions!

No problem! Mix together ¾ cup crushed Ritz crackers or panko bread crumbs with 2 tablespoons melted butter. Sprinkle evenly across the top before baking.

Additions:

1 cup shredded cheddar is a delicious addition! You can place on top of the casserole before placing the onions.

Some of our favorite chicken dishes:

• Cheesy Chicken and Potato Bake
• Salsa Verde Chicken and Rice Casserole
• Sheet Pan Balsamic & Honey Chicken