This creamy chicken casserole is a real crowd pleaser. I make it as a big batch then freeze half for a quick dinner another night.
You can cook it on the hob (stovetop) or in the oven. It reheats beautifully, and there’s plenty of sauce to soak into your mashed potato and veggies!
I don’t know about you, but I desperately crave creamy sauces and mashed potato whenever the weather is even marginally cold.
This is one of my favourite big batch meals to make because:
- It’s great for feeding a crowd (easy to make for 10+ people)
- You can make it ahead
- It’s suitable for freezing….
- …..which also means you can eat some for dinner and freeze some for a super quick dinner next time
📋 What do we need?
📺 Watch how to make it
Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card at the end of this post.
👩🍳PRO TIP Make sure you’ve got a very large frying pan or casserole pan as this recipe is pretty big!
If your family are anything like mine when it comes to comfort food like this, you should hear lots of ‘Mmmms’ and chomping noises for the first 5 minutes, before the chatting resumes. Always the sign of a good meal!
🍽️ What to serve it with
I love that there’s plenty of sauce with this dish, so you’ve got enough to drizzle over your chicken, potatoes and vegetables ❤️
🍲 More fantastic Creamy Chicken recipes
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Creamy Chicken and Mushroom One Pan Casserole
Ingredients
Chicken:
- 5 chicken breasts (1kg/2.25 lb) chopped into big chunks or strips
- 45 g (6 tbsp) plain (all-purpose) flour
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
Sauce:
- 2 tbsp oil
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 3 small-to-medium onions peeled and finely diced
- 5 cloves garlic peeled and minced
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- ½ tsp celery salt optional
- 25 g (3 tbsp) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 1 litre (4 1/4 cups) chicken stock
- 300 ml (1 1/4 cups) milk whole milk or half-fat
- 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice juice of approx. 1 lemon
- 20 chestnut mushrooms thickly sliced
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- 240 ml (1 cup) double (heavy) cream
- 2 tbsp cornflour mixed with 5 tbsp cold water – to make a slurry, (cornstarch in USA) **Optional**
- small bunch parsley chopped
Serve with:
- mashed potatoes
- sprouts
- peas
- sweetcorn
Instructions
- Place the chicken in a bowl with the flour, salt, and pepper. Toss to cover the chicken in the flour and seasoning.5 chicken breasts, 45 g (6 tbsp) plain (all-purpose) flour, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper
- Heat the oil over a high heat in a large frying pan (skillet) and working in 2 batches, add the chicken. Brown all over (it doesn't need to be cooked through at this point). Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and put to one side.2 tbsp oil
- Place the butter in the same frying pan and melt over a low-medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, thyme, and celery salt and cook for 5 minutes until the onion softens. Sprinkle on the flour and stir for a minute (it will be lumpy).2 tbsp unsalted butter, 3 small-to-medium onions, 5 cloves garlic, 1 tsp dried thyme, ½ tsp celery salt, 25 g (3 tbsp) plain (all-purpose) flour
- Pour in a splash of the stock and stir, using a whisk until combined. Continue to add in stock, a little at a time, whilst stirring, until all the stock is added and you have a smooth sauce with no lumps (the onions will still be in there though – so it will look a little lumpy because of that).1 litre (4 1/4 cups) chicken stock
- Add the milk and continue to stir over the heat until the sauce thickens, then add in the lemon juice.300 ml (1 1/4 cups) milk, 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- Add the mushrooms, the cooked chicken and the salt and pepper. Place a lid on the pan and simmer gently on the hob for 20 minutes.20 chestnut mushrooms, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper
- **Alternatively you can transfer to a casserole dish at this point. Cover with foil and place in the oven at 175C/350F (fan) for 30 minutes**
- Remove the lid and stir in the cream, then heat through for a further 5 minutes (place back in the oven if oven cooking).240 ml (1 cup) double (heavy) cream
- If you'd like the sauce to be any thicker, then at this point you can stir in the cornflour slurry. Add a little splash at a time, whilst stirring, until you get the thickness you want.2 tbsp cornflour
- Serve the casserole with vegetables (I like to serve mine with mashed potatoes, sprouts, peas and sweetcorn) and a sprinkling of parsley.small bunch parsley, mashed potatoes, sprouts, peas, sweetcorn
Video
Notes
Heat through thoroughly in the oven (covered) at 175C/350F for approx 20-25 minutes. Or heat through on the hob for 10-15 minutes on a medium heat until the chicken is hot all the way through.
Add a splash of cream or milk if needed to loosen it up. Freezing: Make the casserole, then cool, cover and freeze. Defrost thoroughly in the refrigerator and heat through thoroughly in the oven (covered) at 175C/350F for approx 20-25 minutes. Or heat through on the hob for 10-15 minutes on a medium heat until the chicken is hot all the way through. Reducing the quantities: You can halve the quantities if necessary – no change to the cooking times. Can I make it in the slow cooker? I haven’t tried this one in the slow cooker yet. If you try it, please let me know how it went. I’ll update the notes when I test it using the slow cooker. Nutritional Information is approx. per serving WITHOUT Serving suggestion of Mash Potato, Sprouts, Peas and Sweetcorn.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This post was first published in September 2017, then updated Feb 2019 and again in February 2023 with new images, recipe video and a bit of housekeeping.
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wow that looks so delicious honey. Janis from Washington state USA.
Great dish, great flavour, ate some tonight and it looks like it’ll keep well for a few nights in the fridge. I wanted more vegetables so added green beans and a carrot before I put the casserole in the oven, actually I wish I’d put in more veges, e.g. a red capsicum too, or another carrot. I had large Maryland pieces of bone-in, skinless chicken, and so kept the casserole in the over for 2 hours rather than 30 mins, to ensure the chicken cooked through, and it worked fine, the flavours all melded nicely.
Hi. I will try your recipe tomorrow. However, this casserole seems to be the easiest to make. Thank you.
Delish
I discovered Nicky’s YouTube channel a couple of years ago when I was pregnant, constantly hungry and ravenous for anything chickeny and mushroomy… Her chicken casserole recipe was a firm favourite 😍
Fast forward a couple of years, pregnant again, and I find myself back looking at Nicky’s tasty recipes… I made this one last night, but halved the quantities. My new favourite! It was lurvely, thank you Nicky for your super recipes 😀 x
This is a winner! 😋 Absolutely delicious 💯❤
I am a cook at a senior assistant living facility and this was a hit with the residents. Not too salty but not bland. A perfect blend of flavors.
I haven’t made this, but thought I’d comment to say I have made a folder on my iPad which is just for storing chicken, mushroom & bacon recipes in, after looking through your website as they all call to me like Mermaids tempting sailors, to dive into that deep delicious sauce filled with perfectly cooked morsels of flavor bombs & to serve all of it in bowls so there’s a LOT of sauce!
P.S to the person who asked about wine in it, & not to answer for you, but of course! I, anyways always add wine, or sherry in dishes like this, poured over the meat when it’s seared off & let it ‘bubble boil & toil’ a little, deglazes the good stuff stuck to the bottom too.
Guess I’ll have to make this next week now & post a real comment!