A simple casserole recipe with chicken and Pepperidge Farm stuffing mixed with an easy, creamy gravy then baked until golden.
JUMP TO RECIPEOne of my VERY favorite recipes is Mama's Squash Casserole. You know the one with the Pepperidge Farm stuffing and sour cream? UMMPH! I could eat the whole thing by myself!
Seriously. It’s almost shameful how much I love that stuff. I will literally get out of bed, tiptoe downstairs and heat up the leftovers in the middle of the night.
It CALLS to me.
So I got to thinking… since I love it so much, why not use the same recipe to make a main dish casserole with chicken (instead of squash)! Which is exactly what I did.
And it was glorious!
I added some stock and a little more butter since we wouldn’t have the moisture from the cooked squash but everything else is pretty-much the same.
You’ll notice the recipe calls for GRATED onion and carrots.
Grating the veggies in this (and in the Squash Casserole) recipe “chops” them fine enough that they won’t need to be sautéed before going in the casserole (the heat from cooking the casserole will cook them enough).
If we were to dice them (even finely), we’d need to sauté them first so they wouldn’t be crunchy.
If you don’t have a box grater (which is what I use), you can absolutely dice the onion and carrots instead. You’ll just need to sauté them in the butter from the recipe before mixing in with the other ingredients.
I thought about adding celery to this but I wasn’t sure what sort of stringy mess I’d end up with if I took my box grater to a stalk of celery.
I do think the flavor would be great though! If you’re going to have to sauté your onions and carrot, I’d consider throwing some celery in there too!
If you love comfort food casseroles like this one, check out a few of these recipes too!
- Smothered Chicken Casserole - Layers of creamy potatoes (think Potatoes Au Gratin) topped with chicken, smothered with cheese and bacon!
- Sausage & Rice Casserole - a simple recipe perfect for supper, side dishes, potlucks and Thanksgiving (sometimes called Rice Dressing).
- Pork Chop Casserole - An easy pork chop bake made with rice and French onion soup.
- Hamburger & Rice Casserole - Ground beef and rice baked together in a classic casserole recipe that's easy to make your own.
- Chicken Tetrazzini - Classic tetrazzini made with pasta, mushrooms, wine (optional) and cheese. Super easy AND super delicious!
Recipe for Chicken Stuffing Casserole
Chicken & Stuffing Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 chicken breasts
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 medium onion
- 1 large carrot
- 1 10-oz can cream of chicken soup
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup butter, melted
- 1 cup chicken stock (from cooking the chicken)
- 1 12-oz bag Pepperidge Farm Herb Stuffing, divided
Instructions
- Place chicken, salt and pepper in a medium saucepan then add 2 cups water (just enough to cover the chicken), cover, then simmer chicken over medium heat about 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 3-quart baking dish with cooking spray.
- Remove chicken from stock and set aside to cool, reserving stock. Once chicken is cool, shred with two forks or cut into bite-sized pieces; set aside.
- Meanwhile, using a box grater, grate onion and carrot (with the side you'd grate cheese) then add to a mixing bowl. Stir in 1 cup reserved chicken stock, butter and cream of chicken soup (unprepared) then mix well.
- Stir sour cream and chicken into soup mixture. Set 1 heaping cup of dry stuffing mix aside then gently fold remaining stuffing into soup mixture. If the mixture seems drier than you'd like, add more reserved chicken stock. Pour mixture into prepared baking dish.
- Top mixture with remaining dry stuffing then bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly. Cover dish loosely with aluminum foil if stuffing starts to brown too much before dish is bubbly.
Notes
- You can absolutely use a rotisserie chicken (or other leftover chicken) if you prefer. I just cook mine since the recipe needs chicken stock/broth and I’d rather use homemade than buy it. If you decide to use cooked chicken, be sure to add chicken broth to your grocery list because you’ll need it in the recipe.
- For a Thanksgiving vibe, add a little sage and/or poultry seasoning when mixing the stock and soup.
- By grating the veggies we don’t need to sauté them first (they’re grated fine enough to cook up tender when cooking the casserole). If you don’t have a grater, finely dice the veggies then sauté in the butter before adding to the recipe.
- I think this could be made in a crock pot. If you want to try it, I’d start at 3-4 hours on low or 2-3 hours on high.
- You can use the Pepperidge Farm CORNBREAD stuffing in this too!
I love this recipe for summer squash casserole. Instead of sour cream I use french onion dip. And I use Stove Top - chicken flavor as a starter base for the stuffing ingredients.
ReplyDeleteCan I use Stovetop Stuffing instead of Pepperidge Farm Stuffing?
ReplyDeleteI've never made it with other brands so I'm not sure how it would turn out. I think Stovetop is a bit saltier so maybe use low sodium cream of chicken soup.
DeleteThis sounds good, and I'm in the mood for some comfort food. Think I'll throw the onions, carrots and some celery in the water to cook split chicken breasts then use that yummy stock in the casserole. My mouth is watering just thinking about it!
ReplyDeleteI'm curious if I could use the chicken and the squash? I'm always looking for creative ways to use summer squash, but we are definitely meat eaters in my house!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm sure you could! There's not really any wrong way to make this :)
DeleteOMGosh! Two high fives Mandy! I made this recipe tonight. I added a cup of broth and when I make it again, I'll add a bit more. RE the carrots and onions - I popped them in the microwave for about 2 1/2 minutes with the butter rather than using a grater. The next time I will add celery to the onion/carrot mix. It was awesome and was told it is a keeper recipe.
ReplyDeleteWondering if this can be frozen for a freezer meal?
ReplyDeleteI think so! I would prepare it then freeze without baking.
DeleteSour Cream doesn't freeze too well so I wouldn't recommend it.
DeleteThis was way too much trouble. I've been making a similar recipe for years that is so much easier. I just put shredding chicken in the bottom of a casserole dish then spread a can of soup over that and top it with prepared dressing. Back in the '70s there was no Stove Top dressing or boneless skinless chicken breasts so I stewed a whole chicken and shredded it by hand and I used prepared Pepperidge Farm dressing over the top. Baked as this recipe states and it was so good but now I use all the shortcuts I can, cooked & shredded boneless skinless chicken breasts and prepared Stove Top. Don't get me wrong, this is very good and I followed the recipe, but I won't go to all that trouble again. There are easier just as good ways to do this.
ReplyDeleteHuh? The only thing different about this recipe and what you're talking about is some grated veggies and a carton of sour cream so how is that too much trouble?? I think this is DELICIOUS and way better than just soup, chicken and stuffing. I make this at least once a month!
DeleteMy mother-in-law had a very similar recipe as this that I use. I always use rotisserie chicken from the grocery in mine and store bought chicken broth. It is so easy to make and soooooo good. Comfort food to the max! Thanks for your fantastic recipes.
ReplyDeleteJust wondering--would those 3 small chicken breasts yield about 1-1/2 to 2 cups chicken? (a rotisserie would yield about 4 cups meat, I'm guessing.)
ReplyDeleteHey there!
ReplyDeleteSo I am making this tonight, going to try with kraft stove top ( it’s my favorite) ! So you add the stuffing in dry? Or do you prepare it first and then add it?
Dry - don't prepare it first :o)
DeletePrepare it first! I dried out when you bake it and gets crunchy on top.
DeleteI forgot to say that I just spread the stuffing on top. I do not mix it in.
DeleteWonderful flavor using cream of chicken and mushroom soup,onion and sage stuffing with sauted onions and an apple. Otherwise prepared as suggested. Used big red pot for stovetop prep, then moved it into oven once all ingredients built into pan. Easy one dish meal with lots of taste. Thank for the inspiration!
ReplyDeleteTake a few moments with your vegetable peeler to "skin" the strings from celery stalks.
ReplyDeleteDry. I will add 2 cans of soup, 2 cups of sour cream, 1 cup of butter, and 1 cup of stock next time.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to making this for a girl party! my question too was if I can make it the day ahead and then pop in the oven as the girls arrive. I don't see what size of casserole pan to use or did I just miss it? 9 x 13? I am having about 35 ladies over... not sure how many I should make... there will be plenty of other food so maybe a couple would do for a bite :)
ReplyDeleteCould I use raw chicken?
ReplyDeleteSure if you want to end up in the ER!
DeleteSo delicious. I've made this once and it came out great. I'm making it again as we speak but used a suggestion from another commenter and tried it with the French onion dip. I change this up a little. I use a lot of chicken stock, like 2-3 cups and 1 cup sour cream. My veggies I dice up really really fine and sauteed in butter with minced garlic.i mix the sour cream and cream of chick soup together with a wisk in a large bowl, then add 1 cup of stock, (today I'm trying it with french onion dip, about a cup) with salt and pepper, wish together, then add sauted veggies, and I use stove top the chicken flavor. Mix the chicken all in and then put it in the pan. The topping was a little different, and dry makes no sense for the topping, so today I am making the other box on the stove and will take the caserole out of the oven 10 mins early and add the COOKED stuffing to the top . Turn up the degrees to 400 and bake an additional 10 mins. Thanks for the inspiration.
ReplyDeleteDo you prepare the stuffing per the package directions before folding the chicken into it or do you just fold the dry cubes into the chicken?
ReplyDeleteFold it in dry.
DeleteI used to make this as a teen and loved it. I've wanted to make it again but forgot what I put in it. Now I found it! Thank You, I'm making it today after all these years except using turkey breast tenderloins (that's what I have thawing for pot pie). Now the plan has changed after finding this. It's delicious all baked together and so easy. Can't wait to taste it again!
ReplyDeleteMy family loved it! I didn't have cream of chicken soup so I found a recipe to make my own. I didn't have carrots. (Just left them out). Sauteed onions and celery. Used canned chicken.
ReplyDeleteNot one place in this recipe do you state what to do with the chicken once it's cooked and shredded/cubed. Just set aside to cool then cube/shred. Do I mix it in with the stuffing/soup mixture? Spread it on the bottom of the pan? Spread on top of the mixture? (Okay, I'm not an idiot, I wouldn't put it on top, but just sayin'...) I put it on the bottom and put the mixture on top like I have in other stuffing recipes. But if you hadn't ever made a stuffing casserole before, you'd be wondering. You need to add that clarification in :) Other than that, tastes good!
ReplyDeleteYou are correct, I missed that step in the recipe. I've just updated it.
DeleteI just made this tonight to use up some remaining stuffing from Thanksgiving, and I can't say enough how much my husband and I both enjoyed it! I opted to chop and sautee my vegetables, and it worked out great. The flavor and consistency were perfect, and I can tell you without a doubt that we will be making this again... and again. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteVery salty with stovetop stuffing. Other that that its awesome use for left over turkey
ReplyDeleteJust wondering if there’s an easy way to incorporate rice into this.
ReplyDelete