Healthy Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli-Rice Casserole is soul-satisfying comfort food that's a little easier on your waistline!
Today I’m sharing a fabulous spin on a classic, comforting casserole – Healthy Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli-Rice Casserole!
Watch How to Make It
Light Chicken and Rice Casserole
Sauteed chicken, steamed broccoli, and fluffy brown rice are mixed with a homemade cheese sauce then quickly broiled for a fabulous, comforting meal. It’s kind of an “un-casserole” as you don’t have to let the dish bake in the oven, rather, everything is made right on the stovetop then tossed together in a casserole dish and quickly broiled.
I also tweaked a few of the ingredients from the standard Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli-Rice Casserole to make it a bit healthier.
More broccoli, brown rice instead of white, plus the luscious homemade cheese sauce that brings everything together has less cheese, light sour cream, and skim milk. BOOM. This casserole ROCKS!
How to Make this Recipe
Start by cooking long-grain brown rice in chicken broth. Cooking rice in chicken broth gives it tons of flavor with minimal added calories. You could use white rice in here, but I love the hearty chew brown rice has, plus you get the whole grain benefits.
When the rice has 5 minutes left to cook, add fresh broccoli florets and chopped green onions to the pot, place the lid back on top, then let them steam until tender.
Meanwhile, cook chopped chicken breasts seasoned with garlic powder, salt, and pepper in a splash of extra virgin olive oil over medium-high heat until cooked through. Remove the chicken to a plate then very carefully wipe out the skillet with a dry paper towel and turn the heat down to medium.
To the wiped-out skillet add gluten-free flour (or all-purpose flour if you don’t need to eat GF) whisked with milk (I used skim,) then pour in additional milk.
Stir the milk and flour mixture continuously until thickened and bubbly, 7-10 minutes, then remove the skillet from the heat and add shredded cheddar cheese, light sour cream, plus salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
Add the cooked rice and broccoli mixture plus the chicken then stir to combine and scoop into a 9×13 baking dish. Top with a wee bit more shredded cheese then broil until melted and bubbly.
Let the casserole rest for 5 minutes, then scoop, plate, and devour!
More Cheesy Chicken Recipes
- Cheesy Ham and Broccoli Rice Skillet
- Cheesy Salsa Verde Chicken and Rice
- Cheesy Vegetable, Turkey Sausage and Rice Casserole
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Spaghetti Squash Casserole
- Easy Cheddar Cheese Sauce for Vegetables
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups long grain brown rice
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 4 cups finely chopped broccoli florets, ~1 small head
- 2 green onions, chopped
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 lb chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
- salt, pepper, garlic powder
- 5 teaspoons gluten free flour, or AP flour if not GF
- 2 cups milk, divided, any kind
- 1/3 cup light sour cream
- 8 oz shredded cheddar cheese, divided
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Directions
- Add chicken broth to a large pot then bring to a boil and add rice. Cover then turn heat down to low and cook according to package directions. When rice has 5 minutes left to cook, add broccoli and green onions (no need to stir) then replace lid and continue cooking until rice and vegetables are tender.
- Meanwhile, heat extra virgin olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken, season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder, then saute until cooked through. Remove to a plate then set aside. Turn heat down to medium then very carefully wipe skillet out with a dry paper towel.
- In a small dish, whisk together flour and 1/2 cup milk then pour mixture into skillet. Add remaining 1-1/2 cups milk then cook mixture while stirring constantly until thickened, 7-10 minutes. Remove skillet from heat then add 3/4 of the shredded cheese, sour cream, salt, pepper, and garlic powder, and then stir until smooth.
- Preheat broiler. Combine cooked rice and broccoli mixture with the cheese sauce and cooked chicken then scoop mixture into a nonstick sprayed 9x13 baking dish and top with remaining cheese. Broil until cheese is melted then let casserole rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are estimates only. Please read our full nutrition information disclaimer.
Hello from Petaluma, CA! This looks great! I found my way here via a search for homemade bath bombs and I haven’t left yet. So many delicious looking recipes! Really enjoying your blog, your recipes, your writing style and looking forward to reading and cooking along with you.
Can I use instant rice for this or will it be too mushy with that much liquid?
Hey Amanda! I’ve never used Minute Rice so I’m not 100% sure – it could work if you undercook the rice just a tad before baking!
Hi there,
I have a question that might sound silly……how long do I cook the rice for???
It’s not a silly question! :) Check on the rice package to know for sure, but usually 20-30 minutes. When all the broth has been absorbed and the rice is tender, it’s done.
very gummy and very dry. I did not care for this recipe. I made it because of the beautiful photo. looked like it would be delicious. gummy and dry.
Thankyou! Got home from work bout and hour ago-hubby worked overtime, we had chicken and broccoli…a search took me here. Just waiting on the broil…prelim taste testing scores a 10!
Thank you sooooooo much! I needed something to make last night for dinner and I stumbled upon this recipe. We all LOVED it and we will definitely add this to the dinner rotation! Thanks again for the delicious recipe!
SO glad I saw this recipe!! I’m going to make this for a Thanksgiving side sans chicken, as I have been searching for a healthier version of the 70s classic Cheesy Broccoli & Rice Casserole that doesn’t involve canned soup & cheese whiz!! Thanks for this & all the great recipes!!
I made this recipe tonight but added sliced fresh mushrooms and frozen spinach in addition to the broccoli and cut back a little on the rice used to beef up the veggies to carb ratio. I baked it for about 25 minutes at 350 instead of broiling it and it was absolutely delicious! I served it with a little homemade cranberry sauce I had on hand which added a nice sweetness to this savory comfort dish. Thanks so much for the recipe. I’ll definitely make this again.
Freaking delicious! Family loved it, thanks for sharing. I just added cumin to the chicken, otherwise I followed the recipe.
Hello! I just returned from a potluck where I brought the old version of this casserole (I DID find the “print” button, sorry about that). I didn’t see the new version until I got home. Anyway, I’m emailing it to my friend because she really liked it! Thank you!
What a great recipe! Very flavorful, will be making this one again!!!
I though I would tell you that your casserole is about to travel to Belize for dinner. You are also welcome any time.
My mother used to make one like this and I cannot wait to try it tonight. It’s been cool and rainy, perfect weather for a casserole. Thanks for the post.
Im making this tonight! I have some broccoli that needs to be used in the fridge:) Looks fantastic! Wondering if I should substitute with almond flour? Ill let you know how it turns out. Thanks for the recipe :)