There is something so nostalgically comforting about a nice warm casserole, and even more so if it involves a crunchy topping. This Creamy Chicken Noodle Casserole is a really good, creamy, cheesy, comforting dish with noodles, chicken, and veggies, topped with a buttery crumb topping. (Bonus- the leftovers are fantastic, too!) It’s a family favorite around here and I hope you love it just as much as we do!
Ingredients Needed
This is just a preview of ingredients and method, keep scrolling for full printable recipe.
- Wide egg noodles – I love Amish Egg Noodles, like these ones. They are think and delicious and taste homemade!
- Salt and pepper
- Butter
- Red bell pepper – I prefer red bell pepper here for both flavor and color. You can certainly sub orange or yellow if that’s what you have on hand, but I would avoid green peppers here since they have a unique flavor in comparison to the sweeter colored peppers.
- Onion
- All-purpose flour
- Half and half – Half and half adds richness and stability to the sauce. You can use milk in a pinch, but I would recommend whole milk. Just know the sauce may be a bit looser if you use milk.
- Chicken broth
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- Deli American cheese – American cheese provides unique stabilizers that prevent the sauce from breaking so it stays creamy and smooth from start to finish. When you’re shopping for American cheese, hit the deli counter for the best quality (aka: avoid the Kraft Singles, that’s not what we’re going for here). It can be either yellow or white though!
- Sharp cheddar cheese – This provides a hit of good, cheesy flavor.
- Frozen peas
- Ritz crackers
How to Make Creamy Chicken Noodle Casserole
- Bring some salted water to boil in a Dutch oven. We’re only going to boil the noodles for a few minutes, then rinse them in cold water to stop the cooking process. This way they will cook to tender perfection as the casserole bakes in the oven.
- Now that our pot is empty, add a pat of butter and sauté some sweet bell pepper and a finely diced onion for a few minutes and set aside.
- In goes a bit more butter for our roux. (A roux is a mixture of fat and flour, used to thicken sauces. Read more about making a roux, here.) Toss in a few tablespoons of flour, and whisk it up for a minute.
- Then very slowly add a little bit of liquid at a time (we’re using both chicken broth and half-and-half here) and whisk whisk whisk. It will thicken immediately, and one of the secrets of a non-lumpy sauce is not to pour in all of the liquid at once. Always add a little at a time, or a very slow steady stream as you whisk the entire time to incorporate the flour mixture.
- After that sauce boils for about 5 minutes, we’ll add chicken directly to the pot. Gently poaching it will not only ensure juicy chicken, but it will flavor the sauce as well. We’re under-cooking the chicken just slightly, as we under-cooked the noodles. This allows it to finish cooking in the oven, as opposed to over-cooking in the oven and ending up dry and chewy. Pull the slightly pink chicken out and shred it into bite-sized pieces.
- While you’re waiting for the chicken to be cool enough to handle, you can whisk your cheese into the sauce.
- In addition, Before we throw this all together, you’ll need some frozen peas. To avoid extra moisture in the sauce, I run my peas under warm water, drain them, and then pat them dry before putting them in.
- Now just toss it all together and put it in a 9″×13″ pan (or you could put it in individual baking dishes if you wanted) and sprinkle with crushed cracker crumbs. It all bakes up together for about 15 minutes. That finishes cooking the chicken and pasta perfectly, and toasts the buttery crumb topping.
- Make sure you let this sit for 10-15 minutes so the sauce can set up before serving.
Storing and Other Tips
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and enjoy within 3-4 days for best results.
- If you want to prep this ahead, you could definitely make it up to the point where you top with crackers. I would put it in the pan and then cover and refrigerate. Before you bake it, give it a stir to distribute the sauce, and then sprinkle the crackers on right before baking.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make this gluten-free?
I’m sure you can! Use gluten-free noodles. The trickiest part will be figuring out the best way to thicken the sauce. Many gluten-free flour blends don’t perform well in a roux. I have heard sweet rice flour can work well for roux. If you find a good substitute for the all-purpose flour, let me know in the comments and I’ll add it here to help others!
Can I use pre-cooked chicken?
Yes, if you prefer. Rotisserie chicken would be great here.
Why does my sauce look thin before baking?
Your sauce will continue to thicken as it cooks. Some of that moisture will be absorbed as the noodles finish cooking as well.
Can I add other veggies?
Sure! Celery, mushrooms, or spinach would be great. Just be sure they are sautéed and don’t hold too much moisture (I’d avoid using frozen spinach, for example) before mixing everything together.
Chicken Noodle Casserole
This casserole, slightly adapted from Cook’s Country, is a comforting from-scratch recipe that's perfect for family dinners.
Servings servings (One 9×13 casserole)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 12 ounces wide egg noodles 7 ¾ cups
- salt and pepper
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 red bell pepper stemmed, seeded, and chopped fine
- 1 small onion chopped fine
- 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 2 cups half-and-half
- 2 ½ cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, halved lengthwise and trimmed, raw
- 4 ounces deli American cheese chopped coarse
- 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 ½ cups frozen peas thawed and patted dry
- 25 Ritz Crackers crushed coarse
Instructions
- Bring 4 quarts water to boil in a Dutch oven. Add noodles and 1 tablespoon salt and cook, stirring often, until just al dente, about 4-5 minutes. Drain noodles and rinse with cold water until cool. Drain again and set aside.
- Melt 1 tablespoon butter in now-empty pot over medium-high heat. Add bell pepper and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Transfer to bowl; set aside.
- In now-empty pot, melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add flour and cook, whisking constantly for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in half and half, a little at at time as you whisk to incorporate flour mixture and smooth out lumps. Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Add chicken and cook until no longer pink, 8-10 minutes. (Chicken won’t be cooked all the way through, that’s okay.)
- Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 425℉. Remove pot from heat, transfer chicken to plate, and shred into bite-size pieces once cool enough to handle.
- Whisk American and cheddar cheeses into sauce until smooth. Stir shredded chicken, noodles, bell pepper mixture, peas, 1 ½ teaspoons salt, and 1 ¼ teaspoons pepper into cheese sauce.
- Transfer mixture to 9×13 inch baking dish and top with crackers. Bake until golden brown and bubbling, about 15 minutes. Let casserole cool on wire rack for about 15 minutes. Serve.
Notes
- Nutrition facts were calculated for a serving of 1/8th casserole.
- If you use salted butter, reduce final salt addition by 1/8th teaspoon. If you use regular chicken broth, reduce salt by 1/4 teaspoon.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and enjoy within 3-4 days for best results.
- If you want to prep this ahead, you could definitely make it up to the point where you top with crackers. I would put it in the pan and then cover and refrigerate. Before you bake it, give it a stir to distribute the sauce, and then sprinkle the crackers on right before baking.
Nutrition
Calories: 562kcal, Carbohydrates: 49g, Protein: 31g, Fat: 27g, Saturated Fat: 14g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 8g, Trans Fat: 0.5g, Cholesterol: 131mg, Sodium: 514mg, Potassium: 624mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 1322IU, Vitamin C: 31mg, Calcium: 362mg, Iron: 3mg
Calories: 562kcal
Cost: $12
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Questions & Reviews
Oh, my, my, is this ever good! I made just a few modifications; Because there are only two of us, I used half the noodles, no cheddar, and 1/2 brick of Velveeta. I used Herb-Ox No-sodium chicken broth and whipping cream, and carrots, onions, and peas in the casserole; no peppers. I cooked the chicken in my slow cooker & shredded it in the mixer. I topped it all with the crushed Ritz, and served it after baking with some fresh asparagus on the side. Changes for next time: I will cut back on the amount of noodles a little next time because my 8 x 8 pan was a bit overly full, and I’d add a little more broth next time. I would switch to the half & half because heavy cream is so very, very rich, but it also put a big smile on my face and a dopey expression. It’s THAT GOOD! You must know, I have found the perfect comfort food. I can’t wait to serve it to the kids when they visit! This is a truly outstanding, delicious recipe! We ate half the pan, and I’m going to freeze the other half.
While I realize this is not designed to be a healthy recipe, I made it a little healthier, mainly because I was using what was in the kitchen. Used skim milk instead of cream and half of the butter replaced with olive oil. It still thickened appropriately. Also used chicken I had pre-cooked the day before which was convenient. Nice recipe and I think the kids will love it before going to play basketball tonight. Won’t be hard to digest.
Just curious, if I do not have a Dutch oven, what kind of pot can I use in its place?
Any kind of large stock pot will do.
Made this tonight and it really hit the spot! But I’m scared come next week with school starting, baseball and T-ball season revving up, teaching my kids piano, new calling as RS pres and teaching preschool I will not be able to cook another homemade meal for months. Any freezer tips? Maybe make the sauce and chicken to freeze and cook the noodles and vegs day of for a quick meal? Cause nothing says RS love like a casserole (besides a side of jello). I need to visit your freezer meal section for some more meals to get me through. Thanks ladies!
Sorry I missed this question a while ago! Just make it completely and let it cool before freezing. That should do it!
I printed this out months ago, but somehow set it aside and just found it again ~ made it tonight and it is seriously awesome! My husband really liked it, our 10 year old son went back for seconds (never happens!) and (I feel your pain here, Kate!) our ultra-picky 7 year old ate it with no complaints….. (I had to use Velveeta rather than American cheese as I had none on hand, but it was terrific anyway and it didn’t taste like Velveeta at all 🙂 although next time I will try the American cheese as called for…. Obviously more time consuming than the soup based version, but the end result is much better, and in my opinion it is worth the extra prep 🙂 I have both of your cookbooks and can’t wait for your next one ~ You ladies are an amazing team, and you both rock!
I was looking for a casserole to make for a friend who is sick. All the chicken casseroles I came across required a soup base, which I’d rather not use. This casserole was amazing, a bit more time consuming, but worth the effort. I only changed a few things, I omitted the peppers, added minced garlic, celery, frozen peas and carrots and thyme, and cooked the veggies a little longer until golden. This tasted just like chicken noodle soup. Thank you for sharing this fantastic recipe.
Do you think this casserole would freeze all right?
Ok, since my husband hates casseroles, I would not have bothered to try this–except that it is from ya’ll–and that means there’s a 99% chance that we will ALL like it. Especially me. If you are looking for ideas to post, can I request tasty and easy camping foods?
Loved this and double love the fact the sauce is homemade (yet easy) and there’s no cream of something soup!
Super delicioso!