Rotisserie chicken, broccoli, cheese, canned soup and spices come
together to
make the ultimate foolproof comfort food: this everything chicken,
broccoli & cheese bake.
inspiration
My mom and I had been driving through the deserts of Texas and New Mexico for two days. Dotted among the stretches of sand dunes and white sky were grungy little towns full of trailers and rusty pickup trucks, peeling paint and junkyards. Restaurants, even fast-food joints, were few and far between. The last thing we had eaten was a limp burger from a dusty Dairy Queen at 11 am because we didn’t know when we would get another chance to eat.
That night, salvation came in the form of a Cracker Barrel five minutes down the road from our hotel. By that point I was hangry. So was my mom, who had been driving the whole time. (I offered to drive multiple times, but she disapproves of the fact that I follow the speed limit.)
It was a Wednesday, which means the Cracker Barrel special was the chicken and broccoli casserole. Maybe it was the long drive or the greasy aftertaste of the Dairy Queen, but that casserole was one of the best things I had ever tasted: a glorious plate of chicken breasts baked with broccoli and covered in a cream sauce and breadcrumbs.
Obviously, I was going to make it for the blog.
why i love this recipe
This everything chicken, broccoli & cheese bake is not a copycat version of the Cracker Barrel dish, but it’s inspired by it. The covid fatigue clung to my bones for weeks, so making a dish with multiple components AND raw chicken was just not going to happen.
Instead, I opted for a super easy, fast, and low effort version. Instead of raw chicken breasts, I used chopped rotisserie chicken. For the broccoli, the kind that comes in a steamable bag. For the sauce, a can each of cheese soup and cream of chicken, a couple of seasonings, and a bag of cheese. The topping is just crushed Ritz crackers, melted butter, and everything seasoning.
It should tell you something that I could throw this together when I couldn’t clean my room or walk up the stairs to my apartment without getting winded. This is the ideal recipe for when you’re busy or exhausted or just Not Feeling Life. Here are some more things to convince you:
-it’s hearty and filling
-it checks off three food groups
-even a small pan makes a bunch
-you don’t have to worry about the chicken not being done
-it’s mostly hands-off
-it is literally one of the most worry-free and low-effort meals I’ve ever made
-It’s about to start getting colder, so stick this one in your recipes-for-autumn-nights folder
notes & details
Like I said, this one is crazy easy. You mix most of the ingredients together, stick them in a baking dish, and top the mix with more cheese, buttery breadcrumbs, and everything seasoning. 30 minutes in the oven and then you’re done!
Here are a few notes:
-use sharp cheddar at the very least, but extra sharp is better
-the soups are already salty, so either don’t use salt at all or proceed with caution
-the breadcrumbs won’t be crunchy the next day, but the rest keeps beautifully
-don’t be afraid to shake on some extra everything seasoning
-for the full Cracker Barrel experience, serve with corn, biscuits, baked beans, or cornbread
And that’s it!
Looking for more recipes that use rotisserie chicken? Try bbq ranch chicken pizza or club sandwiches.
everything chicken, broccoli & cheese bake
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350F. Steam broccoli according to the directions on the bag but not completely—least about of time on the bag minus a minute. When it comes out, chop it with some kitchen shears into bite-sized pieces. Be careful—it’ll be hot.
- Mix chicken, broccoli, soups, sour cream, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and half of the cheese together. Spoon the mixture into a baking dish and top with the rest of the cheese.
- In a small bowl, mix the melted butter, crushed crackers, and everything seasoning together. Scatter this mixture on top of the cheese. Sprinkle extra everything seasoning on top. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until it is bubbling at the edges and the breadcrumbs are browned.