Our easy Ritz chicken casserole with noodles, frozen vegetables and cream of chicken soup will become your kids’ favorite dinner for sure! You can use precooked rotisserie or makes a great leftover chicken breast recipe.
I made this one pot meal after our chicken pot pie recipe with cream of chicken soup was such a hit! It had been a long day and I didn’t want to bother with a crust of any kind. Instead I just crushed some Ritz crackers on the top and it was a huge hit with my kids and husband!
You literally get the same comfort food feeling when eating this dish, and it is super versatile. I have made this with fresh meat, cooked right then and there before combining with the noodles, veggies and sauce….but it makes a killer leftover chicken breast recipe too.
I almost always have the ingredients at home already which makes it a great throw together meal. I mean you could even use canned chicken in a real pinch friends. I understand those busy days…..and this is a way to save dinner…and your sanity. 😉
Ingredient Notes
Let’s talk about the protein in the dish. I mentioned above that you can use canned, fresh (but cook it first) or leftovers. To go a step further it is up to you whether you use chicken breasts or thighs. Either one is great to be honest.
For the condensed soup I typically use cream of chicken but have used 1 of those and 1 cream of mushroom because that is what I had on hand, and it was amazing too. Use a bit of milk to thin this out too, whole or 2% is best.
For the noodles use any shape you want but I would choose a medium size. Rotini is fun with kids, penne works. I mean I buy what is on sale, and once again the store brand will save you some money so go with that one.
I have suggested seasonings below but honestly they are optional. Pick up a sleeve of Ritz crackers and melted butter for the top crunchy goodness. I have substituted 1/2 cup of this for French’s fried onions before and that was a fun variation.
To make things easier throw in a bag of mixed frozen vegetables. If you don’t like carrots, use the one with peas, corn and green beans. There are several options at the store, and honestly store brand is the same as name brand but way cheaper.
Can you use fresh vegetables?
You could but I would suggest the same ones as here; corn cut off the cob, green beans cut into thirds, fresh peas, and broccoli (small florets) would work but know that they may get a bit broken apart and very soft.
What can you use other than Ritz crackers?
It really doesn’t matter what style of crackers you use to be honest. Ritz are basically butter crackers in a sense. If you wanted a cheesy flavor you might want to use crushed Cheeze-its instead!! Other than crackers you could use cornflakes if you’d rather.
Can you use rice instead of noodles?
You could but you would need to cook it in a rice cooker or on the stovetop first. Then once fluffy you would want to gently fold everything together in this same way. Keep in mind that when combining and baked it will have a bit of a mushier texture but still another great way to vary this up a bit.
How Long to Cook Ritz Cracker Chicken Casserole
You only need about 30 minutes to bake this in the oven. Other than the vegetables needing to be cooked, everything else is already “done” so you’re just warming it all up. You want the top to become golden brown and crispy.
Tips for Making Ritz Chicken Casserole
You will want to boil your pasta noodles in water or both before preparing the rest of this. Make sure to drain them well. I prefer to boil until they are al dente because they will continue to soften in the sauce and this will prevent them from getting mushy.
If you wanted to add some shredded cheddar cheese on the top you could do so the last 5 minutes so it melts but the overall cook time would stay the same. This is a fun and delicious addition if you are a cheese lover like us.
Ritz Chicken Casserole Recipe
Equipment
- 1 casserole dish 11" round dish used
- 1 Bowl
- 1 knife cutting chicken
Ingredients
- 2 cups pasta, rotini used, boiled separately
- 3 cups chicken breasts, cooked, diced into bite size pieces
- 2 cans cream of chicken, or use 1 cream of mushroom and 1 cream of chicken
- 2 1/4 cup milk, whole or 2%
- 1 tbsp minced onions, dry or fresh
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1 bag frozen vegetables, 12 oz, mixed used
- 1 sleeve ritz crackers, crushed
- 2 tbsp butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F. Cook pasta to al dente according to package directions, drain and add into a bowl. Grease a 3 quart baking or casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
- Add diced and precooked chicken, condensed soup, milk, spices, and frozen vegetables together in the mixing bowl with your cooked pasta and mix well. Spoon into prepared dish and spread evenly.
- Mix together crackers and butter in a small dish and sprinkle on top of casserole. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes or until edges are bubbly and top is golden browned.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
How do you store leftovers?
You always want to wait until food has cooled and is at room temperature before storing. Transfer to a sealed container with a lid and keep in the fridge for up to 3 days. Know that when you reheat it the crackers will no longer be crispy, but still good. You could add 1-2 more crushed Ritz when heated if desired to add back the crispiness.
