This Million Dollar Chicken Casserole skips the canned cream of chicken soup and uses a quick homemade cream sauce instead. Bacon and peas are mixed right in, so it’s a complete dinner with a rich, creamy filling and a buttery Ritz cracker topping.

Spoonful of creamy casserole with peas, bacon bits, green onions, and a crispy golden topping.

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Note from Erin

I’m all for a shortcut when it saves time without giving up flavor. But in this casserole, the sauce does too much of the work to rely on a can of cream of chicken soup. So I make a quick cream sauce instead.

It's the same reason my taco hotdish skips the canned soup. Five extra minutes for a casserole with much better flavor is a trade-off I'm happy to make!

Helpful Ingredient Tips

The recipe card at the bottom of this post includes the complete list of ingredients, measurements, and instructions.

Ingredients for a casserole, including cheeses, peas, crackers, bacon, seasonings, milk, and butter on a counter.

Chicken: I cook 2 pounds of boneless skinless chicken breast using my Dutch Oven Shredded Chicken method. I prefer breast meat in this casserole, but you can use rotisserie chicken if you want both dark and white meat.
Bacon: I cooked 14 slices and had just a little left over after measuring the ½ cup for the filling and 3 tablespoons for the topping. The exact number will depend on how thick your bacon is.
Cheese: I’m usually a big fan of shredding cheese from a block, but I tested this recipe with pre-shredded cheese and I was surprised to find that it melted just fine. There is already plenty of fat and moisture in the filling to keep it creamy.

Can You Leave Out the Cottage Cheese?

The cottage cheese is a big part of what makes the filling so creamy, so I don’t recommend simply leaving it out. And listen, my husband and kids all hate cottage cheese, and none of them knew it was in here. It blends into the filling without leaving a noticeable cottage cheese flavor or texture.

But if you absolutely cannot imagine putting cottage cheese in your casserole, replace it with an equal amount of ricotta.

Tips to Make the Best Creamy Chicken Casserole

A saucepan filled with creamy white sauce with specks of pepper, shown from above on a light surface.

Make the Cream Sauce

The sauce will be slightly thicker than gravy, and will look a lot like condensed soup once it cools.

Two glass bowls: one with ingredients unmixed (chicken, peas, bacon, sauce), one with everything mixed together.

Mix the Filling

If you use a large saucepan for the cream sauce then you can add all of the ingredients right to that pan instead of dirtying a second dish.

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Two square casserole dishes: one with a creamy mixture, the other topped with shredded cheese, on a light surface.

Spread into the Pan

I originally tried this in a 9×9-inch pan, and it filled all the way to the top. Use a 9×13-inch pan so you don’t have to worry about the filling bubbling over.

Two glass bowls: left with crushed crackers and melted butter, right with the mixture combined on a white surface.

Prepare the Crumb Topping

Wait until you are ready to put the casserole in the oven before you mix the butter and crackers. This will help keep the cracker topping from becoming soggy.

Two square dishes of casserole, one plain and one topped with crumbled bacon, on a light surface.

Bake in the Oven

Look for the filling to bubble around the edges and the cracker topping to turn deep golden brown.

Two peach-colored sparkle shapes on a light gray background.

Top Tip!

Let the casserole rest for 10 minutes before serving. The filling will look loose when it first comes out of the oven, and that’s normal. The sauce thickens as it cools.

Make Ahead⏳

I chose flour for the cream sauce because it holds up better after freezing. I originally tested it with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch, which worked well for serving right away, but flour makes the casserole more freezer-friendly.

Assemble and refrigerate it for up to three days, or freeze it unbaked for longer storage. Leave off the cheese and crackers until you’re ready to bake, and plan on extra oven time when starting with a cold casserole. Exact timing is in the recipe notes.

A baked casserole with a golden crumb topping, served with a wooden spoon, surrounded by cheese and toppings.

How to Serve It

This is a full dinner on its own, so you don’t need to serve it over anything. But there’s plenty of creamy sauce, and I like spooning it over rice, as shown here. Pasta works well too, and either one will help stretch the casserole if you’re feeding a crowd.

A plate of rice topped with creamy chicken casserole, melted cheese, peas, bacon, and a golden crumb topping.

Recipe

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Note from Erin

Helpful Ingredient Tips

Can You Leave Out the Cottage Cheese?