Grandma's Old Fashioned Chicken and Rice

Grandma's Old Fashioned Chicken and Rice recipe is easy comfort food made with simple ingredients that the whole family will love. This easy chicken recipe is a family favorite perfect for busy weeknights, and even picky kids love it!

If you're looking for easy chicken recipes, you've come to the right place! This easy chicken and rice recipe is absolutely delicious and super simple.

I'll go so far as to say it's life changing. Why? For one thing, my whole family -- even my picky kids and picky husband love it.

And, our favorite comfort food is seriously easy to make. Just mix the ingredients together, and bake!

I usually serve peas or green beans or broccoli on the side. Perfect for an easy weeknight meal!

Ingredients

You only need a few simple ingredients for this old fashioned chicken and rice recipe. You can get them in your grocery store or online.

• Chicken breasts 
• Jasmine rice-- or any long grain white rice, not minute rice
• Butter -- original recipe calls for margarine
• Can of cream of chicken soup
• Cream of celery soup
• Can cream of mushroom soup
• Dried parsley
• Garlic powder
• Onion powder
• Salt -- to taste, optional
• Black pepper -- to taste, optional

I just love old recipes, but like many old fashioned chicken and rice recipes, grandma's recipe is very basic. I added seasoning for extra flavor to please our modern palates.

Note: The original recipe calls for 3 different canned soups, which makes this casserole super creamy. It also works with just 2 cans of soup, but it won't be as creamy.

How to Make Chicken and Rice Casserole

First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees f. Many old recipes list the oven temperature as just "medium heat" or "medium-high heat," but we can interpret this as 350 degrees.

Then, spray a casserole dish or baking dish with cooking spray, like Pam.

Next, rinse your rice, and drain it. Then, melt margarine or butter in the microwave.

Mix the rice and about half of the butter with the cream of chicken and cream of celery soup in the baking dish.

Spread the rice mixture evenly in the dish. Then, place chicken over the rice.

Next, season chicken, and melt the remaining butter over the chicken and rice.

This picture shows how the dish looks with just 2 cans of soup. If you use 3 cans, the rice mixture will be closer to the top of the casserole dish.

Now, cover the baking dish tightly with aluminum foil. This step is necessary to allow steam to build up and cook the rice.

And yes, it's safe to cook raw rice and raw chicken together!

Cooking Time

Cook the chicken and rice casserole for 30 minutes covered. Then, carefully remove the foil -- The steam will be hot, so use oven mitts!

Bake the casserole for another 30 minutes uncovered, for a total of 1 hour. Use a meat thermometer to make sure the chicken is at least 165 degrees.

You may have to cook chicken and rice a little longer depending upon your oven.

Let the dish rest for a few minutes after baking. The rice will absorb extra liquid as it cools down. If you like, you can shred the chicken or cut smaller chicken pieces before serving.

Doesn't it look delicious?! The creamy chicken, steamy rice, and simple flavor profile make this the perfect comfort food meal!

Variations

There are a few simple ways to customize this yummy comfort food to your liking!

For cheese lovers, sprinkle on some of your favorite shredded cheese during the last 10 minutes of baking the chicken and rice.

Give your meal a pop of green with broccoli or frozen peas. Add the veggies to the chicken and rice during the last 30 minutes of baking, or after you uncover the dish.

I usually use cream of chicken and celery since some of don't like mushroom soup for this recipe, but you can use whatever type of soup you like best. Cream of onion soup also gives a great flavor.

If you want a more Mexican or Southwest style flavor, add some salsa to the soup base. Verde or red both go well with this! Sprinkle some Mexican blend shredded cheese on top for extra goodness!

Instead of chicken breasts, you can cook chicken thighs as well.

You can also make chicken and rice dishes in the Instant Pot! Check out these delicious recipes: Instant Pot chicken and rice and Instant Pot teriyaki chicken and rice.

How to Store and Reheat

Store any leftover chicken and rice in an airtight container in the refrigerator, where it'll keep for 3 to 4 days. For longer storage, you can freeze it.

Reheat individual portions in the microwave. For larger portions, you can reheat the chicken and rice in the oven. Though, you may want to add a bit more liquid to the dish, so that it doesn't dry out.

This is one of the best chicken main dishes I've found in my grandmother's old cookbook! Seriously, it's one of my favorite recipes for hearty comfort food, and a great way to treat yourself after a long day.

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