Creamy Rooster Divan - The Keep At House Chef

That is a simple casserole filled with savory hen, creamy sauce, completely cooked broccoli, and essentially the most superb butter cracker topping so as to add an ideal contact of texture. You’ll end up coming again to this one many times for an ideal weeknight choice! We love casseroles as a result of they don’t seem to be solely straightforward to throw collectively but in addition as a result of they’re so scrumptious! This basic hen divan has broccoli, hen, and a creamy made-from-scratch sauce with actual elements like cheddar cheese, bitter cream, and a touch of mustard. It’s a tasty improve from the same old!

For extra casserole concepts, attempt our Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole or our Tasty Taco Casserole.

Why Our Recipe

Our recipe makes use of a sauce produced from scratch quite than canned soup.
You’ll be able to’t go incorrect with that buttery Ritz cracker topping!
This casserole may be made forward of time and saved till able to bake, making for an ideal meal prep choice.

A fork lifting a bite of chicken divan from a plate.

Casseroles are the epitome of ease and comfort, and this one is not any exception! Prep time will not be lengthy, and the meeting will take you mere minutes. If you wish to make this forward of time, it’s tremendous straightforward to prep forward of time after which refrigerate or freeze till you’re able to bake it!

Ingredient Notes

An overhead view of the ingredients needed to make chicken divan.

Rooster: Rotisserie hen is a good time-saver right here, however any leftover cooked hen will work. You’ll want about 2 kilos or roughly 4 cups of hen.
Frozen Broccoli: No have to thaw these beforehand – they’ll prepare dinner completely within the oven. If you happen to favor recent broccoli, you possibly can substitute it, however steam the florets for 7 minutes to melt them earlier than layering.
Stuffing: We don’t advocate any particular model of stuffing, so be at liberty to get whichever model is your loved ones’s favourite.
Bitter Cream: If you happen to want a substitute, Greek yogurt works effectively in equal quantities.
Cheddar Cheese: Sharp cheddar is right for this recipe, however a gentle cheddar or different cheeses like Gruyère or Monterey Jack work too.
Ritz Crackers: We advocate utilizing Ritz crackers for the casserole’s topping, however you may as well use an ordinary breadcrumb topping as a substitute should you favor!
Mayonnaise: If you happen to’re not a fan of mayo, you need to use an equal quantity of plain Greek yogurt or much more bitter cream.
Lemon: For this recipe, you have to the juice from two medium-sized lemons. If you happen to don’t have lemons, you may as well use bottled lemon juice in a pinch, however we advocate freshly squeezed should you can to essentially get that tangy, citrus taste.

A GIF showing the layers of this casserole.

Making the Sauce

Among the finest components of this casserole is the sauce, which is completely creamy with a slight tang from the lemon juice and bitter cream. Many different casseroles use cans of creamed soup to make the sauce, however taking the additional step to make your personal sauce will make such an enormous distinction that you simply’ll by no means need to use premade sauces once more! The sauce isn’t sophisticated to make, and all it takes is a few stirring and warming on the range. That’s it!

An overhead view of a pan of chicken divan that has a portion taken out.

Make Forward Choice

This meal is a good choice if you wish to meal prep for a busy day in a while within the week. You may make this casserole as much as 24 hours forward of time after which retailer it within the fridge till you’re able to bake it. If you happen to use this technique, you have to to bake it for just a little longer, about an hour complete.

If you wish to make it even additional forward of time, you may as well freeze the casserole earlier than you bake it. Cowl the casserole with a number of layers of plastic wrap or foil, and you’ll retailer this in your freezer for as much as three months. Permit to thaw within the fridge in a single day earlier than baking, and then you definitely’ll have to cowl it with foil for the primary half-hour it’s within the oven. When you’ve eliminated the foil, prepare dinner uncovered for one more 45–55 minutes.