Million Dollar Chicken Casserole is rich, creamy, cheesy comfort food that tastes like it came straight out of a 1950s church cookbook in the very best way. Tender shredded chicken gets smothered in a “million dollar” mixture of cream cheese, sour cream, cottage cheese, and cream of chicken soup, then baked under a thick layer of buttery crushed crackers until it’s bubbling and golden. Every bite is ultra-saucy, savory, and indulgent, with that crunchy top giving you just enough texture to balance all the lusciousness underneath.
This is the kind of casserole that practically begs to be brought to potlucks, family dinners, and holidays, but it’s simple enough for weeknights if you lean on a rotisserie chicken. You can stir the filling together in one bowl, dump it into a baking dish, cover it with the cracker topping, and slide it into the oven with almost no fuss. It’s forgiving, make-ahead friendly, and wildly crowd-pleasing—exactly the sort of “dump and bake” dish that earns a permanent spot in your comfort food lineup.
Equipment
- 9×13-inch baking dish
- Large mixing bowl
- Small mixing bowl
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Wooden spoon or spatula
- Spoon or zip-top bag (for crushing crackers)
Ingredients
- 4–5 cups cooked chicken, shredded or chopped
- 1 can (10.5 ounces) cream of chicken soup
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup cottage cheese
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1½ cups shredded cheddar or mozzarella cheese (or a mix)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 30–35 buttery round crackers (such as Ritz), crushed
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder (optional, for topping)
- Sliced green onions or chopped parsley, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
To make Million Dollar Chicken Casserole, start by preheating your oven to 350°F (175°C) and lightly greasing a 9×13-inch baking dish with butter or nonstick spray. This ensures the creamy filling won’t stick and makes serving and cleanup easier later.
Make sure your cream cheese is softened; if it’s still cold, you can cut it into small cubes and let it sit out for a bit, or microwave it for just a few seconds at a time until it’s easily mashable.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, and cream of chicken soup. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to mash and stir everything together until it’s as smooth as you can reasonably get it; a few small bits of cottage cheese are fine, but you’re aiming for one cohesive, creamy base.
Once that looks well blended, stir in the shredded cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and black pepper. Taste a tiny bit of the mixture at this point (before adding the chicken) and adjust the seasoning if needed. It should already taste good on its own—savory, a bit tangy, and rich—since this is the sauce that will coat all the chicken.
Add the shredded or chopped cooked chicken to the bowl and fold it into the cheese mixture until every piece is well coated. Rotisserie chicken works especially well here and saves time, but any cooked chicken is fine, whether it’s leftover roasted, baked, grilled, or poached.
If the mixture looks overly thick and stiff, you can stir in a small splash of milk or chicken broth to loosen it slightly; you want it thick and creamy but still spreadable. Transfer this chicken mixture to your prepared baking dish and spread it into an even layer with your spoon or spatula, smoothing the top all the way to the corners.
For the topping, place the crackers in a zip-top bag and crush them with your hands or the bottom of a measuring cup until you have coarse crumbs—some powdery bits and some slightly larger pieces for texture.
Pour the crumbs into a small bowl and add the melted butter and the additional garlic powder if using. Stir until all of the crumbs are evenly moistened; they should clump slightly when pressed together. Sprinkle this buttery cracker mixture evenly over the surface of the casserole, making sure to cover as much of the top as possible so you get that signature golden, crunchy crust.
Once assembled, slide the casserole into the preheated oven and bake for about 30–40 minutes, or until the filling is hot and bubbling around the edges and the cracker topping is deep golden brown.
If you’re baking from chilled (for example, if you assembled it earlier and kept it in the fridge), you may need to add a bit of baking time, keeping an eye on the topping and loosely tenting with foil if it starts to brown too much before the center is hot.
When it’s done, remove the casserole from the oven and let it rest on the counter for about 10–15 minutes. This resting time allows the creamy mixture to set up slightly so it scoops out in rich, cohesive servings rather than flooding onto the plate.
Right before serving, you can sprinkle the top with sliced green onions or chopped parsley if you’d like a pop of color and a little fresh flavor. Use a large spoon to scoop generous portions, digging all the way down so every serving gets some of the crunchy cracker topping and the creamy chicken underneath. It’s ready to eat as soon as it’s warm enough to handle, though it will stay nice and hot for quite a while thanks to all that richness.
Tips & Variations
Million Dollar Chicken Casserole is incredibly flexible, which makes it perfect for using up what you have on hand. Rotisserie chicken is the fastest option and brings a nice roasted flavor, but leftover chicken or turkey from another meal works just as well.
If your chicken is very plainly seasoned, the sauce will carry the flavor for you; if it’s already well seasoned or smoky (like grilled thighs), it will add another little layer of interest. You can adjust the amount of chicken slightly depending on what you’ve got—using closer to four cups gives you a more sauce-forward, ultra-creamy casserole, while five cups makes it meatier and a bit more substantial.
The “million dollar” mixture of cream cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, and soup is rich by design, but you can tweak things to suit your taste. If you’re not a cottage cheese fan, you can pulse it in a blender for a smoother texture before mixing, or replace part of it with extra sour cream.
If you enjoy a tangier profile, Greek yogurt can stand in for some of the sour cream. Changing the cheese also steers the flavor: cheddar and mozzarella are classic, but Colby Jack, Monterey Jack, or even a bit of Parmesan stirred in can change the vibe without affecting the structure too much. Just aim to keep the overall cheese amount roughly the same so the texture stays lush but not greasy.
You can also tuck vegetables right into the casserole if you’d like to make it more of a one-dish meal. Frozen peas, corn, or mixed vegetables stir easily into the creamy chicken mixture before it goes into the pan, and small steamed broccoli florets or diced, sautéed mushrooms or onions work well too. Just be sure anything very watery is cooked and drained first so you don’t thin out the sauce.
For a bacony twist, fold in some cooked, crumbled bacon, or sprinkle some over the top along with the crackers just before serving. A pinch of smoked paprika or a dash of Creole or ranch-style seasoning in the filling can also add dimension if you want to nudge the flavors away from strictly “classic casserole.”
If you’d like to take it closer to a “million dollar chicken noodle” vibe without committing to a full noodle casserole, you can serve it spooned over cooked egg noodles, rice, or mashed potatoes instead of baking those starches directly in.
That way, the base can stay super creamy and intensely flavored, and everyone can choose their own base at the table. On the other hand, if you want built-in carbs, you can fold in a small amount of cooked pasta (like egg noodles or rotini) with the chicken, just keeping in mind that pasta will soak up some of the sauce, so you may want to slightly increase the sour cream or broth to keep everything silky.
Serving & Storage
Million Dollar Chicken Casserole is rich and filling enough to be the star of the plate all by itself, but it really shines when paired with something fresh or crunchy on the side. A simple green salad with a bright vinaigrette is a perfect contrast, cutting through the creaminess and bringing some crisp texture to each bite.
Steamed or roasted vegetables like green beans, broccoli, or Brussels sprouts also work nicely, soaking up some of the sauce without competing with the main flavors. Warm dinner rolls or a loaf of crusty bread are optional but excellent for mopping up any creamy goodness left in the dish.
If you have leftovers, let the casserole cool to room temperature, then cover the baking dish tightly with foil or transfer portions to airtight containers. Store in the refrigerator for up to three or four days.
To reheat a large portion, cover the dish with foil and warm it in a 325°F (165°C) oven until it’s heated through and the topping has crisped back up a bit.
If the filling looks like it’s thickened too much in the fridge, adding a splash of milk or a spoonful of chicken broth around the edges before reheating will help bring it back to a soft, creamy consistency. Individual servings can be reheated in the microwave in short bursts, though the cracker topping will soften more than in the oven.
Million Dollar Chicken Casserole also freezes very well, making it ideal for make-ahead dinners or sharing with friends and family. For best results, assemble the casserole up to the point of adding the cracker topping, then cover it tightly with a layer of plastic wrap and a layer of foil and freeze for up to two or three months.
When you’re ready to bake, thaw it in the refrigerator overnight, remove the plastic, sprinkle on a fresh batch of buttery cracker crumbs, and bake as directed, adding extra time if your dish is still quite cold in the center. You can freeze baked leftovers, too—just be aware that the topping will be softer when reheated, though still delicious. With this casserole in your back pocket, you’ve always got a guaranteed-hit, ultra-comforting dinner just a bake away.
