This freezer-friendly, curried chicken and broccoli casserole is fully homemade. No canned soups or packaged mixes in this Chicken Curry Casserole. Just good, real food.
So, casseroles get a bad rap. They’re considered dated, unhealthy, unhip.
The reality, though, is that casseroles can be delicious. Many casseroles will pluck at the chords of nostalgia in your heart and have your mouth watering just at the mere mention of their names.
Chicken Curry Casserole is one of those casseroles.
Though not a true Indian curry, this layered dish of juicy chicken and tender broccoli, luxuriating in a bath of a homemade curried cream sauce is divine. Served over rice alongside a few more veggies it’s not only delicious, but also not unhealthful, either.
Fun fact: This was often my birthday dinner as a child.
Chicken Curry Casserole
If you’ve got any vintage church cookbooks on your shelf, chances are there are more than a few versions of Chicken and Broccoli Casserole or Chicken Curry Casserole. Originally the dish was called Chicken Divan.
Chicken Divan is a chicken casserole made with broccoli and Mornay sauce, invented in NYC over 60 years ago. Then the canned soup companies got a hold of it and made it over into all kinds of things, under the guise of “it’s too hard for the average home cook to make her own sauce.”
Talk about unhip.
We can do it, can’t we folks?
Instead of using canned cream soup, I make my own white sauce and doctor it up just the way mom did with mayonnaise, lemon juice, and curry powder. It sounds odd, I know, but it’s so delicious!
This casserole is very customizable. There are likely so many versions of it out there because folks have difference preferences.
My sister makes it without mayonnaise on principle. (She doesn’t like mayo.) My husband prefers it with less sauce. One son prefers it with less cheese.
If you make it into small individual sized casserole dishes, you can customize each person’s dish.
What kinds of casseroles are there?
There are dozens of casserole recipes out there, ranging from mac and cheese to lasagna, enchiladas to pot pie. Chicken and Broccoli Casserole is a classic with variations including the addition of rice or curry powder.
How do you make a casserole healthy?
A basic casserole includes a sauce, mix-ins (like noodles, rice, or protein), and a topping, such as cheese or buttered breadcrumbs. On every level you have options to make your favorite casserole a little healthier:
- use whole grains instead of simple carbs
- focus on lean proteins instead fattier ones
- use less cheese
- spray the bread crumb topping with oil instead of dousing it in butter
- make your own white sauce instead of buying the canned varieties.
How do you make Chicken Curry Casserole?
One of the beauties of Chicken Curry Casserole — besides how delicious it tastes — is that it comes together super quickly.
- Prepare your ingredients. Cook and chop the chicken. Shred the cheese. Prepare the “Cream of” soup, if you’re using homemade. Steam the broccoli. Measure out the other things.
- Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish or single-serve gratin dishes with cooking spray.
- Spread the broccoli florets in the pan. Layer on the chicken.
- Whisk together the soup, mayonnaise, lemon juice, and curry powder in a large mixing bowl. Pour this mixture over the chicken and broccoli in the prepared dish.
- Sprinkle the top with the cheese.
- In a small bowl, mix together the bread crumbs and melted butter. Sprinkle this mixture over the cheese layer.
- Bake immediately or cover and refrigerate or freeze.
How do you freeze a casserole?
Freezing a casserole is super simple. Making several casseroles at one time and freezing the extras is a great habit to get into as it helps you stretch your time and money investments and gives you a night off cooking at a later date.
Remember that cold food freezes more quickly and has a lower chance of developing ice crystals for freezer burn, so be sure to use chilled ingredients for best taste and texture at serving.
Assemble the casserole, cover, label, and store in the freezer. Voila! Super simple.
If the ingredients are not already cold when you assemble the casserole, place the prepared dish in the refrigerator for several hours before storing in the freezer.
How do you serve a frozen casserole?
For best taste and texture, it’s usually best to thaw the casserole completely prior to baking. Transfer the frozen dish from the freezer to the refrigerator for safest thawing. A casserole may take 12 to 36 hours to thaw, depending on the temperature in your refrigerator.
You can bake a frozen casserole straight from the freezer, however, you will need to increase the cooking time and watch out for cold spots. Start by adding 30 minutes to the cooking time, after which you should check it every 15 minutes until hot and bubbly throughout.
For extended cooking times, it’s best to bake the casserole covered, so as not to overbrown the top before the filling is cooked. Bake uncovered near the end of the cooking time.
How to make this dish inexpensively
All the recipes on Good Cheap Eats are already pretty affordable. However, there are some strategies you can use to make this particular recipe more economical:
- Stock up on ingredients when they are on sale. When I find regular kitchen staples on sale, I buy a lot. It’s a great way to save money on your groceries without clipping a single coupon. I’m currently using a price book to track prices and that’s saving me money. For this recipe, keeping an eye on the price of cheese, chicken, and mayonnaise is key. Buy them on sale when you can.
- Make your own cream of soup. Making my own creamed soup with flour, butter, and milk is so simple and easy. Plus, the sauce freezes well, so I can make big batches so I can have some always to hand. You don’t need no stinking cans, man.
- Make your own breadcrumbs. Homemade breadcrumbs are practically free if you use bread that’s past its prime for sandwich making. Alternatively, check the bakery clearance rack for day-old bread that is perfect for making into crumbs.
Tools I Use for This Recipe:
- Box cheese grater
- Small Kitchenaid saucepan
- Wire whisk
- Rubber spatula
- 9×13-inch glass baking pan
- lid for 9×13-inch glass baking pan, if freezing
- 2 heads broccoli cut into flowerettes
- 2 cups chicken cooked and cubed
- 1 batch Homemade Cream of Celery Soup for Cooking
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13-inch pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a pot on the stove, the microwave or a vegetable steamer, cook the broccoli until crisp-tender. Arrange the broccoli on the bottom of the prepared pan.
- Layer the chicken over the broccoli.
- In a mixing bowl combine the soup, lemon juice, mayonnaise, and curry powder. Pour the sauce over the chicken.
- Top with the grated cheese.
- In a small bowl, combine the bread crumbs and butter. Mix well and sprinkle over the top of the casserole. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the sauce is bubbly, the cheese is melted, and the crumb topping is toasted.
Note: If freezing, allow the casserole to cool slightly. Wrap, label, and chill in the refrigerator before freezing. To bake, thaw completely before baking.
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it took me a long time to realize my mom’s curried chicken wasn’t really curry after all too! this sounds delicious 🙂
Ha! Isn’t that funny?
We make this! But we call it chicken divan. One of my all time favorites; especially when made the day before, refridgerated, then cooked.
I did a lot of research on Chicken Divan when I did the freezer book. It often doesn’t have curry powder. Does yours?
I grew up with this same recipe, and my mom also called it Chicken Divan. She used frozen broccoli and cream of chicken soup of course, but the curry in the sauce was always there. The lemon juice is important, too. She always served it with crescent rolls to mop up any sauce left on the plate. When I used to make this for my veggie-hating kids, I’d make 1/3 of the pan with extra chicken and no broccoli. I”ve also made this with cooked basmati rice in the bottom, along with peas (or green beans) and called it Bombay Chicken Casserole. Yum…now I’ve gotta make this soon!
When you do the peas, do you do the broccoli as well?
No, one or the other.
yup, but it’s from an older cookbook that i don’t even have. it’s a photocopied page. i love that yours is made with no cream of whatever. i love to make my own cream of soups too! my husband was so surprised that it tastes better than campbells. We love your blog : ) My grandma emails me every year to ask where i get the streusel topped pumpkin pie recipe : )
Thanks for your kind words!
My youngest son asked for this every year on his birthday growing up. His wife makes it, but doesn’t like curry, so for him, it’s not the same. I make it for him (with curry) and freeze in smaller portions and he’ll come by every now and then and get one out of the freezer for work.
I had not made my own soup, will definitely be trying this more up to date, fresher recipe!
I made this, but I added some shredded potato (aka hashbrowns) that I par boiled before adding. (I didn’t have enough time for a full bake, and everything else was hot, so I just cooked the potatoes, too.) We loved it, but I’m going to have to add more curry powder! Actually, I automatically doubled the curry powder, and I STILL have to add more curry powder. Ha! I love my curry! Anyway, thanks for the recipe! I’ve never made anything like this and the kids ate it up so well. I was very pleased. I was also glad I hid the potatoes inside since for some reason my kiddos don’t like potatoes.
Merry Christmas!
Sounds yummy! Did you still do the rice?
No, just to keep it a little simpler in the kitchen for me, I didn’t make rice that night. That would have gone well, though, since rice is an absolute hit in my house.
I love chicken curry, but my hubby doesn’t so this is the perfect meal for my lunches all week as I can re-heat portions just for me.
I’ve never made it casserole-style with the buttered bread crumbs. I usually just make it with rice. I like the idea of trying something new, so thanks so much for sharing your recipe. I”m sick right now, so this would be the ultimate comfort food.
Pinning!
It IS the ultimate comfort food.
Love the polka-dot dishes! 🙂
Not how I remember Chicken Divan, but neither how I have ever made “curry” before. I had to modify it slightly for what I had. I used two chicken breasts that had been in the freezer for much too long, so I diced them up and browned them to use. I used a bag of frozen broccoli since I did not have fresh. I had a single potato that was in dire need of using, so I chopped it really small and heated it up with the broccoli and layered it on the bottom of the pan. With that cooking time and the baking time plus being chopped so small, it cooked up perfectly. I actually had a can of cream of mushroom, not sure why (probably a canned food drive that didn’t get actually donated) that was languishing as I never use that type of thing any more so that got cleared out of the cabinet. I so rarely use mayo that my jar was significantly past the Best By date and was going to get tossed. However, it turned out to be exactly one cup left in there, so poof! Since I like curry, I doubled the portion to 1 tsp. I served it over some whole grain blend left overs I had in the fridge, and baked some baguettes getting freezer burnt. So basically, this turned out to be the perfect pantry challenge dinner for me tonight, even if it is March instead of January! For the amount it made, though, I think I will use an 8.5×11 pan next time instead of a 9×13. It seemed a little sparse spread over the bottom. I can also see putting the rice on the bottom of the pan so it can soak up sauce while it is cooking.
Now I’m going to go slice the cheesecake I found in the freezer and top it with my fresh strawberries. 🙂
Made this tonight. It’s been years since I had the chicken divan my mom used to make when we were growing up. I always really liked it. I like this even better!! It’s amazingly good. I left out the curry since that wasn’t part of my childhood flavor memory 🙂 and I subbed in crushed saltine crackers for the panko. Perfection. My kids didn’t go for it, but I don’t care. I’ll be making it again.
Do you freeze this before or after baking? If after, do you take it out a little early? Thanks.
Thanks for posting about this recipe over on Instagram. My family raved about it. I served it with rice. Delish!
Yay! It’s my favorite.
In your receipe it says one batch homemade celery soup do you make the soup first ?
Yes. You can make a big batch of the homemade celery soup and then freeze it so that you can save steps next time.