This Keto Chicken Broccoli Casserole is extra cheesy and bursting with goodness. My whole family loves this mixture of creamy, cheesy broccoli and juicy chicken. This casserole is ready in less than 30 minutes!
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I have a feeling that one of these days I’m going to share a broccoli recipe and you guys are just going to leave me behind.
I mean, look…I know I share a lot of broccoli recipes, it’s just that they’re SO GOOD. I love broccoli!
Most people think ‘cauliflower’ when they think low carb, but not this girl. I’m all about the little baby trees. 😉
This recipe is a riff on my broccoli cheese casserole that has been reviewed over 400 times with a 4.5 star rating. It’s the best!
Karly’s Tips & Tricks:
Use pre-cut, packaged broccoli florets from the produce section to cut down time!
Bulk it up by adding riced cauliflower to the mixture! Just add in one bag of frozen riced cauliflower and increase the mayo to 1/3 cup and the cheddar to 1 1/2 cups!
In my experience, steaming broccoli in the microwave is just as tasty and so much easier than steaming it on the stove. Follow our method for easy steamed broccoli using the microwave to keep this extra simple.
Keto Chicken Broccoli Casserole
Ingredients
- 20 ounces fresh broccoli florets
- 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup freshly grated cheddar cheese
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups cooked, chopped chicken
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Add the broccoli to a large microwave safe bowl along with 2 tablespoons of water. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and microwave for 2 minutes. Let sit, covered, for 2 minutes.
- Carefully remove the plastic wrap and drain the liquid.
- Add the cream cheese, mayonnaise, cheddar, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to a small bowl and mix well to combine.
- Stir the cream cheese mixture and chicken into the steamed broccoli until well combined.
- Transfer broccoli to a 9×13 baking dish and sprinkle the Parmesan over the top.
- Bake for 15 minutes.
Tips & Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Ingredient Notes:
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Chicken – Leftover chicken works great for this recipe, or you can grab a rotisserie chicken from the store. Chop your chicken into chunks or shred it up.
Broccoli – Freshly chopped florets are great but you can also keep it simple and pick up a bag of pre-chopped from the store. See the FAQ’s section below for info on using frozen broccoli.
Cheese & Mayo – This is a creamy and cheesy casserole recipe! We’re adding freshly grated cheddar, grated Parmesan, cream cheese, and mayonnaise. Start with room temperature cream cheese for easy mixing!
Seasoning – We’ll flavor this chicken and broccoli bake with simple seasonings including salt, pepper, and garlic powder. You can add other herbs/spices as you like. Some red pepper flakes would add a bit of heat!
- Family Friendly – The kids love chicken and cheese, which helps sneak the broccoli by.
- Low Carb – This dish is naturally low carb and keto friendly. No funky or hard to find ingredients!
- Easy Peasy – We love to make this recipe using leftover chicken and a bag of broccoli florets. Really cuts down on the prep work!
Substitutions & Variations:
Make this casserole your own by swapping ingredients or adding to it. Casseroles are great for customizing! Here are some ways you can modify this chicken broccoli casserole:
- Protein: Swap the leftover chicken with some leftover turkey or use ground chicken, turkey, pork, or beef! Toss in some crispy fried bacon for a little extra protein.
- Greek Yogurt: It’s a great substitute for the mayonnaise.
- Cheese: You can use any combination of cheese you want! Swap out the cheddar and Parmesan or mix in others like Colby, Monterey Jack, Swiss, etc.
- Veggies: The broccoli could be swapped for cauliflower, or you could just use both. You can also add other vegetables like onion, bell pepper, or even green beans in this chicken and broccoli casserole.
How To Steam Broccoli In The Microwave:
We start this recipe with a head of broccoli and that gets microwaved with a bit of water just to soften it up a bit.
The microwave steams the broccoli which gives it a head start on the cooking process. I just add the broccoli and 2 tablespoons of water to a large bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and microwave for 2 minutes.
Let this stand for 2 minutes before carefully removing the plastic wrap and draining the liquid. So easy!
How To Make Chicken Broccoli Cheese Casserole:
- Combine – To prepare the casserole you’ll just dump in the rest of the ingredients with the steamed broccoli. Stir all of that together until it’s combined and then spread it into a 9×13 baking dish.
- Top & Bake: Sprinkle a bit of shredded Parmesan over the top to add a little salty crunch factor. This bakes up in just 15 minutes.
- Serve – We like to serve this keto chicken broccoli casserole with something a little lighter on the side, like my keto coleslaw. Of course, my keto cheddar bay biscuits make a great addition to this meal too!
FAQ’s:
I like to start with fresh but frozen broccoli will also work well in this recipe though it may add a bit more moisture to the casserole than it would if you had started with fresh florets.
The already cooked kind! Leftover chicken, a rotisserie chicken from the store, frozen cooked chicken. This recipe is all about keeping it simple!
You can keep any leftovers stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to about 3 days depending on the freshness of the ingredients you used such as the chicken.
Yep! Most casserole recipes are freezer friendly and this one is too. Make sure it is stored well in a freezer safe container and it should last for up to a few months. It can be reheated in the oven after thawing.
MORE LOW CARB FAVORITES!
Regina & Kelan says
Thank you for this AWESOME recipe! We loved it and added our own tweaks. It felt so decadent like we were cheating our diet but we weren’t! We added one more substitution… instead of Mayo or yogurt, we used one fresh, organic mashed avocado and unsweetened almond milk. We simmered this with the cheeses & seasonings to make a cheesy reux before adding in the cooked chicken and broccoli. After mixing everything together on the stove and simmering for a bit, we transferred it to the oven, topped with parmesan (or gluten-free bread Crumbs) and baked for 15min. BEST COMFORT KETO DISH EVER!!!!! Thank you for the recipe inspiration!
Paula says
This was really good. I used frozen broccoli florets that I thawed in the microwave. It worked very well.
Riva says
Very tasty, I added sautéed leeks and a little cream to thin the sauce a bit but otherwise followed the recipe. P.S. Substituted light mayo for regular mayo and it worked fine.
Cindy S Kuehl says
How many servings is the 9×13 pan?
Karly Campbell says
The nutrition info is based on 4 servings.
Aimee says
I loved this recipe so much. Can you tell me what the serving size is? Like is it one cup?
Karly Campbell says
Hi Aimee! We just divided into 4 portions. I’m not sure what the serving size is by volume or weight.
Marcella Daley says
Great recipe. Sauted onion, celery, red pepper, and Palermo pepper to casserole! Spiced it up!
Janet says
I’m always looking for a casserole that uses leftover cooked chicken! Anything with cream cheese you know is going to be good! Thank you!
Karly Campbell says
We can’t get enough cream cheese around here. Hope you enjoy the recipe! 🙂
Jenny Alley says
I loved this recipe and so easy to put together! Thank you!
Cindy says
Do you bake it covered or uncovered?
Karly Campbell says
Uncovered.
Dianne says
Made this for my overworked kindergarten teacher daughter and her family. They LOVED it and I recommend it to everyone!
Karly Campbell says
Love to hear that! Thanks, Diane!
Felicia says
Oh my! I overlooked the cooked part for chicken but that’s ok cause I just had my 2nd brain stem surgery so my mind sometimes don’t be there. So what I did was cook it for 45 minutes. Similar to my favorite broccoli, chicken, rice casserole which is a dump and bake!
I also used Frozen Broccoli Florets.
It turned out pretty tastey. Well then again my taste buds are off from brain surgery so who knows or it was cause I hadn’t ate anything in 24 hrs!
Karly Campbell says
Oh goodness! Hope you’re recovering well and back to your old self soon!
Brenda Almond says
Have tried many times, love it. Sometimes I add cooked bacon pieces or use heavy cream (still keto) instead of mayo. Sliced or few grape tomatoes also give it a nice flavor. Like I said love this recipe!
Kathy Ackerman says
Good basic starting recipe. But I added a bit of heavy cream because the sauce didn’t seem to mix properly with the broccoli and chicken otherwise.
I also added some sauteed mushrooms and shallots to add some more flavor.
Rosita says
We love anything curry, so we will try this and mix in some curry power as well. Should taste really good.
Karly Campbell says
Sounds yummy!
Alyssa says
Can frozen broccoli be used?
Karly Campbell says
We’ve only made this with fresh broccoli. I imagine frozen will work, but it will be more watery and have a different texture.
Ricardo says
Revise your recipe to mention “cooked chicken” at every instance otherwise it is easily missed. Like I missed it. Raw chicken and baked broccoli with cheese is not awesome.
Karly Campbell says
Sorry to hear that you missed it. It’s clearly stated to use cooked chicken in both the post, the recipe, and the notes. Hope you give it a try with cooked chicken…it’s so good! 🙂
Michael Milbourn says
Sort of left field but I was in a hurry and out this recipe in a pressure cooker and it was great! Added a bit of bacon and 1.5 tbsp of heavy cream. Somewhere between a stew and soup and was really really good.
Karly Campbell says
Sounds delicious!