Creamy Hen Divan - The Keep At Residence Chef

That is a straightforward casserole stuffed 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 possibility! We love casseroles as a result of they aren’t solely simple to throw collectively but in addition as a result of they’re so scrumptious! This traditional hen divan has broccoli, hen, and a creamy made-from-scratch sauce with actual components like cheddar cheese, bitter cream, and a touch of mustard. It’s a tasty improve from the standard!

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 created from scratch relatively than canned soup.
You possibly can’t go improper with that buttery Ritz cracker topping!
This casserole will be made forward of time and saved till able to bake, making for an ideal meal prep possibility.

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

Casseroles are the epitome of ease and comfort, and this one isn’t any exception! Prep time isn’t lengthy, and the meeting will take you mere minutes. If you wish to make this forward of time, it’s tremendous simple 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.

Hen: 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 must thaw these beforehand – they’ll prepare dinner completely within the oven. In the event you want contemporary broccoli, you may 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: In the event you want a substitute, Greek yogurt works nicely in equal quantities.
Cheddar Cheese: Sharp cheddar is good for this recipe, however a light 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 also use a normal breadcrumb topping as an alternative should you want!
Mayonnaise: In the event you’re not a fan of mayo, you should use an equal quantity of plain Greek yogurt or much more bitter cream.
Lemon: For this recipe, you will have the juice from two medium-sized lemons. In the event you don’t have lemons, you may also use bottled lemon juice in a pinch, however we advocate freshly squeezed should you can to actually get that tangy, citrus taste.

A GIF showing the layers of this casserole.

Making the Sauce

Among the finest elements 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 individual 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 Possibility

This meal is a good possibility if you wish to meal prep for a busy day in a while within the week. You can also 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. In the event you use this methodology, you will have to bake it for a little bit longer, about an hour complete.

If you wish to make it even additional forward of time, you may also 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. Enable to thaw within the fridge in a single day earlier than baking, and you then’ll must 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.