Easy Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole
Dig into the best weeknight comfort food! Easy Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole is creamy, cheesy, buttery and satisfying. Super simple to make with easy to find ingredients, this one will be on the short list of easy recipes!
I’ve been dabbling in casserole recipes again because they were such a staple of my childhood. So simple to throw together, the ultimate casserole is a one hit wonder for busy weeknights that’s sure to please even the pickiest eater in your whole family. This Easy Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole is no exception and is one of our favorite recipes.
Made easy with fresh, simple ingredients you can pick up at your local grocery store, this Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole is a twist on the classic Chicken Cordon Bleu recipe but in casserole form. I absolutely love the contrasting textures and flavors of this dish.
From the crispy, buttery breadcrumb crust to the tangy, buttery cheese sauce and layers of chicken, this dish is quick to throw together for an easy weeknight dinner. Made completely from scratch, there’s not a can of cream of chicken soup in sight. Next time you’re looking for an easy chicken recipe, add this one to the list.
Ingredients
- Chicken – Cooked chicken breast or leftover chicken makes this casserole come together quickly. If you need to cook chicken ahead of time, our roasted chicken breast is the perfect way to start.
- Butter – Salted butter adds richness to the recipe, you can substitute with unsalted butter but check for seasoning before you bake the casserole.
- Wine – We use dry white wine but it can be substituted with apple juice or skipped altogether if you prefer.
- Flour – Flour is used to thicken the sauce.
- Milk – Low-fat milk provides the best creamy sauce but can be substituted with heavy cream or half and half for a thicker, richer sauce.
- Dijon – Any mustard could be used but dijon is a classic for chicken cordon bleu.
- Cheese – Swiss cheese is traditionally used in chicken cordon bleu and creates the cheesiest dish.
- Ham – Leftover ham is perfect but we, most often, use a chopped deli ham for easy ingredient procurement.
- Bread Crumbs – Panko breadcrumbs are the best for a light, crispy crust. Traditional bread crumbs are a little more dense and heavy but still tasty if that’s what you have on hand.
For the full ingredient list and full instructions, see the recipe card below.
How To Make Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole
This Baked Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole is a cinch to make. I like to start with roasted chicken. I’ve seen it made with raw chicken that’s been baked in the Chicken Cordon Bleu sauce but the sauce tends to get watered down and it adds a raw poultry flavor that’s not really my favorite thing at all.
This is the perfect way to use up that leftover roasted chicken, your Instant Pot Shredded Chicken or your favorite rotisserie chicken.
- First, cut up the chicken into bite sized chunks. (Or you can shred it if you prefer.)
- Place the chicken in the bottom of a 13×9 inch casserole dish and set aside.
- Make the cheese sauce by melting butter in the bottom of a large sauce pan.
- Whisk the flour into the cheese sauce and cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Add the milk to the flour mixture and whisk to combine.
- Stir in the garlic powder, salt, black pepper and dijon mustard.
- Continue cooking over medium heat until slightly thickened and sauce coats the back of a spoon.
- Stir half the shredded cheese into the milk mixture and remove from the heat.
- Pour the cheese sauce over the chicken in the baking dish.
- Top the chicken with the ham and sprinkle with the remaining shredded cheese.
- In a large bowl, toss together the bread crumbs and butter. Stir in the herbs.
- Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the top of the casserole.
- Transfer the casserole to a preheated oven. Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown and bubbling.
- Allow the Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Add a salty note before serving, sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese for another layer of flavor.
How To Make Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole Advance
You can make this Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole recipe in advance and reheat it in the oven when ready to serve.
BUT you can also ASSEMBLE the casserole in advance, cover and store in the refrigerator until ready to bake because the chicken is already cooked. I would definitely recommend trying this meal prepping plan to save yourself some weeknight sanity. Just check out the recipe notes for tips on how to do this for best results.
How To Freeze Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole
You can totally freeze this casserole for easy dinners on the fly. Because the chicken is already cooked you can safely freeze the casserole for easy dinners at another time. It’s also fabulous for Pot Lucks.
To freeze:
- Assemble the casserole up to the ham topping.
- Allow to cool to room temperature.
- Once cooled, top the casserole with the cheese and bread crumb topping.
- Cover the casserole tightly with plastic wrap and then cover with aluminum foil.
- Label the casserole with the name of the dish “Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole” and cooking instructions, as well as, the date you froze it.
To cook from frozen:
- Remove the foil and plastic wrap from the casserole.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
- Bake the casserole for 1 hour or until golden brown and bubbling.
What is Chicken Cordon Bleu?
Chicken Cordon Bleu is a french classic chicken dish. It’s, basically, chicken breast that’s been butterflied, then stuffed with ham and Swiss cheese.
Sometimes the chicken is breaded then fried but I’ve also seen it breaded and baked in the oven. The crispy exterior is a great contrast to the cheesy, salty filling. It’s definitely one of my favorite chicken dinners ever. Serve it over egg noodles for an even heartier dinner.
What To Serve It With
- Green Beans Almondine
- Best Buttered Noodles
- Loaded Iceberg Wedge Salad
- Our Best House Salad
- Garlic Parmesan Baked Asparagus
More Easy Casserole Recipes
- Tuna Noodle Casserole
- Poppy Seed Chicken Casserole
- Chicken Divan Casserole
- The Very Best Baked Ziti Recipe
- Chicken and Dumpling Skillet Casserole
- Chicken Enchilada Casserole
- Dorito Chicken Casserole
And if you’re looking for even more family friendly recipes be sure to follow us over on Instagram!
Get the Recipe: Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 cups chopped cooked chicken breast
- 6 tbsp butter, divided
- 1/4 cup dry white wine
- 2 1/2 tbsp flour
- 3 cups milk
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp dijon mustard
- 1 1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
- 1/2 lb thinly sliced ham
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
- 1 tbsp fresh chopped thyme
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
Equipment
- 1 9×13 baking dish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Spread the chicken in an even layer in a 13×9 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt 4 tablespoons of butter. Whisk in the wine and cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Whisk the flour into the butter mixture and cook for an additional 2 minutes until the mixture begins to turn golden.
- Slowly whisk in the milk continuing to cook until the mixture is slightly thickened.
- Stir in the garlic powder, mustard and 1/2 the cheese. Remove from the heat and continue stirring until smooth. Stir in the salt and pepper, to taste.
- Pour the cheese sauce over the chicken.
- Arrange the ham over the chicken and sprinkle with the remaining Swiss cheese. Set aside.
- Melt the remaining butter in the microwave for 20 seconds. Stir the bread crumbs and thyme into the butter to combine.
- Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the casserole and transfer to the oven.
- Bake the casserole for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown and bubbling.
- Allow the casserole to rest for 10 minutes prior to serving.
Video
10 Comments on “Easy Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole”
What could I sub for the wine?
You can use apple juice or just chicken stock.
It says add remaining swiss cheese. I don’t see where it is divided. How much do we use for each part ?
You stir half the cheese into the sauce while you’re making it and then the remaining cheese is sprinkled on the casserole.
The wine goes in with the flour?
Yes, it does.
Just so hardy! Perfect for cooler days.
Love how easy this is to make! This is a comfort food dinner everyone will love!
Love a great casserole this time of year. The chicken, ham and cheese should make everyone in the family happy – we’ll find out this weekend!
Comfort food made simple-like the ultimate comfort! This is a delicious dish that I make for my family and they love it!