Tender and juicy white meat chicken topped with broccoli and a cheesy sauce with Ritz crackers. This Cracker Barrel copycat is easy to make and will become a family favorite.

Broccoli Cheddar Chicken (Cracker Barrel Copycat)

Every time a craving for comfort food hits me and I don’t feel like cooking, we head to Cracker Barrel. And next to the Chicken Fried Chicken, the Broccoli Cheddar Chicken is my favorite thing on the menu.

Broccoli Cheddar Chicken (Cracker Barrel Copycat)

I decided this needed to be something I could make at home. For those cold winter nights when I don’t dare leave the house. I searched the internet for recipes and found them to all be pretty much the same with slight variations.

Broccoli Cheddar Chicken (Cracker Barrel Copycat)

This casserole can be assembled in just minutes and popped in the oven to bake for 45 minutes. I love that you don’t need to precook anything. I used frozen broccoli that I had defrosted overnight in my refrigerator. There’s no need to cook it or even warm it before adding it to the dish. You could use fresh broccoli instead, but you should at least partially cook it or it will most likely not get soft enough.

Instead of putting the Ritz Cracker crumbs on top, I put a thin layer of the cheese sauce on top of them. The crackers blend into the sauce and thicken and flavor it. But if you want a crunchy topping, mix them with a tablespoon or two of melted butter and sprinkle them on top of all the cheese sauce.

Buttery crackers, broccoli, and cheese are a hard to resist combination. Your kids are going to ask for this Broccoli Cheddar Chicken again and again.

Broccoli Cheddar Chicken (Cracker Barrel Copycat)
 

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Broccoli Cheddar Chicken (Cracker Barrel Copycat)

4.65 from 68 votes

By Christin Mahrlig

Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 45 minutes
Total: 55 minutes
Servings: 4
Tender and juicy white meat chicken topped with broccoli and a cheesy sauce with Ritz crackers. This Cracker Barrel copycat is easy to make and will become a family favorite.
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Ingredients

  • 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 can cheddar cheese soup
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • 6 ounces cheddar cheese,, shredded
  • 8 ounces frozen chopped broccoli,, defrosted
  • 1 1/2 cups crushed Ritz crackers

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a casserole dish.
  • Season chicken with salt and pepper and place in prepared dish.
  • In a medium bowl, mix together milk, soup, paprika, and cheddar cheese.
  • Pour half of cheese mixture over chicken.
  • Scatter broccoli pieces over cheese mixture.
  • Top with Ritz cracker pieces and remaining cheese mixture.
  • Place in oven and bake for 45 minutes. (I look for small chicken breasts for this recipe. Larger ones I cut in half horizontally. You will need to increase cooking time by at least 10 minutes if your chicken breasts are larger and you do not cut them into 2 thinner pieces.)

Notes

I layered a little of the cheese sauce on top of the cracker crumbs. I like how they blend into the sauce and thicken and flavor it. If you want a crunchy topping, mix the cracker crumbs with a tablespoon or two of melted butter and sprinkle on top.
I look for thin, small chicken breasts for this. Larger breasts may take longer to cook.

Nutrition

Calories: 489kcal

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Sharing with The Weekend Potluck

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171 Comments

  1. Sarah@WholeandHeavenlyOven says:

    Oh my gosh….this is total comfort food!! All that lovely broccoli and cheesy goodness is calling my name! Anything that’s a copycat from CB has gotta be amazing! Can’t wait to try this. ๐Ÿ™‚ Absolutely gorgeous photos too, girl!

  2. Barbara says:

    This goes on my menu for tomorrow’s dinner! It sounds wonderful and full of comfort for the tummy and the soul. Thanks for posting.

    1. Christin Mahrlig says:

      Hope you enjoy Barbara!

  3. Dannii @ Hungry Healthy Happy says:

    This really does look like my ideal comfort food. YUM!

  4. The Better Baker says:

    Oh this casserole looks so inviting and comforting! I could gobble it all up myself. Thanks for sharing with us at Weekend Potluck. Hope you stay warm, wherever you are, this weekend.

  5. marcie says:

    I’ve never been to a Cracker Barrel, and from the looks of it, I’d like to go! Or I can just make this at home now that you’ve shared it — I’d love to devour a plateful of this for dinner right at the moment! Pinned. ๐Ÿ™‚

  6. Medha @ Whisk & Shout says:

    This is serious comfort food… I love broccoli!

  7. Matt says:

    Mmmm… Cheese makes everything good!

  8. Kristine @ Kristine's Kitchen says:

    This looks like comfort food at it’s best! I could totally sit down to a plate of this cheesy goodness right now… unfortunately I’m eating leftovers. I’ve pinned it to try soon, though!

  9. Jocelyn (Grandbaby cakes) says:

    I’m totally there with you right now as far as not wanting to leave the house. This looks insanely delicious! And I love Cracker Barrel!!

  10. cailee says:

    YUM!!! This looks amazing!! …and Cracker Barrel is def the place to go for comfort food!! …now you don’t even have to! ๐Ÿ™‚ Great recipe girl!! Hope that you’re doing well!!