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This creamy Poppy Seed Chicken casserole features a rich, poppyseed-flecked sauce that wraps cozily around tender shredded chicken. Add buttery Ritz crackers, bake until crisp, and dig in!
This rich and creamy poppy seed chicken casserole is one of my family’s favorite weeknight dinners. It’s ready in less than an hour and never fails to bring a little dose of comfort to the table.
Why You’ll Love This Poppy Seed Chicken Recipe
- Cozy Comfort Food: Chicken in cream sauce always creates an instant feeling of coziness! Swirl in a little sour cream and add some Parmesan cheese, and you’ve just made the ultimate cold-weather meal.
- Filling: The combination of cream soup, shredded chicken, and crunchy crackers will be enough to leave you satisfied. Add a slice of fresh bread or a green vegetable to round out your plate.
- Easy Ingredients: Most of the ingredients in this recipe are shelf-stable, so you can stock up on a few of the basics and keep them handy. This is a super recipe to make when you’re not sure what to make for dinner!
What You’ll Need
Simple ingredients come together in this recipe to make a favorite dinner. Here’s what you’ll need to make it. Don’t forget to check the recipe card at the end of this post for the full ingredient amounts.
- Chicken – You can save chicken from a roast chicken to use in this recipe or pick up a rotisserie chicken.
- Sour Cream – You can use full-fat or low-fat sour cream.
- Cream of Chicken Soup – Use your preferred brand of cream of chicken soup.
- Parmesan Cheese – Or substitute Romano cheese.
- Poppy Seeds
- Seasonings – Onion powder and garlic powder.
- Salt and Pepper – Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper are best!
- Ritz Crackers – You need about 1 sleeve of Ritz crackers for a bit of crunch.
- Butter – Unsalted or salted butter is fine. Note that if you use salted butter you may need to adjust how much additional salt you add.
How to Make Poppy Seed Chicken
This dish takes just a few minutes to assemble, and it needs about a half hour to bake to perfection. You can see how to do it below.
- Prep. Preheat the oven and grease a 9 x 13-inch dish.
- Make sauce. Combine the sour cream, cream of chicken soup, Parmesan cheese, poppy seeds, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
- Assemble. Spread out the chicken evenly in the casserole dish.
- Add sauce. Pour the sauce over the chicken.
- Make topping. Crush the crackers, add the melted butter, and toss to coat.
- Top. Scatter the cracker crumbs over the top of the casserole.
- Bake. Cook the casserole until hot and bubbly. Let rest for a few minutes before serving.
Recipe Tips & Variations
- Use Breadcrumbs: If you wish, you can substitute homemade or store-bought breadcrumbs for the crushed Ritz crackers. Swap in about 1 cup of breadcrumbs for the crackers.
- Try Different Crackers: I love the buttery crunch from the Ritz, but saltines work well, too. You can also use your favorite gluten-free crackers to make this a gluten-free poppy seed chicken casserole.
- Different Soup: You can try a different “cream of” soup, such as cream of mushroom if you want a little different flavor.
- Turkey: This poppy seed chicken recipe is a great way to use up leftover turkey! Substitute the shredded chicken for turkey, and keep the rest of the ingredients the same. I love making poppy seed turkey casserole with my Thanksgiving turkey.
Serving Suggestions
A simple side of a fresh Avocado Tomato Salad or light Cucumber Salad is the perfect accompaniment to this casserole. Add a side of crispy Parmesan Crusted Potatoes or spoon the casserole over fluffy Classic Creamy Mashed Potatoes. A side of vegetables should include my Roasted Brussels Sprouts, and make a flavorful pot of Garlic Butter Parmesan Rice to serve with poppy seed chicken.
A loaf of freshly baked bread is always welcome, especially when there’s a rich sauce to soak up! Try a simple loaf of No Knead Dutch Oven Bread, or make my decadent No Knead Skillet Cheese Bread recipe.
How to Store & Reheat Leftovers
- Fridge – Transfer the leftover casserole to an airtight container, or cover the casserole dish tightly with foil. Store the leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- To Reheat – Place a portion of the chicken casserole on a microwave-safe plate and heat it in the microwave until heated through. Or, place the casserole dish in a 350°F oven and heat it until the crackers are slightly crisped again and the sauce is bubbling.
More Easy Chicken Recipes
Poppy Seed Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 pound cooked shredded chicken, about 3 cups
- 1 cup sour cream
- 2 cups cream of chicken soup
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1½ tablespoons poppy seeds
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 sleeve Ritz crackers, about 1 cup crushed crackers
- ½ cup butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a 9 x 13-inch casserole dish. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the sour cream, cream of chicken soup, Parmesan cheese, poppy seeds, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Mix well until all the ingredients are evenly incorporated.
- Place the shredded chicken in the casserole dish and spread it out evenly over the entire bottom surface, then pour the prepared sauce over it and spread it out.
- In a separate bowl or a food processor, crush the Ritz crackers to make about 1 cup of crumbs.
- Pour the melted butter over the crushed Ritz crackers and toss until the crumbs are well coated and combined.
- Sprinkle the buttered cracker crumbs over the chicken mixture in the baking dish.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until the casserole is hot and bubbly, and the top is golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and let it rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
So saucy and flavorful – this is one we make quite often.
Great to hear it’s become a favorite! Love that you enjoy the saucy and flavorful aspect so much. Thank YOU! 🙂
This is really good! I love the creamy sauce, and the poppy seeds add a nice earthiness to the dish.
I am very glad you liked it! The creamy sauce and poppy seeds really make the dish special. Thank YOU! 😊
This was a fantastic chicken recipe. The falvor here is amazing!
Really happy to hear you enjoyed the chicken recipe and found the flavor amazing! Thank YOU! 😊
Made this last night for dinner and it turned out really good! Love all the flavor and the creamy sauce is just amazing!
Fantastic to hear it was a hit for dinner! Those flavors and the creamy sauce sound like they made a great combination. Glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Such an incredible dish! I would love to make this again1
So glad you found it incredible! Can’t wait to hear how it turns out the next time you make it. 😊
I could eat this for dinner every night! It’s so tasty and easy to make!
I’m very glad to hear you find it so tasty and easy to make! Thank YOU! 🙂
Dang, this stuff was seriously tasty. YUM!
Thank you so much! I am very happy you loved it! 🙂
Made the Poppy Seed Chicken last night, and it was a hit! The creamy sauce with the crunch of the poppy seeds was a delightful combination.
I’m thrilled to hear the Poppy Seed Chicken was a hit! The combination of creamy sauce and the crunch from the poppy seeds does sound delightful. Thank YOU! 🙂
Where is the nutritional data for this recipe? I’m interested in that info before I consider making this particular recipe. thank you!
Hi! Thanks for catching that and for letting me know! 🙂 I don’t know why the nutritional info wasn’t populating in the recipe card, but it’s there now. Each serving is about 8.5 ounces at 463 calories per serving. You can find more detailed information in the recipe card.