Who doesn’t love Broccoli Cheese Casserole?? This cozy homemade version doesn’t contain any canned “cream of” soup and still comes together super fast and easy. Broccoli cheese casserole is a comfort food classic that is great as a Thanksgiving side, or just a tasty addition to dinner any night of the week. Plus, it’s a great way to use up leftover rice from the night before!
If you didn’t grow up on broccoli cheese casserole, you’re missing out! this super rich and cream casserole combines tender broccoli with cooked rice, a super cheesy sauce, and plenty of seasoning so that every bite is packed with flavor. But this isn’t just any broccoli cheese casserole, we’ve skipped the condensed canned soup and made our sauce 100% from scratch. But don’t worry, I promise it’s still easy!
Want to make it a full meal instead of a side dish? Try our cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole!
Ingredients for Broccoli Cheese Casserole
Here’s what you’ll need to make your own homemade broccoli cheese casserole:
- Broccoli: We used frozen broccoli florets because it’s super convenient. Not only is it already chopped (yay!), but it’s also partially cooked, which makes the whole casserole come together so much faster.
- Cooked Rice: Like fried rice, pre-cooked and chilled rice works best for this recipe because it absorbs more of the flavor from the sauce and prevents it doesn’t get mushy. If you don’t have rice on hand that is already cooked, allow time to cook some rice and allow it to cool before making this recipe. To cool your cooked rice faster, spread it out onto a baking sheet and place it in the refrigerator. The large surface area will help it cool quickly.
- Cheddar Cheese: This is the “cheese” in the “cheese casserole”! Avoid using mild cheddar as it won’t give as much flavor to your casserole. Aim for medium or sharp cheddar instead.
- Garlic & Onion: Sautéed fresh garlic and onion give the casserole a deep savory base flavor.
- Butter & Flour: Butter and flour combine to create a roux that thickens the cheese sauce.
- Milk: Whole milk is the base for the creamy cheese sauce in the casserole. While you can use a lower fat milk, it will definitely affect the flavor and richness of the casserole.
- Seasoning: The casserole is seasoned simply with smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper so the flavor of the broccoli and cheese can take the main stage.
Can I Use Brown Rice?
Yes! I’ve made this broccoli cheese casserole recipe using both brown and white rice and it’s delightful either way. Since you’re measuring the rice after it has been cooked, no adjustments need to be made to the recipe below if you plan to use brown rice. Brown rice gives this broccoli casserole a slightly nutty flavor and a little bit more texture.
Can Broccoli Cheese Casserole Be Made Ahead of Time?
Yes, you can assemble this broccoli cheese casserole up to one day ahead of time, keeping it refrigerated until you’re ready to cook. Because the casserole will be chilled when going into the oven, you may need to add an extra 20-30 minutes to the cooking time to make sure the casserole is heated through.
Broccoli Cheese Casserole
Servings 6Ingredients
- 1 lb. frozen broccoli florets ($1.99)
- 4 cups cooked rice (white or brown) ($0.67)
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese ($1.69)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.32)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 3 Tbsp butter ($0.42)
- 3 Tbsp all-purpose flour ($0.03)
- 2 cups whole milk ($0.75)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika ($0.02)
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper ($0.01)
- 1/8 tsp Freshly cracked black pepper ($0.01)
Instructions
- Thaw the frozen broccoli, then chop it into smaller pieces. Add the chopped broccoli to a large bowl along with the cooked rice and about 1.5 cups of the shredded cheese (save the last ½ cup for topping the casserole).
- Begin to preheat the oven to 350ºF. Finely dice the onion and mince the garlic.
- Add the butter, onion, and garlic to a small saucepot and cook over medium heat until the onions are soft and translucent (2-3 minutes). Add the flour and stir until a paste forms. Continue to stir and cook the paste for about two minutes, or just until it turns a light golden brown.
- Whisk the milk into the butter and flour mixture. Continue to whisk the mixture as it heats, allowing it to reach a simmer, at which point it will thicken to the consistency of heavy cream. Remove the sauce from the heat.
- Season the sauce with the salt, smoked paprika, cayenne, and pepper. Taste the sauce and add more seasoning if desired. The sauce should be heavily seasoned because it will be spread out over the broccoli and rice, which contain no seasoning of their own.
- Pour the sauce over the rice, broccoli, and cheese, and stir until everything is evenly coated in sauce. Spread the casserole mixture evenly into a 9×9 inch casserole dish. Top with the remaining shredded cheddar.
- Bake the casserole for about 35 minutes, or until the cheese on top is melted and is slightly browned around the edges. Divide into six portions and serve.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Nutrition
Looking for a low-carb alternative? Check out my Cheesy Loaded Cauliflower Casserole.
How to Make Broccoli Cheese Casserole – Step by Step Photos
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Thaw one pound of frozen broccoli florets, then chop them into smaller pieces.
Add the chopped broccoli to a large bowl along with four cups cooked and cooled rice, and 6 oz. (1.5 cups) shredded cheddar cheese. Save the remaining ½ cup cheddar to top the casserole.
Stir the broccoli, rice, and cheese together until evenly combined, then set them aside.
Next, begin the white sauce. Finely dice one yellow onion and mince two cloves of garlic. Add the onion and garlic to a saucepot with 2 Tbsp butter. Sauté the onion and garlic in the butter over medium heat until the onions are soft and translucent.
Add 3 Tbsp all-purpose flour to the cooked onions and garlic. Continue to stir and cook for about a minute more. The flour will form a paste with the butter.
Pour two cups of whole milk into the saucepot and whisk until all the flour is dissolved into the milk. Continue to stir and cook until the milk begins to gently simmer, at which point it will thicken to the consistency of heavy cream.
Season the white sauce with ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp smoked paprika, ⅛ tsp cayenne pepper, and ⅛ tsp black pepper. Give the sauce a taste and adjust the seasoning if you prefer (it should be heavily seasoned).
Pour the white sauce into the bowl with the broccoli, rice, and cheddar, then stir to combine.
Transfer the broccoli rice mixture to a casserole dish (about 9×9 inches) and then add the remaining shredded cheddar on top.
Bake the broccoli cheese casserole for 35 minutes, or until the cheese is melted on top and it’s browned around the edges.
Serve hot and enjoy that cozy comfort!
I must admit, I’m a little confused as to why it is necessary to dirty an extra bowl when everything could be mixed in the 9 x 13 baking dish? This recipe looks very good, though!
I find it easier to mix in a deep bowl with high sides compared to a wide shallow dish, but you could certainly do it whichever way you prefer. :)
I absolutely love this casserole and it’s a great main dish for a vegetarian meal on occasion. Easy peasy and no fail. I’ve made it a half dozen times in the last few months.
This was excellent! I cut the recipe in half and made it in a 9×9 pan. I could have added more cheese on top to make it even cheesier but it was great anyway. I will definitely make it again.
We loved this! I added about 10 oz diced ham with the broccoli and rice. Definitely a keeper recipe. I did use 3 cups of cooked brown rice, instead of 4, and kept all the other ingredients the same and it still made 6 servings. Thank you!
This was awesome! I added some seasoning to the rice/broccoli in addition to the sauce. I used almond milk and the sauce was a little runnier, but flavor was great. Love that I had all the ingredients on hand and it uses frozen broccoli and pantry staples. Thanks for sharing!
Love this recipe. I think the prep and cook time listed here are incorrect. Prep is a few minutes, not 30. And the recipe calls for 35 minutes in the oven not 40.
Thanks for catching that! Yes, prep time was a typo. Cook time was right, though, because in addition to the 35 minutes of baking time you have to do some cooking when making the sauce. :)
Delicious! I used 1% milk in the sauce (what I had on hand) and used cooked farro instead of rice. I loved it! The sauce took a little time for me to make, but it makes a lot and we’ll have leftovers for a few days.
Delicious recipe! Much better than that stuff in a box. If you have leftover rice, this is a great use for it. Yhanks!
I hate to be the grump of the comments but this just was not that good for us. It lacked alot of flavor and in the end I found myself missing the condensed soup. My toddler loved it though but it is not going to make our normal rotation.
Second time I made this (yum!) but I’m flying solo now and only have a 9″ pie dish. So I added some panko to what was left and made patties, and coated in more panko. I’m freezing them and hope they come out okay baked from frozen. Any advice on time and temp baking them is much appreciated!
Easy and delicious! The only changed I made was I added a little garlic powder to the sauce just because we like garlic. I love having pantry staples around for days like today where we got snowed in.
Made it but since I had extra broccoli I used a bigger pan and added more cheese. It was delicious!
It makes so much for two can you freeze before cooking
Made this today and it was very filling and yummy. I accidentally used 4 cups of uncooked rice. *facepalm* ….so now I’ll be thinking of some fun other uses for rice for the next few days. :)
Made this today with leftover brown rice and quinoa instead of white rice. Came out very good! I would be curious to make it with a combination of brown rice and cauliflower rice next time.
I only have skim regular milk on hand.
Can I use Carnation evaporated milk for this?
It works fine in scalloped potatoes.
Unfortunately, I’ve never tried to use evaporated milk for a sauce like this so I can’t advise on how it would turn out.