This recipe for Chicken and Biscuit Casserole is a spin on one I’ve been making for friends and family since I had my first kitchen in college. Back in those days, we called it “Sexy Casserole,” because it’s the perfect balance between a vegetable-heavy meal and an indulgent splurge. I’m still making this casserole today because it is endlessly versatile—a true “everything but the kitchen sink” kind of meal—and always satisfying.
Can I substitute…everything?
Yes, you can substitute just about every ingredient in this recipe! That’s why this casserole is an absolute stunner! It can be made at the drop of a hat with whatever you happen to have on hand. For instance:
- Ground chicken: Sub it for ground turkey, pork or beef.
- Vegetables: Use whatever you have in the crisper or freezer. (You just want about 4 cups of chopped vegetables, total.)
- Seasonings: You can use any of your favorite herbs, spices, or seasoning blends.
- Cheese: Try parmesan or pecorino, white cheddar, asiago – or even without cheese!
Do I have to make the biscuits from scratch?
Nope! You don’t have to make the biscuits from scratch! You can buy a boxed mix and add the cheese to the dry ingredients before following the package instructions for suggested bake times and temperatures. Or, make it even easier, and top it with canned biscuits straight from the tube!
Do I really need to use buttermilk?
Nope! Buttermilk isn’t necessary. Any dairy products like heavy cream, half & half, or whole milk will work, too! You can also make a wonderful buttermilk substitute by stirring ¼ tsp lemon juice into ½ cup of milk or cream and let it sit for 1-2 minutes. (And like magic, you have buttermilk!)
If you don’t want to buy buttermilk just for this recipe, you can use the leftovers to make Soda Bread or Blueberry Buttermilk Coffee Cake. Or freeze the leftover buttermilk to use later!
Can I make chicken and biscuit casserole in one pot or pan?
Absolutely! This casserole can be baked right in the same skillet you used on the stovetop–IF that skillet is oven-safe at high temperatures. (No plastic handles, people!) Cast iron or stainless steel skillets are both great options.
Chicken and Biscuit Casserole
Servings 6Ingredients
Casserole Base
- 4 Tbsp salted butter, divided ($0.60)
- 1 lb. ground chicken ($4.49)
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes ($0.05)
- 1 tsp rubbed sage ($0.10)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper ($0.02)
- 1 yellow onion, diced ($0.37)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced ($0.16)
- 3 carrots, sliced ($0.19)
- 3 stalks celery, sliced ($0.48)
- 1 cup frozen corn ($0.47)
- 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour ($0.02)
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth* ($0.18)
Biscuit Topping
- 3 Tbsp salted butter, divided ($0.45)
- 1/2 cup buttermilk ($0.32)
- 2/3 cup all-purpose flour ($0.12)
- 1 tsp baking powder ($0.04)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1/2 tsp granulated sugar ($0.01)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper ($0.02)
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese ($0.62)
Instructions
Casserole Base
- Dice the onion; slice the carrots and celery; mince the garlic; and set the vegetables aside.
- Add 1 Tbsp of butter to a deep-sided skillet and melt over medium heat. Add the ground chicken to the skillet and season with salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and sage.
- Let the chicken cook, stirring only occasionally to allow time for the chicken to brown. Once fully cooked, remove the chicken from the skillet with a slotted spoon, leaving the extra fat in the pan. If no fat remains, add an additional 1 Tbsp of butter.
- After removing the chicken from the skillet, add the diced onion to the skillet. Saute until the onions are translucent. Add chopped carrots, celery, corn, garlic, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Saute the vegetables for about 5 minutes until the carrots are slightly soft.
- Break the chicken into smaller pieces and add back to the skillet and stir to combine.
- Add 2 Tbsp of butter and 2 Tbsp of flour to the skillet. Stir and cook this mixture for about 2 minutes, continuing to stir until the butter has melted and the flour is coating the vegetables.
- Stir in the chicken broth, making sure to dissolve all of the flour and browned bits off the bottom of the skillet. Bring the broth to a simmer, at which point the broth will thicken slightly. Taste the mixture and adjust seasonings if necessary.
- Remove the skillet from heat and transfer the mixture to a casserole dish. Set aside.
Biscuit Topping
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Add the flour, baking powder, salt, pepper, and sugar to a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Sprinkle grated cheese into dry ingredients and toss to coat.
- Melt 2 Tbsp of butter and stir it into the buttermilk. (It’s okay if the mixture curdles.) Fold the buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients until just combined.
- Drop dollops of the biscuit mixture evenly around the top of the casserole.
- Cut 1 Tbsp of chilled butter into very small pieces and sprinkle over the biscuits.
- Bake the casserole for about 25 minutes or until the biscuits are golden brown.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Notes
Nutrition
How to Make Chicken and biscuit casserole – Step by Step Photos
Add 1 Tbsp of butter to a skillet and melt over medium heat. Add 1 lb. of ground chicken to the skillet and season it with 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, 1 tsp. rubbed sage, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook the chicken, stirring occasionally, until brown. Remove the cooked chicken from the skillet with a slotted spoon, leaving the extra fat behind.
Break the ground chicken into smaller pieces, add back to the skillet, and stir to combine. Add 2 Tbsp of butter and 2 Tbsp of flour to the skillet and stir. Continue to stir and cook until all the butter has melted and the flour coats the vegetables (about 2 minutes).
Stir in 1½ cups of chicken broth, making sure to dissolve all of the flour and browned bits off the bottom of the skillet.
Bring the broth up to a simmer so it has a chance to thicken slightly (about 10 minutes). It will still be slightly soupy! Taste the mixture and adjust seasonings if necessary.
Melt 2 Tbsp of butter and stir it into a 1/2 cup of buttermilk. (It’s okay if the mixture curdles.)
Fold the buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients.
Stir until just combined, taking care not to overwork the mixture.
Delicious! Made it for the first time tonight as meal prep for me and my boyfriend – easy and flavorful. Definitely adding to our recipe rotation!
Used ground turkey, definitely worked well. My husband really enjoyed the biscuits, they turned out beautifully. Loved the amount of vegetables, and how comforting it was. Took me about an hour and 15 minutes. I used sour cream and fat free milk combination because my store doesn’t care buttermilk—3/4 cup sour cream 1/4 cup fat free milk, whisk until smooth. Would happily have again!
Our family LOVES this dinner! I usually throw in a bag of frozen cauliflower rice to the bottom of the casserole dish while the rest is cooking, just to add something extra. If I do t have carrots and celery, I will sub 2-3 cups of frozen mixed vegetables in place of the carrots, celery, and frozen corn. It’s a winner every time and my youngest boys usually end up fighting for the last biscuit. ☺️
Made this with Red Lobster Biscuit Mix. It was fantastic! Will definitely be making again!
I made this several times and will make it again. Tasty!
This was an amazing recipe! My family of 6 all enjoyed the tasty flavors. I did double the biscuits and it took double the time to fully bake them but it was so worth it! We’re keeping this recipe and will use it often. We also used leftover rotisserie chicken instead of ground. Thanks!
Honestly really impressed with how easy and good this was. Definitely adding this to the regular rotation! Super easy to adjust, even if you don’t cook often. It’s almost impossible to mess up as long as you follow the base measurements. Few tips/ideas for anyone interested:
-Doubled ingredients, same cook time for 9×13 pan. Worked perfectly.
-Subbed diced chicken breast for ground (cook just until white on the outside. Err on the side of under cooked for tender, juicy chicken since it will finish cooking in the broth/oven. Outside doesn’t need to brown since you’ll lose any crisp while it bakes).
-The same weight of canned or shredded rotisserie chicken (~2-3 cups/pound) would probably work too. Just drain, mix with seasonings, and skip to the step with the veggies.
-Used combo of diced onion + frozen carrots/peas/beans mix to simplify prep work
-Will sub canned biscuits sprinkled with pepper/cheese next time (recipe is good, just not worth the hassle on a busy night. Also felt a little light for a 9×13 despite doubling the recipe IMO)
-Will cook down broth mixture longer next time (last one was still slightly soupy)
-Might try ground beef/beef broth combo next to switch things up
This was insanely delicious! Whole family gobbled it up. No leftovers. Guess I’ll have to do a double batch next time!
I made this with 1qt home canned chicken pot pie filling and doubled the biscuit topping. It worked perfect for my 10inch cast iron skillet. I used what I had on hand and it worked beautifully. Thanks for the inspiration!
This was so good!!!! I substituted a lot of stuff and it still turned out amazing!
I used ground beef instead of chicken, bell peppers instead of carrots, and cornbread mixture instead of biscuit mix. 10/10
What size casserole dish should I use?
We used a square 8×8 dish (with a 2-quart capacity), but any size in that ballpark will work. However, as I mentioned in the blog post, you may want to double the biscuit recipe if you plan to use something with a larger surface area (like a 9×13 casserole dish). ~ Marion :)
I made this last night and it was delicious! Will definitely add to our rotation!!
My son is allergic to dairy so I used almond milk instead of buttermilk and plant butter. W/o cheese I increased the flour until the dough seemed to be about the right consistency. I was a little worried about it and wished I had tripled the topping recipe (I doubled the whole batch for our family of 6 big eaters), but the biscuits were AMAZING. I also subbed shredded turkey I already had in the freezer and skipped to the veg step. Will definitely make again!
I really want to try this! Would the 6-serving recipe work with a casserole dish that’s 9.5×9.5×2.5? (Google says that is 1.6 quarts.) Or should I go down to 4 servings for that size of dish?
Update: The 6-serving casserole mixture fit great! But the biscuit mix didn’t cover the entire top, so I will double it next time.
Made this again tonight in a double batch to take to my son at college so he can share with his hungry roommates. So good and especially as a winter comfort dish.