Everything you love about baked potatoes is in this delicious Loaded Baked Potato Chicken Casserole! You just need a few basic ingredients to get dinner on the table in 30 minutes. This dish is cozy, creamy, and so simple making it a win win for everyone!
Loaded Baked Potato Chicken Casserole – The EASY Way!
We love baked potatoes in our family! Everyone can top theirs with exactly what they want making it a fun and engaging family dinner. But, it is labor intensive for me to prepare the potatoes, the toppings, any fillings, and then some type of protein to go with them.
Instead, I started making this chicken potato casserole with everyone’s favorite toppings for baked potatoes! It is packed with cheddar cheese, sour cream, bacon, and green onions. Like I said, everything we love about baked potatoes except I can throw it all in a casserole dish and have an easy to serve dinner ready in 30 minutes. It really is the prefect family meal and great for feeding a crowd.
Why I LOVE this recipe!
- Quick – We use shredded chicken that is already cooked for this chicken and potato casserole. So it takes 10 minutes to put together and only 20 minutes to bake. That means a full meal is ready in 30 minutes!
- Make Ahead Friendly – For this dish, the chicken and baked potatoes can be made in advance. At the beginning of the week, I like to make a few baked potatoes and boil chicken breasts. Then when we want dinner, I can use them for this casserole or use the chicken in tons of other chicken casseroles recipes.
- Simple Ingredients – Everything in this loaded baked potato casserole with chicken is easy to find and you may already have some ingredients in the pantry or fridge. You can use rotisserie chicken, any type of potatoes, and bacon bites if you don’t want to cook bacon or can’t find it.
- Packed with Flavor – With sharp cheddar cheese, bacon, and green onions, I am not sure how this dish could not be packed with flavor. Seriously though, this combination is absolutely delicious.
- Creamy – We use sour cream and cheddar cheese to ensure the potato chicken casserole is ultra creamy!
- Easy to Scale – To scale up this recipe, simply double or triple the recipe and use a couple of baking dishes. You can also scale down the recipe and baking in a smaller pan.
Recipe Notes
This chicken casserole recipe is as simple as promised! Just 30 minutes (including prep!) for a family friendly meal.
In this section I am going to go through a few tips and tricks I use when making this recipe to get the absolute best and most delicious results.
Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the FULL recipe card.
Ingredients + Substitutions
- Shredded chicken – You can use whatever type of chicken you like based on your preference. Shredded chicken breast, shredded chicken thighs, or even a whole chicken that has been shredded will work well for this recipe. I often use a rotisserie chicken I have pulled apart. There are more notes below on options for shredded chicken in this recipe.
- Baked Potatoes – I prefer to use russet or Idaho potatoes. These can be made in advance in the microwave, air fryer, or oven.
- Sour cream – This adds to the creaminess and gives you that classic baked potato flavor in the recipe. You can use basic sour cream or light sour cream.
- Cheddar cheese – I like sharp cheddar because you get more flavor with less cheese, but you can use mild, medium or even Mexican blend in its place.
- Green onions – Green onions are great for adding crunch and brightness. I like to add extra on top after everything is baked.
- Bacon – Feel free to make fresh bacon on the stove top or in the oven. Bacon bites can be used too, just be sure to top the casserole with the bacon after baking to keep it nice and crispy.
- Spices – Garlic powder, salt, and pepper help flavor this chicken and potatoes casserole.
Recipe Tips
- Watch for bubbles – You will know the casserole is done by watching for the edges to become bubbly and golden brown.
- Use toppings at the end – I keep some green onions and the bacon for the end. This helps keep them crispy and fresh, making for a great bite!
- Use sharp cheddar cheese – Using sharp cheddar allows you to get more cheesiness with less cheese.
- Slightly mash the potatoes – When mixing the sour cream mixture with the chicken and potatoes, I recommend using a fork to mash the potatoes and sour cream together to get a very casserole like and creamy texture.
Recipe Short Cuts
If you need to make this recipe, but are extra short on time, here are a few ideas that can help make this recipe even faster!
- Prep Shredded Chicken – You could do this three ways – make a large batch at once, use store-bought shredded chicken, or use leftover chicken from another recipe that uses neutral chicken. I like to make a big batch of chicken breasts at the beginning of the week to use in nachos, baked dishes, and salads! And, if you don’t have time, it’s a total time saver to pick up a rotisserie chicken on the way home to use in this casserole.
- Prep Potatoes – These can be made in advance in the air fryer, oven, or microwave. It works great to make a large batch in the oven for use in tons of different recipes!
- Make in Advance – You can definitely build this casserole a day before you want to enjoy it. Simply store it in the fridge until ready to bake. You could store it in the fridge ready to go up to a day before or in the freezer up to 3 months before.
- Freeze it! – As I mentioned above, this can be prepped and frozen for 3 months before you want to cook it. You can also cook these enchiladas and then freeze them. When you are ready to eat them, bake them straight from the freezer for 35 minutes.
Recipe Variations
If you love this recipe as much as we do and want some quick ways to change it up for variety, these little tips will do the trick!
- Chicken Broccoli Potato Casserole – To make this variations, simply add broccoli to the mixture and bake as directed.
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Potato Casserole – Simply add 2 tablespoons of powdered ranch mix to the sour cream and continue with recipe as directed.
- Creamy Potato Chicken Casserole – For this one, use 1 can of cream of chicken soup and 1/2 a cup of sour cream in place of the called for sour cream. It gives it a much more creamy texture.
What to Serve with this Loaded Baked Potato Chicken Casserole
Since this cheesy chicken potato casserole has the classic flavors of a baked potato with the added bonus of chicken, it is a great dish on it’s own or paired with one of these equally delicious side dishes. There are both classic options and some healthy options to keep it light.
Side Dish Ideas
- Broccoli Cauliflower Salad – This is a cold salad that can be made in advance. The flavors go great with chicken and the cold salad is wonderful along side a warm baked dish.
- Perfect Roasted Veggies – There is something about veggies with a creamy casserole. And these are great because they are super simple and ready on one pan making them the perfect easy accompaniment to this loaded chicken potato casserole.
- Picnic Pasta Salad – This is a classic pasta salad that is great for making in big batches. It holds up well in the fridge making it perfect for enjoying through the week.
- Baked Potato Wedges – You probably already have plenty of potatoes, so why not add some in fry form with dinner? These are a kid-favorite but don’t involve any frying!
You can choose one or add a few sides to make a wholesome, well rounded dinner.
Baked Potato Chicken Casserole Leftovers
If you have leftovers after making this loaded chicken and potato casserole, then it is your lucky day! They save and reheat well, and can make the start of another delicious dish.
To save leftovers, separate into meal sized portions and then place in an airtight container and store:
- in the refrigerator for 3-4 days
- in the freezer up to a month
More EASY Casserole Recipes
If you enjoyed this recipe, I really hope you will take a moment to grab a few more EASY casserole recipes for another busy night!
You can check out all of my dinner recipes here, or see a few of our readers favorite recipes below.
- Chicken Enchilada Casserole
- Ultra Creamy Chicken and Rice Casserole
- Creamy Beef and Mushroom Casserole
- BBQ Chicken Casserole
- Southwest Chicken Casserole
Loaded Potato Chicken Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 cups shredded chicken, I like rotisserie
- 3 cups cubed baked potatoes
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1½ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup green onions, plus more for garnish
- 1/2 cup crispy crumbled bacon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375˚F.
- Mix sour cream with the salt, pepper, garlic powder, and green onions.
- Combine the sour cream mixture with the chicken, potatoes, and half of the cheddar cheese.
- Spread the mixture into a 9×13 casserole dish. Sprinkle remaining cheese and crumbled bacon over the top.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until the casserole heated through and the edges start to bubble.
- Garnish with extra green onions and serve warm. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
- Shredded chicken – Shredded chicken breast, shredded chicken thighs, or even a whole chicken that has been shredded will work well for this recipe. I often use a rotisserie chicken I have pulled apart.
- Sour cream – You can use basic sour cream or light sour cream.
- Cheddar cheese – You can use mild, medium or even Mexican blend in its place.
- Bacon – Feel free to make fresh bacon on the stove top or in the oven. Bacon bites can be used too, just be sure to top the casserole with the bacon after baking to keep it nice and crispy.
- in the refrigerator for 3-4 days
- in the freezer up to a month
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