Smothered Cheesy Sour Cream Chicken

This smothered cheesy Sour Cream Chicken is so delicious, so tangy, and so creamy. It only takes 8 ingredients and 10 minutes of prep. It is creamy, cheesy and an explosion of comforting flavor in every bite!

this Recipe

Baked Sour Cream Chicken – The EASY Way!

If you are like me and you love quick, hands-off meals and your family loves creamy deliciousness – then this is the meal for you! It has a tangy cream sauce and requires very little work to get it into the oven.

Why I LOVE this recipe!

• One pan – this is great for getting dinner on the table quickly and with less clean up!
• Super quick – only 10 minutes of prep and then bake and forget until the timer goes off.
• Easy! This recipe is delicious with very little work.
• Comfort food – Creamy, tangy, and rich flavor makes this dinner great for kids and parents!
• Scales easily – You can quickly double or triple this recipe to feed a crowd.

What to Serve with Chicken with Sour Cream

Since this dish has cozy and comforting flavors of parmesan and mozzarella, it will pair well with many of your favorite everyday side dishes. There are both classic options and some healthy options to keep it light.

Side Dish Ideas

• Roasted Vegetables – Are great for keeping this meal low carb and hands off.
• Garlic Parmesan Broccoli – Another delicious comfort meal with classic garlic and parmesean.
• Cucumber Tomato Salad – This is a super refreshing salad that keeps the meal light when being served with this rich casserole.
• Southern Squash Casserole – Is a another great hands off side dish that is like stepped up mashed potatoes.
• Garlic Green Beans – A family favorite!
• Creamy Mashed Potatoes – My go-to recipe for easy and delicious mash potatoes!
• Garlic bread– A family favorite, or try this pesto garlic bread for a fun twist!

You can choose one or add a few sides to make a wholesome, well-rounded dinner. 

Recipe Notes

This chicken sour cream recipe is as simple as promised! Just 10 minutes of 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

• Thin chicken breasts– Using thin chicken breasts helps this dish to cook more quickly and evenly, making the chicken stay extra tender and juicy!
  
• Sour Cream – I use regular sour cream, but you can also substitute low fat sour cream or greek yogurt in this recipe with good results.
  
• Parmesan – I prefer grated in this recipe (over shredded.) You can substitute or add more mozzarella in addition to parmesan if you like a cheesier topping!
  
• Mozzarella – The more cheese the better! Again, I prefer shredded for this recipe to keep it as quick and simple as possible.
  
• Spices – I used a combination of salt, pepper, garlic powder, and oregano to really amp up the flavor of this sour cream baked chicken.

Recipe Tips

1. Use thin chicken breast- Using chicken breasts that are thin, or pounded or cut to be thin, will help this dish cook faster, bake more evenly, and remain more tender and juicy.
   
   I almost always cut my chicken horizontally so that it is half the thickness with any of my baked chicken dishes. It just comes out better! I often end up with 6-8 pieces of chicken instead of 3-4 since I cut them which makes serving a family easier as well.
   
2. Use a big dish– You will want to use a dish large enough for the chicken to lay the chicken flat. If the chicken is not flat it takes longer to cook and you can end up with spots that aren’t completely done, or spots that are over cooked.
   
3. Don’t over cook- The enemy of delicious, tender, juicy chicken casserole with sour cream is over-cooking so make sure to cook just until the middle of the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165˚F. If you don’t have a meat thermometer I highly recommend getting one. They are inexpensive and take the guess work out of cooking so you seem like a hero with perfectly cooked meat every time!
   
4. Let it rest – I always let my chicken rest for 5 – 10 minutes after removing from the oven. This not only allows it to cool a little bit so you folks fon’t burn their mouths, but it also allows the juices to remain in the chicken. This ensure juicy, tender chicken that doesn’t release the flavor too soon.

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! This recipe is pretty streamline as it is, but here are a few small shortcuts to get there even faster when running between soccer, dance, and football practice!

• Prepare in advance– You can make this dish up to a day in advance and place it in the refrigerator ready to cook. Once dinner time is here, preheat and bake the dish. It will likely take an additional 10 minutes to cook because it is coming straight from the refrigerator.
  
• Pre-make the sour cream sauce– Mix all of the ingredients for the sour cream sauce for chicken up to a day in advance and store in the fridge. Then when ready to bake, you will just have to cut or pound the chicken.
  
• Use chicken tenders – The longest part of this 10 minutes of prep is probably waiting for the oven to preheat and making sure the chicken is thin enough. To simplify this, you could use chicken tenders that could just be added straight to the casserole. These will likely require 5 – 10 minutes less cooking time.

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!

• Sour Cream Chicken with Rice– This dish would be delicious served over rice! This can be made separately or you can add 2 cups of quick cooking rice and 2 cups of water to the bottom of the casserole, then lay the chicken in so it is submerged in the rice mixture and prepare as directed. Bake this for 40-50 minutes.
  
• Spicy Cheesy Sour Cream Chicken – Try adding diced jalapeños to the sour cream mixture for a spicy twist on this classic recipe.

Smother Cheesy Sour Cream Chicken Leftovers

If you have leftovers after making this baked chicken with sour cream, then it is your lucky day! They save and reheat well, and can make the start of another delicious dish. This dish unfortunately does not freeze well because sour cream tends to seperate when frozen.

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

Leftover Recipes

Here are a few ways to repurpose those leftovers and give them a delicious makeover!

• Chicken Bowls– Place the left over chicken over a bed of fresh rice. Add some vegetables and additional parmesean for a delicious and quick lunch!
  
• Stuffed Peppers with Chicken Breast with Sour Cream– Half and hollow bell peppers. Shred leftover chicken and mix into remaining sauce. Combine chicken mixture with cooked rice (or cauliflower rice) and then stuff into hollowed bell peppers. Top with cheese if desired. Bake at 350˚F for 30-40 minutes or until the peppers are tender.
  
• Baked Chicken Quesadilla– You may think this is a little crazy, but this shredded left over baked chicken with sour cream is so tasty in a quesadilla with mozzarella (or pepper jack if you are feeling a little crazy)! Simply add it to a quesadilla with mozzarella and cook as you normally would.

More Easy Baked Chicken Recipes

If you enjoyed this recipe, I really hope you will take a moment to grab a few more easy recipes for another busy night!

You can check out all of my quick chicken recipes here, or see a few of our reader’s favorite recipes below.

• Chicken Fajita Casserole
• Chicken Parmesan Casserole
• Million Dollar Chicken Bake
• Loaded Baked Potato Chicken Casserole