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Home / Recipes / Course / Dinner / Chicken / Chicken Zucchini Casserole

Chicken Zucchini Casserole

Jump to Recipe
LC GF CA

Author:

Kimber Matherne

Updated:

April 6, 2025

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This Chicken Zucchini Casserole is the best easy dinner for busy weeknights because it only has a handful of simple ingredients, and all bakes in one dish so clean up is a breeze!  It is full of fresh, healthy flavors and is tasty and light but still very filling. If you are looking to use up some zucchini or squash then this might just be the best way!

Chicken Zucchini Casserole baked and served on a plate over a bed of rice. this Recipe

Table of contents

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  • Recipe Tips
  • Recipe Step by Step
  • Can you make the Chicken and Zucchini Casserole ahead and freeze it?
  • How to Serve Baked Chicken and Zucchini Casserole
  • More Easy Casserole Recipes
  • Chicken Zucchini Casserole Recipe

I really love to cook, but some days dinner is just such a chore.  

Casserole dish to the rescue.  I am a huge fan of easy chicken dinners all made in one dish like these Baked Chicken Fajitas, our reader favorite Million Dollar Chicken Bake, and this Pesto Spinach Chicken.  

I love that you can take skinless chicken breast, toss it in a large bowl with some herbs or spices, add some veggies, top with cheese and have dinner prepped and in the oven in 10-20 minutes, without destroying the kitchen.  This chicken and zucchini recipe does the same thing but with new fresh flavors.

Since this seems to be the time of year when zucchini and squash are over flowing at the stores, and your garden if you are lucky enough to have one, I figured it was about time I made one of these easy chicken bakes with some summer squash.

Recipe Tips

I am going to walk through how to make this Chicken Zucchini Casserole Recipe to get the absolute best results below.  I like to add all of my notes, along with the tips and tricks I use when making this.  

**If you just want the quick version, scroll to the bottom for the recipe card.**

Chicken Zucchini Casserole Ingredients

Ingredients to make baked zucchini chicken
  • Boneless, skinless, chicken breasts- This will be roughly 1.5- 2 lbs package.  Trim the chicken breast to prep.
  • Salt & Pepper + Garlic powder– These will all be used to season the chicken breast before putting on the veggies.  You can use more or less salt pepper and garlic to your personal tastes.  I actually don’t measure these usually, I just sprinkle them on, so feel free just to do this by feel.
  • Zucchini and yellow squash- You can use zucchini and squash here or just use 2 of either.  I love the color of using both, but if you just have one on hand you can easily just use that one.
  • Sweet yellow onion- I prefer yellow onion in this because they get nice and sweet once cooked, but you can use another variety like white or red if you prefer.
  • Pesto, prepared- I usually buy this at Costco or Sam’s Club in a large jar in the refrigerated section.  You can also find prepared pesto in most regular grocery stores near the refrigerated pasta and sauces.  I really prefer refrigerated pesto over non-refrigerated jarred pasta.
  • Parmesan cheese- make sure you get fresh grated, not the powder kind.
  • Mozzarella cheese- You can blend 4 oz of each parmesan and mozzarella or use 8 oz of an Italian cheese blend in lieu of the separate cheeses.
  • Optional Items- If you want to get in some extra veggies you can cut up and add 1 red bell pepper and 1 tomato.

Recipe Step by Step

I am going to highlight a few key steps in the recipe here, but make sure to jump down to the recipe card for comprehensive instructions on how to make Chicken Zucchini Casserole.

Process shots for how to make Zucchini Chicken Casserole. Step one is to lay the chicken breast in a baking dish.

Lay the chicken flat and season.

Process shots for how to make Zucchini Chicken Casserole. Step two is to top the chicken with zucchini, squash and onion.

Top with veggies.

Process shots for how to make Zucchini Chicken Casserole. Step three is to drizzle pesto on top.

Drizzle pesto over the top.

Process shots for how to make Zucchini Chicken Casserole. Step four is to top with cheese and bake.

Top with cheese and bake!

  1. Lay chicken breast in a baking dish and season- Careful not to over crowd it! You want them to have plenty of room without overlapping.
  2. Top with zucchini, squash, and onion- You can use all zucchini, all squash, or a combination of both for the zucchini mixture topping.
  3. Drizzle pesto over the top- you can also toss the vegetables with the pesto before putting it down, but in my experience that just makes an extra dish to clean and you end up with the same result, so I save the effort and just drizzle it over the top.
  4. Top with cheese and bake! You shouldn’t need to cover it, though some readers say they prefer to so that the cheese topping stays more gooey. If you cover the chicken while baking it will increase the baking time.
Chicken Zucchini Casserole baked and ready to serve.

Can you make the Chicken and Zucchini Casserole ahead and freeze it?

The short answer to if you can make this baked chicken and zucchini ahead of time is – yes.  The better answer is that this really only takes 10 minutes to prep since all you really have to do is chop the veggies. The zucchini and squash will be way less “squishy” and hold their texture much better when you do it fresh, so I think it is best just to do it the day of.

If you want a good compromise between fresh and frozen, you could freeze chicken with the pesto, then just throw some fresh veggies and cheese on top before baking.  Or another time saving tip is to chop the zucchini, squash, and onions the night before or buy it pre-chopped at the store so getting this in the oven is as simple as layering chicken, veggies, pesto, and cheese.

If you do choose to freeze this recipe, there are two tips:

  1. Freeze the chicken and pesto, or chicken, pesto and zucchini together.  Freeze the cheese separately.  The zucchini and squash will be much more mushy after freezing than when baked fresh.
  2. It is important to thaw the chicken before baking or it will take much longer to cook and the other ingredients will get over-done.

How to Serve Baked Chicken and Zucchini Casserole

You can serve this dish so many ways based on your taste preferences!  Once the Zucchini Chicken Casserole is baked, there will be flavorful juices from the chicken, pesto, and veggies at the bottom of the dish.  I usually serve the chicken with one of the options below and spoon the some of the sauce over the top when serving.

Some of my favorite ways to serve Chicken Zucchini Casserole are:

  • Rice– I particularly like wild or long grain (I used Uncle Ben’s wild rice, pictured in these photos)
  • Potatoes– Serve this on top of a bed of mashed potatoes, try my super creamy mashed potatoes, garlic mashed potatoes, or boursin mashed potatoes.
  • Pasta– You can put it right over pasta tossed with butter or olive oil and garlic, or do pasta with marinara sauce.  Make it easy by using your favorite jarred sauce.
  • Bread– Serve it with a big slice of crusty garlic bread.  I actually served mine with rice and garlic toast. It is perfect to soak up all the yummy sauce!

Low Carb Serving Options:

  • Cauliflower rice– You can do all cauliflower rice or do half and half with regular rice to lower the calories and carbs and get some extra veggies in.
  • Sauteed greens– My favorite is spinach! I just put it in a large skillet with a tiny bit of olive oil and some chopped garlic.  It wilts in minutes so is super fast and super healthy. You could also use kale or collard greens.
  • Steakhouse House Salad– Serve this up with a big side salad packed with even more veggies! You can also chop up any leftovers and serve them cold over salad greens the next day.
  • Green Beans – I have 5 flavor options for you here!

More Easy Casserole Recipes

If you enjoyed this chicken zucchini bake recipe, I would love it if you tried some of my other easy Casserole recipes for another simple weeknight meal! You can find all of my easy dinner recipes here, or a few of my personal favorite chicken casseroles below.

  • Million Dollar Chicken Casserole
  • Caprese Chicken Bake
  • Mexican Street Corn Casserole
  • Baked Caesar Chicken
  • Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole
  • Baked Catalina Chicken
  • Baked BBQ Chicken Drumsticks
  • EASY Alice Springs Chicken
  • Crispy Panko Chicken with Honey Drizzle

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as our family does.  It is a great and tasty way to use up your summer squash and comes together quickly for those super hectic week nights. If you get a chance to try it, leave me a comment below, or even better, snap a pic and tag me on Instagram @easyfamilyrecipes.  It makes my day to see you enjoying the recipes I share!

Don’t forget to sign up for the Hungry Email Club where I share new recipes and dinner inspiration each week! Click here to sign up!

Chicken Zucchini Casserole baked and ready to serve from a baking dish.

Chicken Zucchini Casserole

By: Kimber Matherne
4.65 from 39 votes
This Chicken Zucchini Casserole is full of fresh, healthy flavors and can be prepped and in the oven in as little as 10 minutes!  Since you make the entire thing in one dish, it is both simple to make and clean up!  It is the dinner trifecta of easy, healthy and delicious.
Prep Time: 10 minutes mins
Cook Time: 40 minutes mins
Total Time: 50 minutes mins
4 Servings
Rate this Recipe Print Pin SaveSaved!

Ingredients 

  • 3-4 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts (about 2 lbs)
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp pepper
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 medium zucchini
  • 1 medium yellow squash
  • 1/2 medium sweet yellow onion
  • 1/2 cup pesto, prepared
  • 4 oz parmesan cheese
  • 4 oz mozzarella

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 375˚F.
  • Chop the zucchini, squash, and onion and combine.
  • In a large casserole dish, lay the chicken in a flat single layer and season it with the salt, pepper and garlic powder.  Next layer the veggies on and then dollop the pesto over the veggies, then top with the cheeses.
  • Bake on the middle rack for 35-45 minutes or until chicken is cooked through, 165˚F internal temp. If it starts to brown more than desired, loosely cover with foil until it is done cooking.
  • Serve hot and enjoy!
Last step!Share a picture on Instagram and tag me at @easyfamilyrecipes!

Recipe Notes

Substitutions:
  • You can cut the chicken in half, chunks, or use chicken tenderloins in lieu of full chicken breasts to make serving easier. Cooking time may be reduced.
How to Store: Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for 3-4 days in the refrigerator or in the freezer for up to a month.
How to Freeze: You can easily freeze this meal before or after cooking. Read the freezer section in the post for full instructions. 
How to Reheat: This can be reheated in the microwave in 30 second increments. 
Dietary Considerations: This recipe is naturally
  • Gluten free (verify on individual brands used)
  • Low carb
  • Friendly for low carb and keto diets
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Nutrition Information

Serving: 6servings, Calories: 386kcal (19%), Carbohydrates: 5g (2%), Protein: 44g (88%), Fat: 22g (34%), Saturated Fat: 6g (38%), Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 0g, Trans Fat: 0g, Cholesterol: 102mg (34%), Sodium: 755mg (33%), Potassium: 0mg, Fiber: 1g (4%), Sugar: 3g (3%), Vitamin A: 0IU, Vitamin C: 0mg, Calcium: 0mg, Iron: 0mg

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4.65 from 39 votes (6 ratings without comment)

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Did you make this recipe? Rate it:




85 responses

  1. Wanda Pena
    December 19, 2024

    5 stars
    Exactly what I was hoping to find!

    Reply
  2. Alex Besten
    July 24, 2024

    5 stars
    Topped with vodka sauce, Delicious!!!

    Reply
  3. Vera
    May 16, 2024

    3 stars
    I have it in the oven right now, but I really doctored it up with more seasoning. I tossed the vegetables in olive oil and added more seasoning to them also. I also added quartered mushrooms and some cooked pasta. Then, I added a jar of garlic Alfredo sauce to the vegetables before I put them on top of the chicken and topped them with the pesto and cheese.
    So, we shall see how it turns out.

    Reply
  4. Krystal C.
    April 2, 2024

    5 stars
    I found this recipe onna whim during my google search. I so amazed at how this meal turned out to be so awesome being I clicked the first recipe that match my search. This meal was soooo…. delicious, flavorful, light, and fulfilling. Oh my! What meals you can make with simply blending a few food items. This was so worth the search. My only item I would change upon my next time preparing this meal is to place my cheese on top of the casserole within the last few minutes of cooking to avoid scorching the cheese.

    Reply
  5. Isabel
    March 2, 2024

    1 star
    This recipe was very bad. I’m not sure what it was, I made it right. But the flavors were just odd. The pesto with the vegetables was just horrid. I love all the ingredients independently of each other so I assumed it would be good. My husband hated it too. 7 year old liked it.

    Reply
  6. Ruth Ferreri
    June 23, 2023

    5 stars
    I really liked this recipe. It was different and tasty; husband liked too. I cut up chicken breast into pieces. Served over plain jasmine rice.

    Reply
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