Cheesy Chicken and Rice (Crock Pot Version)

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This crockpot cheesy chicken and rice recipe is one of the most popular recipes of all time on Southern Plate and with good reason. The combination of the flavorful Zatarain rice, cream of chicken soup, and gooey cheese make for a delicious (and easy) weeknight supper.

Bowl of slow cooker cheesy chicken and rice.

You talk, I listen. Well, I listen whenever I can, of course! Folks have been asking for more slow cooker recipes for a multitude of reasons. Who doesn’t like to come home and have supper all cooked and waiting for them? I know I sure do! This is a recipe I modified for the slow cooker and some of you will be happy to know I also removed the entire stick of margarine it called for. 

This easy cheesy chicken and rice recipe in the crockpot uses simple ingredients like cheese, cream of chicken, yellow rice, and sweet corn that pack a punch when combined. It’s creamy, it’s flavorful, and it’s so easy to make, as your slow cooker does most of the work for you (don’t we just love that?). But if you want to speed things up, check out my oven version (cheesy chicken and rice casserole) of this crockpot recipe.

Speaking of the slow cooker, here are some recipes to try in your crockpot this week: crockpot lasagna, chicken fajitas in the crockpotcrockpot cashew chicken, and crockpot chili.

Alright, let’s get cooking!

Ingredients for crockpot cheesy chicken and rice.

Recipe Ingredients

  • Yellow rice
  • Cream of chicken soup (homemade cream of chicken soup recipe here)
  • Whole kernel corn
  • Yellow onion
  • Boneless skinless chicken breast
  • Shredded cheddar cheese

Helpful Kitchen Tools

How to Make Cheesy Chicken and Rice in the Crockpot

Place chicken and onion in slow cooker.

Place your chicken breasts in the bottom of your slow cooker (spray with cooking spray first if needed).

Chop up the onion and toss it on top as well.

Add cream of chicken soup to slow cooker.

Spoon or glob your cream soup over that.

Now cover this and cook it according to the following:

Low: 7-8 hours

High: 3-4 hours

This is great to put on in the morning on the weekends if you cook it on high and then have a nice meal at lunchtime.

Cheesy chicken and rice in slow cooker.

When it is done cooking, it’ll look a little like this.

Now… it’s not cheesy chicken and rice without cheese and rice!

Add cheese, rice, and corn to slow cooker.

So your next step is to add the drained corn kernels, cheddar cheese, and cooked rice.

You’ll need to cook your rice before this step. What I like to do is cook my rice the night before and just stick it in the fridge. Then you can dump it in and stir it up and give it a minute or two to get heated. You can also cook your rice as soon as you get home, though. It’s still an easy and delicious supper!

Mix ingredients in slow cooker together.

Stir all of that up and give it a few minutes to get all heated and warm (this won’t take long).

Bowl of cheesy chicken and rice.

This stuff is to die for. Prepare for a happy landing in your stomach!

Storage

Store your cheesy chicken and rice leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days or in the freezer for up to three months. When it’s time, simply reheat it in the microwave.

Recipe Notes

  • You can use chicken thighs instead of chicken breast. You can also use leftover rotisserie chicken. 
  • Want more veggies? You can also add a selection of frozen vegetables to the slow cooker when you add the onion, like carrots, frozen broccoli florets, and peas. Other options? Cauliflower florets, green beans, chopped celery, and chopped bell peppers. Add two to three cups overall.
  • It is a-okay if you want to use cream of mushroom soup or cream of celery soup instead of this creamy chicken version. For even more mushroom flavor, add some sliced mushrooms to the slow cooker.
  • Another easy way to add flavor is to add a teaspoon of both garlic powder (or fresh minced garlic) and onion powder.
  • One more option… add a cup of chicken broth to the slow cooker in the beginning. This will make the chicken even more tender, if that’s even possible!
  • Instead of cheddar cheese, swap it out for your favorite type of shredded cheese.
  • I love Zatarain’s yellow rice mix, one of my favorite meal helpers. But you can use any rice you like, such as long-grain white rice, quinoa, wild rice, or brown rice.
  • If you want to use the lower-fat cream soup that’s fine in this too. A lot of folks have been making my slow cooker chicken and wild rice with cream of chicken soup because they don’t care for the cream of mushroom soup and that is great, too! Make it your own and tweak these recipes however they work best for your family.
  • Feel free to garnish with sliced green onions or chopped fresh parsley. Some freshly cracked black pepper ain’t so bad either!

Recipe FAQs

How do you chop the chicken for chicken and rice?

Now, a lot of folks have asked if or when they need to chop the chicken so the dish appears as it does in the photo. The great thing about this recipe is that by the time you add the rice, the chicken pieces are so tender from being slow-cooked that stirring in the rice will cause it to break up and become shredded chicken as pictured. Hope you enjoy it!

Can you freeze cheesy chicken and rice?

Absolutely! You can freeze leftovers for up to three months. Thaw them overnight in the fridge before reheating them for a couple of minutes in the microwave.

What side goes with cheesy chicken and rice?

I recommend serving this slow cooker chicken and rice recipe as a main dish with a side salad or vegetables. Here are some suggestions:

You may also enjoy serving the chicken and rice with cornbread, biscuits, or homemade dinner rolls.

Here are more of my favorite chicken dinner recipes:

Instant Pot Butter Chicken Recipe

North Alabama Style Pulled Chicken BBQ

How To Make Chicken Fajitas

Dutch Oven Smokehouse Chicken

Chicken Kabobs Recipe In The Oven

Broccoli Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breast

Bowl of cheesy chicken and rice.

Slow Cooker Cheesy Chicken and Rice

Cheesy chicken and rice in the crockpot is the dish even picky eaters LOVE! In fact, this recipe has been shared and pinned over 50 BILLION TIMES!
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 3 hours
Total Time: 3 hours 15 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: cheese, chicken, crockpot, rice, slowcooker
Servings: 6

Ingredients

  • 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • 1 large chopped onion
  • 1 8-ounce box Zatarain's Yellow Rice Mix
  • 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
  • 1 10.5-ounce can cream of chicken soup
  • 1 15-ounce can whole kernel corn, drained

Instructions

  • Place the chicken breasts in the bottom of the crockpot. Scatter chopped onion over the top. Spoon cream soup over the top of that.
    4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, 1 large chopped onion, 1 10.5-ounce can cream of chicken soup
  • Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours.
  • A few minutes before serving, add the cooked rice, corn, and shredded cheese to the crockpot. Stir to combine, until the cheese melts. Serve hot.
    1 8-ounce box Zatarain's Yellow Rice Mix, 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, 1 15-ounce can whole kernel corn, drained
Tried this recipe?Mention @southernplate or tag #southernplate!

 

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~Charles Schultz.

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1,339 Comments

      1. I would say 5 or 6 depending on serving size. With a side of veggies or bread, you wouldn’t need a lot. It’s very filling.

  1. My family loved this recipe and the amazing thing is my 2 year old even ate it. And she doesn’t eat anything besides hot dogs, mac & cheese, chicken nuggets and fries and even hot pockets.

  2. May I ask what yellow rice mix is? Is it basmati or long grain rice with turmeric or saffron in it? We don’t seem to have anything like this rice in Ireland or maybe I’m wrong. Thank you. This looks like a great recipe.

  3. This recipe looks like it is screaming for some Rotel! What does the author think of adding a can of Rotel?

    If you use Vigo Yellow Rice, you can get extra Vigo seasoning so your rice still tastes like yellow rice. All the recipes for this dish spread the seasoning that is meant to just flavor the rice way too thin and leave you with a weak flavor IMHO. If you find a low sodium cream of chicken and use extra seasoning, you’ll have a stronger flavor. I’m only saying low sodium C of C because I am unsure of the sodium in Vigo seasoning.

    Wonder how the canned cheese soup would work instead?

    Even just adding saffron would help. That is the main flavor anyway.

    You can’t use Zatarain’s seasoning because it’s not like the Zatarain’s Yellow Rice seasoning and more of a cajun/creole seasoning. Which might be good if your family likes it spicy.

    You could also buy the family size Zatarain’s Yellow Rice and use less of the rice.

    1. Every time I make this recipe I throw in a small can of diced green chilies. Adds texture and just a hint of boost on the flavor. And it looks pretty. I think the Rotel would be too over powering!

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