Crack Chicken Casserole is chopped cooked chicken, crisp bacon, shredded cheddar and dry ranch seasoning stirred into a creamy mix of sour cream and canned soup, then baked under a layer of buttered cracker crumbs. It comes out creamy and cheesy with a crunchy top, it takes eight ingredients, and with the chicken and bacon already cooked it serves 6 and is ready in 35 minutes.
How to make it: Mix everything except the crackers and butter in one bowl and spread it in a greased 9×9-inch dish. Toss the crushed crackers with the melted butter, scatter them over the top and bake it uncovered at 350°F until it bubbles and the crumbs turn golden.
Why You’ll Love It
- One bowl: the whole filling is stirred together and spread straight into the dish.
- Quick to start: with cooked chicken and bacon on hand, it takes 5 minutes of prep.
- All the crack chicken flavors: chicken, bacon, ranch and cheddar in every forkful.
- Easy to change: swap the cheese, the soup or the topping, or turn it into a pasta or broccoli bake.
Ingredient Notes
Chicken: Four cups of cooked chicken, chopped or shredded. Leftover or rotisserie chicken is the shortcut, and breasts or thighs both work.
Ranch seasoning mix: One 1-ounce package of the dry mix.
Bacon: One cup, cooked until crisp, then chopped or crumbled. Bacon cooked in the oven or the air fryer is fine.
Cheddar: A cup and a half, shredded. It is stirred into the filling, not sprinkled on top.
Sour cream and soup: One and a half cups of sour cream and one 10.5-ounce can of cream of chicken soup make the creamy base.
Crackers and butter: A cup and a half of crushed plain crackers mixed with 1/4 cup of melted unsalted butter.
Ingredients
- 4 cups cooked chicken, chopped
- 1 ounce dry ranch seasoning mix (1 package)
- 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 cup bacon, cooked and chopped
- 1 1/2 cups sour cream
- 1 can (10.5 ounces) cream of chicken soup
- 1 1/2 cups plain crackers, crushed
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
How to Make Crack Chicken Casserole
1. Heat the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly coat a 9×9-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Mix the filling. In a large bowl, combine the chopped chicken, ranch seasoning mix, shredded cheddar, chopped bacon, sour cream and cream of chicken soup. Stir until everything is well mixed.
3. Spread it in the dish. Transfer the chicken mixture to the baking dish and spread it out evenly.
4. Make the topping. In a small bowl, mix the crushed crackers with the melted butter until the crumbs are evenly moistened. Sprinkle them over the chicken layer.
5. Bake. Bake uncovered for 30 to 40 minutes, until the casserole is bubbly, the topping is golden brown and the center reaches 165°F on a food thermometer.
What Is Crack Chicken Casserole, and What Do You Need?
Crack chicken casserole is chicken, bacon, ranch and cheese baked together in a creamy sauce. Those four are the fixed part of the dish and the short answer to what you need for crack chicken: they give it the cheesy, creamy ranch flavor it is known for. Around them, the casserole is built in three ways.
Cracker-topped, with soup and sour cream. The one on this page. Cooked chicken, bacon, cheddar and dry ranch mix go into a sour cream and soup base, the mixture is spread in the dish, and buttered cracker crumbs go on top. Nothing is cooked on the stove, and it bakes at 350°F.
With pasta and cream cheese. An 8-ounce block of softened cream cheese is beaten until spreadable, then mixed with 1 cup of sour cream, the ranch mix and 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Two pounds of raw chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces, are coated in it and baked at 375°F for 20 minutes. Then 8 ounces of cooked shell pasta and 6 slices of crisp, chopped bacon are folded in along with half of the cheese (1 cup of sharp cheddar and 1 cup of mozzarella), the rest of the cheese goes on top, and it bakes 5 to 10 minutes more before 3 minutes under the broiler. The chicken has to reach 165°F. For a looser sauce, mix up to a cup of chicken broth or milk into the cream cheese.
With broccoli and no canned soup. Four ounces of cream cheese is melted into 1 cup of chicken broth in a skillet, then 1/4 cup of heavy cream, the ranch mix and 1 1/2 cups of cheddar are added and it simmers for 4 to 5 minutes, until it starts to thicken. The sauce goes over 3 cups of fresh broccoli florets and 4 cups of shredded chicken in a greased 7×11-inch dish, the remaining 1 cup of cheddar goes on top (2 1/2 cups in all), and it bakes at 350°F for 25 to 30 minutes, until the broccoli is tender. Four slices of crumbled bacon and 1/3 cup of chopped green onions go on after baking. Use fresh broccoli; frozen can add too much moisture and water down the sauce.
Tips for Success
How do I get an even, golden topping?
Mix the crumbs and butter in their own bowl until every crumb is moistened, then sprinkle them evenly over the filling. Bake the casserole uncovered the whole time.
Can I bake it in a bigger dish?
Yes. A 2-quart casserole dish or a 9×13-inch pan also works for these amounts. Bake until it passes the same checks as step 5: bubbling, golden on top and 165°F in the center.
How can I make it less salty?
Use less of the ranch mix if you find it strong, pick unsalted cream of chicken soup, or make your own dry ranch mix, which cuts the salt a lot.
Variations
- Different cheese: Monterey Jack, Colby Jack, or sharp cheddar mixed with mozzarella.
- Different soup: cream of mushroom in place of the cream of chicken.
- Yogurt swap: plain Greek yogurt in place of the sour cream.
- Breadcrumb topping: panko, or 1 cup of Italian-seasoned panko, tossed with 4 tablespoons of melted butter instead of the crackers.
- Extra bacon and cheese: use 10 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled, and 2 cups of cheddar in a 9×13-inch pan, and bake for about 30 minutes.
- More seasoning: stir 1/2 teaspoon of onion powder and 1/4 teaspoon of ground black pepper into the filling.
- Turkey bacon: it can replace regular bacon.
Storage & Reheating
USDA FSIS says to refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours in shallow, covered containers and eat them within 3 to 4 days, or freeze them in freezer-safe airtight containers for 3 to 4 months. Cream sauces don’t freeze well, so the sour cream and soup sauce can separate and look a little curdled after thawing.
Thaw frozen casserole overnight in the refrigerator, never on the counter. Reheat single portions covered in the microwave at 50% power in 1-minute bursts, or cover the whole dish tightly with foil and warm it in a 350°F oven for about 20 minutes, until it reaches 165°F. If it looks dry, stir in a few tablespoons of chicken broth or milk first. Don’t reheat it in a slow cooker.
What to Serve With It
A fresh green salad, roasted vegetables such as broccoli, asparagus or zucchini, green beans or warm biscuits round out the plate. Try roasted asparagus and carrots or a batch of butter biscuits. For the same flavors in other forms, there’s slow cooker cream cheese crack chicken for sandwiches, crack chicken soup and crack chicken pinwheels for a party. For a cracker-topped chicken casserole without the ranch and bacon, try the cracker chicken casserole.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the ingredients in a 4-ingredient crack chicken recipe?
The four that make it crack chicken are chicken, bacon, ranch seasoning and cheese. This casserole adds sour cream and canned soup for the creamy base and buttered crackers for the top.
Can I use bottled ranch dressing instead of the seasoning mix?
No. Use the dry ranch seasoning mix, not the liquid salad dressing. A homemade dry ranch mix works too.
Can I make crack chicken casserole ahead?
Yes. Assemble it up to 2 days ahead, leave the topping off, cover it and keep it in the fridge. Let it sit out for about 30 minutes, add the topping and bake as directed.
What goes on top of crack chicken casserole when serving?
Sliced green onions, pickled jalapeños, a drizzle of ranch dressing or a few dashes of hot sauce.
Final Notes
Keep the ranch mix dry, the bacon crisp and the crumbs well buttered, and swap the rest to suit what’s in the kitchen. If you have a question or make this, tell me how it turned out in the comments.
Crack Chicken Casserole
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Ingredients
- 4 cups cooked chicken chopped
- 1 ounce ranch seasoning mix 1 package, dry
- 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 cup bacon cooked and chopped
- 1 1/2 cups sour cream
- 1 can cream of chicken soup 10.5 ounces
- 1 1/2 cups plain crackers crushed
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly coat a 9x9-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, combine the chopped chicken, ranch seasoning mix, shredded cheddar, chopped bacon, sour cream and cream of chicken soup. Stir until everything is well mixed.
- Transfer the chicken mixture to the baking dish and spread it out evenly.
- In a small bowl, mix the crushed crackers with the melted butter until the crumbs are evenly moistened. Sprinkle them over the chicken layer.
- Bake uncovered for 30 to 40 minutes, until the casserole is bubbly, the topping is golden brown and the center reaches 165°F on a food thermometer.
