Chicken Broccoli Curry Casserole with Cauliflower Rice
Chicken Broccoli Curry Casserole with Cauliflower Rice has the flavors so many people love, but with fewer carbs! And we used frozen cauliflower rice and frozen broccoli so it’s a dinner that’s easy to make.
Pin Chicken Broccoli Curry Casserole with Cauliflower Rice to try it later!
There are a lot of casserole recipes in the world that have chicken, broccoli, and curry sauce, so obviously a lot of people love those flavors. But most of the recipes for this classic dish include rice or quinoa, and that’s not a winner for someone who’s watching their carbs.
So when I remembered a chicken and broccoli casserole back in the archives of my blog that included quinoa (pronounced keen-wa), I decided to try making an updated version with cauliflower rice for fewer carbs, and definitely the new Chicken Broccoli Curry Casserole with Cauliflower Rice I’m sharing today is a winner!
I made this a couple of times with my great cooking assistant (and niece) Kara, and we improved it a little every time, and even the not-quite-right versions were gobbled up when we tested them! We loved the ease of using frozen cauliflower rice in this recipe, and on the second try we hit on the idea of using frozen broccoli too! Truthfully that’s something I rarely buy, but it was absolutely great in this.
Of course, we kept the creamy curry sauce that was so good in the original version, and used a generous amount of cheese. I hope you’ll enjoy trying this updated recipe if you’re a fan of this flavor combination. And if anyone still has a hankering for the original version with quinoa, you can use that link to get the printer-friendly version of that recipe! Whichever option you choose, hope you enjoy!
What ingredients do you need for this recipe:
- diced, cooked chicken
- frozen broccoli florets
- frozen cauliflower rice
- onion, chopped
- olive oil
- salt and fresh ground pepper
- sour cream
- mayo
- fresh-squeezed lemon juice, I used my fresh-frozen lemon juice
- Dijon Mustard (affiliate link)
- Curry Powder (affiliate link)
- Hot Curry Powder (affiliate link)
- coarsely grated Parmesan cheese.
- grated Mozzarella cheese
How Much Frozen Broccoli and Cauliflower Rice do you need for this Recipe?
I bought big bags of frozen cauliflower rice and broccoli and measured out the amount I wanted. If you don’t want to buy a big package, 10 oz. of frozen cauliflower rice is about 2 1/2 cups, perfect for this. 10 oz. frozen broccoli pieces is about 1 1/2 cups, so you’ll need two packages that size. The amounts of broccoli and cauliflower rice don’t have to be exact; so packages that are slightly bigger will be fine.
Can you freeze the Chicken Broccoli Curry Casserole?
This casserole will keep in the fridge for at least a week and is perfect to reheat for a quick dinner later. It freezes fairly well, although since the broccoli and cauliflower rice have been previously frozen, the thawed casserole may be slightly softer than you would prefer.
Want more casseroles to make with leftover chicken or turkey?
You can check out Low-Carb and Keto Recipes for Leftover Turkey or Chicken for more casserole ideas like this one.
How to Make Chicken Broccoli Curry Casserole with Cauliflower Rice:
(Scroll down for complete printable recipe, including nutritional information.)
- Preheat oven to 375f/190C. Spray casserole dish with non-stick spray.
- Cut up enough chicken to make 3 cups of diced, cooked chicken.
- Measure out the cauliflower rice and broccoli and let it be thawing on the counter.
- Heat the olive oil in frying pan and cook the chopped onion about 2 minutes over medium-high heat.
- Add the cauliflower rice and broccoli and cook about 3 minutes. Season with salt and fresh-ground black pepper.
- Add the diced chicken and gently combine with cauliflower rice and broccoli. Turn off heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese.
- Whisk together sour cream, mayo, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, curry powder (affiliate link), and hot curry powder (if using).
- Gently mix sauce into the chicken-broccoli mixture in the frying pan.
- Put the mixture into casserole dish and top with the grated Mozzarella.
- Bake about 30-35 minutes, or until the casserole is bubbly and top is starting to brown.
Weekend Food Prep:
This recipe has been added to a new category called Weekend Food Prep to help you find recipes you can prep or cook on the weekend and eat during the week! Use Casserole Recipes to find more casseroles like this one!
More Chicken with Curry Flavors:
My blog also has a cheesier and creamier Chicken Broccoli Curry Casserole and a Cheesy Curry Chicken Bake with no rice at all. There’s also an asparagus bake with creamy curry sauce and chicken on my site (YUM!) Or how about a curried chicken salad with asparagus. Is that enough options for you to indulge your chicken curry cravings?
Chicken Broccoli Curry Casserole with Cauliflower Rice
We loved the updated version of this Chicken Broccoli Curry Casserole with Cauliflower Rice, and this has a lot fewer carbs than the original version with quinoa!
Ingredients
- 3 cups diced, cooked chicken (see notes)
- 3 cups frozen broccoli florets, partly thawed
- 2 1/2 cups frozen cauliflower rice, partly thawed (see notes)
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 1 T olive oil
- salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
- 1 1/2 cups sour cream
- 3/4 cup mayo
- 1 T fresh-squeezed lemon juice (or more if you really like lemon)
- 2 tsp. Dijon mustard
- 1 T curry powder
- 2 tsp. hot curry powder (see notes)
- 1/3 cup coarsely grated Parmesan cheese.
- 1 cup grated Mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375f/190C. Spray an 11.5 X 8 casserole dish (or similar size) with non-stick spray.
- Cut up enough chicken to make 3 cups of diced, cooked chicken. (I used leftover rotisserie chicken.)
- Measure out the cauliflower rice and broccoli and let it be thawing on the counter. (When it's partly thawed, cut broccoli into bite-sized pieces if needed.)
- Heat the olive oil in a non-stick frying pan and cook the chopped onion about 2 minutes over medium-high heat, or just until it barely starts to brown.
- Add the cauliflower rice and broccoli and cook about 3 minutes, stirring a few times. Season with salt and fresh-ground black pepper to taste.
- Then add the diced chicken and gently combine with the cauliflower rice and broccoli. Turn off heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese.
- Whisk together the sour cream, mayo, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, curry powder, and hot curry powder (if using).
- Gently mix the sauce into the chicken-broccoli mixture in the frying pan.
- Put the mixture into the casserole dish and top with the grated Mozzarella.
- Bake about 30-35 minutes, or until the casserole is bubbly and top is starting to brown.
Notes
I used rotisserie chicken for this recipe, but if you want to cook your own chicken you need about 3 large chicken breasts, simmered in water over very low heat for about 15 minutes. Let chicken cool and then dice for the recipe. I used a big bag of cauliflower rice and frozen broccoli and measured out the amount I wanted. It won't matter if you use individual packages that are slightly more than the amount I used. If you don't have hot curry powder, just use 5 tsp. of whatever curry powder you have. This updated recipe was adapted from this casserole in the archives that used quinoa with chicken, broccoli, and curry sauce.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 596Total Fat: 49gSaturated Fat: 15gUnsaturated Fat: 29gCholesterol: 128mgSodium: 622mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 4.8gSugar: 4.9gProtein: 28g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.
Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
This Chicken Broccoli Curry Casserole with Cauliflower Rice would be approved for low-carb diet plans, including Keto. This could work for the original South Beach Diet, although for South Beach dieters it would be best to use light sour cream and light mayo.
Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use the Recipes by Diet Type photo index pages to find more recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.
Historical Notes for This Recipe:
A version of this recipe using quinoa was first posted March 10, 2011. The recipe was updated to a version with cauliflower rice March 2, 2020 and last updated with more information in 2023.
100 Comments on “Chicken Broccoli Curry Casserole with Cauliflower Rice”
GG, your version sounds great!
What a great adaptation to the 365 version. I reduced the broccoli, added a zucchini, along with lightly sauteed red pepper & mushrooms. I also avoid egg and soy so I substituted Veganaise for the mayo. I will be looking forward to lunch this week! I really love the cream sauce. I am thinking that there may be a goat cheese version in my future. Thanks for posting!
Thanks, and so glad you enjoyed this!
I made this for a friend who just had a baby. I replaced the sour cream for greek yogurt because I don't usually buy sour cream but kept everything else the same. Came out great and she loved it so much she is making it as I type. My husband is now jealous that I haven't yet made it for us! Love your blog- keep up the great work!
JillEE, I love hearing that!
Thanks for the great recipe. Even my 1 year old loved it (broccoli and all!).
I made this for my family using veganase (my daughter is allergic to eggs ) instead of mayo and it was great! Wondering if it could be freezes? I want to add it to my casserole swap but it has to be freezable?
I honestly don't know how well it would freeze; I've never frozen it. I am skeptical though; seems like the broccoli would be fairly soft after being frozen.
I made this for my meals this week and it is soooo delicious! I use the red quinoa instead of white. I think the red has a little more flavor and no rinsing but white is good too.
Glad you enjoyed it. I bet it is pretty with the red quinoa!
Jess, so glad you liked it! (And yes, for quinoa that needs it, rinsing is essential.)
We just made this tonight and the adults loved it. My little ones are picky and I'd say they were neutral to it, which is actually quite good. I made the full fat version by default because that is what we happened to have in the house, and I would go with the lower fat next time if I can plan it that way. I also may try the coconut milk version.
I'm starting to like quinoa after a bad first experience cooking it. I think the issue was rinsing because I couldn't figure out how the quinoa that other people made was so yummy and the batch I made was just nasty. It must have been a brand that needed rinsing. I'm happy to have another recipe to keep on hand for leftovers- especially this one since we often have just a touch of chicken left after roasting one and one meal. It will be nice to get a 3rd nourishing meal out of one bird and I can plan on making a double batch of quinoa when I'm roasting (or crockpotting) the chicken.
JessG in MA
Laurie, glad you liked it and thanks for letting us know that it worked that way.
This recipe is delicious! We're on phase one of SB, so I just left out the quinoa and did the recipe on the stovetop: big hit! (although we love quinoa, so I'll be trying the whole recipe when we're on phase two!)
I really like the sound of this with coconut milk, and how fun hearing from someone in South Korea. So glad you enjoyed it.
Oh my! I love this recipe. I didn't have sour cream so I used coconut milk and added lots more of the curry powder, just because I love it! And it turned out wonderful! You're a great inspiration, Kalyn!
One of the versions I tried but didn't like used all Greek yogurt, and I agree that this needs the creaminess of the sour cream.
I tried this recipe and did substitute Greek yogurt for all the sour cream. For me, it's a necessity. I'm lactose intolerant and can stomach the yogurt, but not the sour cream.
I have to say that the sauce was extremely tart. The sauce sat on top of the broccoli and never made its way down through the casserole. I added 2 teaspoons of curry powder and thought it actually could have used a full tablespoon. The flavor was interesting, but I'm not sure I'm sold on it. My advice would be to stick with the sour cream. Otherwise an excellent recipe.
Rachel, thanks for that nice feedback. I do think couscous would be a great substitute for the quinoa here.
Hi Kalyn,
You have been inspiring me for years, and your meals have fed my family countless of times. Thank you!
For this recipe, do you think couscous would work as a substitution for quinoa? I do not live in the U.S. and I'm not sure how or where I'd get quinoa just yet (although I haven't given up trying). Thank you!
Laura, that sounds like a great variation! Thanks for sharing.
Kalyn, Apparently this is going to be one of my Go-To Recipies, this time I changed it up, still using Chicken and Quinoa, but instead of broccoli I sautéed zucchini and mushrooms, and for the sauce used Pesto for the dijon and curry, it smells great and I can't wait to have it tomorrow night for dinner.