This Creamy Broccoli Rice Casserole is made with three types of cheese, tender broccoli, white rice and topped with more melty cheese! Plus there is no canned soup in this recipe! This broccoli and rice casserole is great on its own as a main course or as a stellar side dish. Perfect for the holidays or a dinner with family and friends. Plus, kids are sure to love it (all while eating their greens)!
Love easy casserole recipes? Then you need to try my Green Bean Casserole and my Sweet Potato Casserole!
Easy Broccoli Rice Casserole
I’m thrilled to share this Cheesy Broccoli Rice Casserole recipe with you today because it has quickly become one of my all-time favorite casseroles ever! It’s comfort food at its finest loaded with fresh broccoli, tender rice, and three different kinds of cheeses — sharp cheddar, cream cheese, and Parmesan.
And the best part? This dish is a great way to entice your kids to eat their green vegetables because they’re mixed with so many delicious and familiar ingredients. It’s a perfect addition to your holiday table, served as a vegetarian-friendly main course, or as a simple side dish. It’s also a great addition to potlucks! However you eat it, you’re sure to enjoy!
For a lighter version of this Broccoli Cheese Casserole try my Broccoli Quinoa Bake!
Broccoli Rice Casserole Ingredients
Perhaps the best part of this recipe is that there’s no condensed or canned soup in this recipe! No cream of chicken, cream of celery, cream of mushroom, or cream of whatever. Only wholesome fresh and dry ingredients that allow you to control the amount of salt in this dish.
- Broccoli: Cut into bite-sized pieces. Fresh broccoli works best however frozen thawed and drained broccoli could be used as well.
- Rice: Cooked long grain white rice works best however brown rice can be substituted. The rice is cooked beforehand. This is a great meal to make when you have leftover rice!
- Unsalted butter: And flour make the base of our cheese sauce: the roux. This thickens the sauce and makes it oh so creamy.
- Milk: I used whole milk however use whatever you have on hand!
- Seasonings: To flavor the cheese sauce we add mustard powder, paprika, onion powder and garlic powder.
- Cheese: I use a combination of cheese in my cheesy broccoli rice casserole for extra flavor. Grated parmesan, cream cheese and extra sharp cheddar cheese are added.
How to make Broccoli Rice Casserole
- Blanch the Broccoli: Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add in broccoli and cook for 2 minutes then immediately transfer it to a bowl with cold ice water, set aside.
- Make a Roux: Heat butter in a medium saucepan. Add in flour, and cook for 1-2 minutes stirring constantly.
- Add in the Milk and Dry Spices: Allow this mixture to come to a simmer stirring constantly over medium heat. Cook for 4-5 minutes or until the mixture starts to thicken slightly.
- Stir in the Cheese: Take off of the heat, and stir in 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, parmesan cheese and cream cheese. Season the cheese sauce with salt and pepper to taste.
- Combine Ingredients for the Casserole: Add cooked rice, blanched broccoli and cheese sauce to a large bowl or the pot you cooked the broccoli in. Toss to combine then layer into the bottom of the prepared baking dish.
- Bake: Top with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until golden brown and bubbling around the edges.
- Serve immediately, and enjoy!
How To Blanch Broccoli
- The trick to preventing your broccoli from turning to mush during the cooking process — especially if you’re planning to bake it — is to blanch it.
- Blanching is a culinary technique in which vegetables, especially green vegetables like broccoli or asparagus, are flash boiled for just a couple minutes, then submerged in an ice bath to halt the cooking process in its tracks. This ensures that it’s cooked enough to break down cell walls of the vegetables molecular structure, but not to much so that it’s fully cooked; similar to browning meat.
- Blanching is often practiced before freezing vegetables so they don’t succumb to freezer burn or spoil, but it’s also useful in this Broccoli Rice Casserole recipe because it allows the broccoli to cook enough to easily bite into, but not so much that it melts into the rest of the dish.
Kelley’s Tips
Tips For The BEST Broccoli Rice Casserole
- Add More Vegetables: Make this broccoli rice casserole your own by adding diced carrots, peas, or sautéed mushrooms. You can even swap the broccoli for cauliflower florets for a delicious variation!
- Add a Crunchy Topping: For a little extra texture, sprinkle crushed Ritz crackers or toasted panko breadcrumbs over the casserole before baking. The topping gets golden brown and crispy in the oven!
- Switch Up the Cheese: I love using extra-sharp cheddar cheese for its bold, cheesy flavor, but feel free to use what you have on hand! Monterey Jack, Colby, Swiss, or Gouda would all be delicious. You can even mix a couple of cheeses together!
- Use Frozen Broccoli: Fresh broccoli is my favorite for this recipe, but frozen works too! Simply thaw the broccoli completely and drain it well before mixing it with the rice and cheese sauce. This helps prevent excess moisture from making the casserole watery.
- Add Chicken: Turn this side dish into a complete meal by stirring in cooked, shredded chicken! Leftover rotisserie chicken or my Instant Pot Shredded Chicken both work great. It’s an easy way to make a hearty chicken broccoli rice casserole that’s perfect for busy weeknights!
Can Broccoli Rice Casserole be made ahead of time?
I love making this casserole during the holidays because it is so easy to make ahead of time. Simply make the recipe as directed and store it unbaked covered in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake! Allow it to come to room temperature while the oven preheats then bake as directed.
Storage, Freezing, and Reheating Instructions
- Store leftover broccoli cheese rice casserole in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- Freeze the cooled and cooked casserole in an airtight, freezer-safe container or plastic bag for up to 3 months. To reheat defrost overnight in the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature while the oven preheats. Bake as directed.
- Reheat this casserole in the microwave with some water or chicken broth for 3-5 minutes, or in the oven until warmed through and bubbling around the edges.
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Broccoli Rice Casserole
Ingredients
- 4 cups broccoli, cut into bite size pieces
- 3 cups cooked white rice
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 2 1/4 cup whole milk
- 1/2 tsp mustard powder
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 3 ounces softened cream cheese, cubed
- 1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13 pan with non stick cooking spray.Blanch the broccoli: Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add in broccoli and cook for 2 minutes then immediately transfer it to a bowl with cold ice water, set aside.
- Make a roux: Heat butter in a medium saucepan. Add in flour and cook for 1-2 minutes stirring constantly.
- Add in milk and spices: And allow it to come to a simmer stirring constantly over medium heat. Cook for 4-5 minutes or until the mixture starts to thicken slightly.
- Stir in cheese: Take off of the heat and stir in 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, parmesan cheese and cream cheese. Season the cheese sauce with salt and pepper to taste.
- Toss everything together: Add cooked rice, blanched broccoli and cheese sauce to a large bowl or the pot you cooked the broccoli in. Toss to combine then layer into the bottom of the prepared baking dish.
- Bake: Top with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.
- Serve: Immediately and enjoy!
Nutrition Information
Did You Make This?
I’d love to hear your feedback! Leave a review and make sure to share your pictures on social media! Don’t forget to follow @thechefsavvy.
jyychem
This is a good recipe but it definitely needs a lot more seasoning. I added a lot of seasoned salt and some pepper. I also think that 6 cups of broccoli makes it healthier and better. I would serve it with chicken or ham. Also, preparation time is MUCH more than 15 minutes! It takes at least 20 minutes to cook the rice. There are a LOT of pans to clean as well.
HH
Delicious, but most definitely not 15 mins prep time. Much longer.
L.S.
Thank you for this recipe! I find it a great base recipe to add to or modify depending on what I need; usually, I reduce the amount of rice slightly and add a good deal of shredded chicken, along with some cayenne or red pepper for a little heat. This turns it into an easy, one-bowl dinner that satisfies my picky eaters. I’ve also added other vegetables and tried out different shredded cheeses with a lot of success. Thanks again!
Kelley Simmons
So happy to hear you enjoy this recipe! Thank you so much for sharing!
Jane
How do I put you on my desktop . So it’s easier for me to find you. Instead of having to go through my saved emails all the time.
Recipies lovely by the way. They all are x
Kelley Simmons
Hi Jane!
So glad you enjoy my recipes! That means so much to me! You can drag the icon from the left of the url bar and drop it onto your desktop to create a shortcut.
Hope this helps. Thanks!
Kelley
Christine
Been wanting to try this and will finally do so this weekend. One question, can I prepare this and put it in the fridge overnight before putting it in the oven the next day?
Kelley Simmons
Hi!
Yes you can make this ahead of time and keep it in the fridge overnight. I would bring it to room temperature while the oven is preheating.
Enjoy!
Kelley
Marsha
I found this to be rather bland. The sauce was extremely thick with not a lot of flavor.
Kelley Simmons
I am so sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy this Marsha! I always suggest seasoning sauces to taste (salt and pepper) You can also thin out the sauce with a bit more milk or broth.
Jordan
This is my go to for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Lots of compliments.
I have started making it regularly at my 15 month old request, we just add chicken and make it a dinner 🙂
Kelley Simmons
Aww yah this makes me so happy to hear!!
Elle
I made this and 3 cups of rice is a lot of rice so this is a lot of food. It wasn’t very tasteful. It was more on the bland side, so I don’t really understand what went wrong. I used extra sharp cheddar in the amounts in the directions. I’m going to try to add more cheese per serving and hopefully that might save it a bit.
Mimi Marie
The amount of seasoning is the issue. Personally you have to double the amounts listed. I also don’t use dry mustard I put in a heaping tsp of Dijon mustard.