This Chicken Divan has juicy bites of chicken that are smothered in a simple cream sauce with broccoli and topped with a buttery Ritz cracker topping. This is a quick family dinner that you can serve with rice, mashed potatoes, or over biscuits.
Make it from scratch with my homemade cream of chicken soup recipe!
When it comes to casserole recipes, Chicken Divan has to be right at the top of my favorites list. It’s SO easy to make and can be served with so many different side dishes. It’s make-ahead friendly, and my family just devours it every time. Let’s get into what you need to know about this recipe!
What is Chicken Divan
Chicken Divan is a creamy casserole that’s traditionally made with a simple combination of chicken, broccoli, sour cream or mayo, cream of chicken soup, milk, and simple seasonings:
- Chicken: Leftover chicken is great in this recipe, uncooked chicken breast or thighs can also be used.
- Broccoli: I love using fresh broccoli, but frozen works as well.,
- Cream Sauce: The sauce consists of sour cream (or mayo), cream of chicken soup, milk, cheese, and simple seasonings.
- Crunchy Topping: A combination of crushed Ritz crackers and melted butter is a great way to add a golden crunchy topping to this casserole. Panko breadcrumbs and butter can be used as well.
Why Is It Called Chicken Divan
According to Wikipedia, this dish was named after the Divan Parisien Restaurant in NYC’s Chatham Hotel where it was invented and served as a signature dish in the 20th century.
How to Make It (Summary.)
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
- Sauté diced chicken, onions, and celery in butter for 3 minutes. Add broccoli and olive oil once chicken is halfway done and cook 3-5 more minutes. Remove from heat once chicken is cooked through.
- Add the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, milk, seasonings, and half of the cheese. Stir to combine and transfer to a lightly greased 9 x 13 inch casserole dish.
- Top with remaining cheese. Cover and bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Remove and increase heat to 400 degrees.
- Combine the melted butter and Ritz crackers. Sprinkle over the casserole and bake for 8-10 minutes, until the top is golden brown. Remove and let it sit for 5 minutes prior to serving.
- Serve over rice, biscuits, or mashed potatoes.
Pro Tips
- Cooked chicken may be used in which case sautéing it isn’t necessary. I would still recommend softening the onions/celery for about 5 minutes and then cooking the broccoli for about 3-4.
- To skip sautéing altogether, feel free to omit the onions and celery and combine uncooked diced chicken, fresh broccoli, and the sauce ingredients. Transfer to a baking dish and bake at 375, covered, for 40 minutes. Remove cover and proceed with adding the Ritz topping as outlined.
- Frozen broccoli may be used, thaw it first and pat it dry. Sautéing it with the chicken is optional as it’s already partially cooked. I recommend if you like very soft broccoli.
- Mayo can be used instead of sour cream.
- This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 196!
Make Ahead Method
- This casserole can be prepared and placed in a covered casserole dish in the fridge for up to 2 days prior to baking. Be sure to wait on preparing the topping until ready to serve.
- Add an additional 15 minutes of covered baking time if baking from a cold state.
Storage
Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
- Dutch Oven – These conduct heat really well. I use mine all the time.
- 9 x 13 baking dish The perfect size for almost any casserole recipe
- Silicone Spatula– Easy for tossing the chicken as it cooks and for stirring in the sauce ingredients.
- Measuring spoons I love that these are magnetic. They keep my drawer neat.
Try These Next
- Smothered Chicken
- Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuits
- Cube Steak and Gravy
- Sausage Tortellini Soup
- Chicken Spaghetti
- Broccoli Cheese Soup
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Tried This Recipe?
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Chicken Divan
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 2 lbs. Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts, see notes
- Salt/Pepper, to taste
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1 stick celery, diced
- 4 cups broccoli florets, about ½ lb.
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 10.5 oz. cream of chicken soup
- 2/3 cup sour cream
- ½ cup milk
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon mustard powder
- 2 ½ cups cheddar cheese, shredded
Topping
- ½ cup crushed Ritz crackers, or panko breadcrumbs
- 2 Tablespoons butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
- Melt butter in a dutch oven or large pot over medium heat. Add the chicken, onions, and celery and toss to coat. Sauté for 3 minutes, until chicken is about halfway done, then add the broccoli and 1 Tbsp olive oil.
- Cook for 3-5 more minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Remove from heat.
- Add the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, milk, seasonings, and half of the cheese. Stir to combine.
- Transfer to a lightly greased 9 x 13 casserole dish and top with remaining cheese.
- Cover and bake for 20 minutes. Remove and increase heat to 400 degrees.
- Combine the melted butter and Ritz crackers. Sprinkle over the casserole and bake for 8-10 minutes, until the top is golden brown. Remove and let it sit for 5 minutes prior to serving.
- Serve over rice, biscuits, or mashed potatoes.
Notes
- 2 lbs. of chicken is equal to about 4 cups diced or 3 medium chicken breasts.
- Cooked chicken may be used in which case sauteing it isn’t necessary. I would still recommend softening the onions/celery for about 5 minutes and the broccoli for about 3-4.
- To skip sautéing altogether, feel free to omit the onions and celery and combine uncooked diced chicken, fresh broccoli, and the sauce ingredients. Transfer to a baking dish and bake at 375, covered, for 40 minutes. Remove cover and proceed with adding the Ritz topping as outlined.
- Frozen broccoli may be used, thaw it first and pat it dry. Sauteing it with the chicken is optional as it’s already partially cooked. I recommend if you like very soft broccoli.
- ½ cup crushed Ritz = about 14 of them or ½ sleeve.
- This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 196!
Delish!
I’m so happy that you love it Roe!
I had to use cream of mushroom soup because I didn’t have cream of chicken and it tasted amazing! My family loved it and thy are picky. I will definitely make this again.
I’m so happy the family loved it Stephanie! My family can be very picky too, and this one is always a hit. Thanks so much for the great review!💖
I made this today! Yummy
I’m so happy to hear that Ann! Thanks for the great review!💖
Hello! I made your recipe last night and my husband and I loved it! I added about a third of a cup of mayo and a teaspoon of curry instead of the mustard powder. Thank you for sharing your recipe! Having it again tonight and I will definitely make it again! Sincerely, Ginny W.
Hi Virginia! I’m so happy you and you husband enjoyed this one! Thanks so much for the great comments and review!💗
Recipe is very good. I have another recipe of Chicken Divan that is similar using chicken fillets & broccoli spears . It calls for adding curry powder (about 2tsp) to the sauce so I added to your recipe also. It’s really delicious! I recommend this recipe.
Sounds yummy Sandy, nice work! I’m so happy you were able to combine the two. Thanks for taking the time to leave a review!💖
Delicious! Everyone devoured it!
I’m sooo happy to hear that Stephanie!!! Thank you so much!!
This was lip smacking good! Hubby had 2 helpings.
Wahooo! I’m so happy it was such a success. I love when my hubby goes back for seconds too. Thanks so much for the great review Mary Beth!💗
I can’t eat cream soup so I just added two tablespoons of cornstarch and a cup of chicken broth . And I cooked it in a pot . Great recipe !
Great job! I’m so happy you liked it, thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!💖
Made this but with 1 or 2 changes. The person who ate it with me is allergic to Broccoli so I used diced string beans. Also – I hate Ritz crackers on anything so thank you for the tip about Panco bread crumbs – they worked fantastically. Great recipe and I made it for 2 people – it was easy to cut down. Also used Healthy Request Cream of Chicken soup – no MSG – and I didn’t have the time to make your cream of chicken soup for this recipe. Thanks for posting. Will definately make this again.
I’m so happy you enjoyed it with string beans Kathi, that’s great to know! Thanks so much for taking the time to comment and leave a review💖
I made this last night for my family. Everything turned out well. This dish is easy to make and cooks to perfection. You can’t go wrong with serving a chicken and broccoli meal. Thank you again Stephanie for another winner to add to my meal rotation.
It’s my pleasure Karen! I’m so happy the family enjoyed this. Thanks so much for the great review!💖