Chicken Divan

Delicious Chicken Divan: loaded with broccoli, chicken, and cheese, smothered in a creamy sauce with a crunchy breadcrumb topping. Easy to prepare ahead of time and bakes in just 30 minutes!

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 25

Total Time 35

Servings servings

Calories 636kcal

Author John Kanell

Equipment

Large Pot
9x13 baking dish
mixing bowl

Ingredients

4 cups fresh broccoli florets (330g)
1 (10.5-ounce/298g) can condensed cream of chicken soup
¾ cup sour cream (180g)
½ cup whole milk (120mL)
2½ cups shredded cheddar cheese divided (210g)
¾ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon garlic powder
¾ teaspoon onion powder
¾ teaspoon mustard powder
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 pounds cooked chicken cubed (900g)
½ cup panko breadcrumbs (30g)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch casserole dish with cooking spray or butter.
Boil the broccoli in a large pot of salted water until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Drain well.
In a medium bowl, combine the soup, sour cream, and milk, and whisk together until smooth. Stir in 2 cups of the cheese, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, mustard powder, and pepper. Stir in the cooked broccoli and chicken. Spread the mixture into the prepared pan.
In a small bowl, stir together the breadcrumbs and butter. Sprinkle the remaining ½ cup of cheese and breadcrumb mixture over the casserole.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until bubbly and the top is golden brown. Let it cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Notes

Salt the water. Don’t skip salting the water when boiling the broccoli. Add a teaspoon per quart of water once boiling. This enhances the flavor of the broccoli and makes it perfectly tender.
Drain the broccoli well. After cooking the broccoli, make sure to drain as much water as possible. This will prevent watering down the creaminess of the dish when you mix the broccoli with the other ingredients.
Use freshly grated cheese. Not only will it have the best flavor, but freshly grated cheese also melts much better than pre-shredded cheeses. You can also mix different types of shredded cheese to switch up the flavor profile.
Optional variations. Instead of broccoli, you can substitute it for another veggie in equal quantity, like zucchini, peas, asparagus, or cauliflower. If you want to save time, use a store-bought rotisserie chicken instead of cooking your own – simply pull off the chicken in pieces and chop it up! Swap the breadcrumbs for crushed Ritz crackers in the topping. Jazz up the flavor of the sauce by adding lemon juice and zest of 1 lemon, or a teaspoon or two of curry powder.

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