An easy, comforting, classic dish, this flavorful autumn chicken wild rice casserole recipe uses butternut squash, apples and cranberries for a fun fall twist. Plus, it's naturally gluten and dairy free!
Autumn produce has taken over! Squashes, root veggies, all the pumpkins, and so many variations of apples and pears are literally falling off the shelves at my grocery store. Oh and don't forget the bags and bags of fresh cranberries 😍. Obviously I had to find a way to use almost ALL of these in one dish. Enter the autumn chicken wild rice casserole.
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Recipe Video: Autumn Chicken Wild Rice Casserole
Check out how easily this cozy, fall-inspired casserole comes together step-by-step in the video below 👇🏻!
Ingredients
Here's what makes this autumn chicken wild rice casserole one of my fave fall dinners:
- Chicken: Boneless, skinless breasts or thighs both work! It just needs to be cooked beforehand 👍🏻.
- Wild rice: Adds nutty flavor and texture.
- Butternut squash: Sweet and seasonal.
- Apples & cranberries: Bring that fall twist 🍏!
- Apple cider: Infuses the casserole with a subtly sweet flavor.
- Chicken broth: Keeps everything tender and flavorful as it bakes.
- Seasonal spices & fresh herbs: Think thyme, sage, ginger, nutmeg...the essence of autumn in every bite.
Why You'll Love It
- It's easy to use substitutions! You don't have to stick to the veggies I used. No carrots? No worries! Just skip them. You have sweet potatoes but no butternut squash? Use them instead! Not a fan of green apples? The red ones on your counter will work perfectly.
- This autumn chicken wild rice recipe is super simple to make vegetarian/vegan. Scroll down to the commonly asked questions section for more info!
- It's great for leftovers. Check out freezing and storage to find out best practices.
- While baking, this dish makes your entire house smell like fall 🍂🍁.
- It's naturally gluten and dairy free!
Tips and Tricks
Just a few things to make this dish a breeze to whip up!
- To cut down on the cooking time, heat the liquids before pouring over the rest of the ingredients. If they're hot when they go into the pan they won't take extra time in the oven to warm up.
- MAKE SURE to cover the casserole with foil or a lid. Otherwise the rice won't cook.
- When it's done baking, broil it for a couple minutes to get a nice crispy top!
Freezing and Storage
This autumn chicken wild rice casserole is awesome for leftovers (my toddler can attest to that!). Once cooled, cover with plastic wrap or place in an airtight container. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days, or in the freezer up to 3 months. When ready to serve from the fridge, reheat in the microwave or the oven until warmed through. If coming from the freezer, thaw the casserole in the fridge overnight and then reheat to serve.
Commonly Asked Questions About This Recipe
Yup! Remove the chicken and substitute with an equal amount of cooked /canned and drained white beans or more veggies. Also, swap the chicken broth for veggie broth and you're good to go!
Absolutely. You can prep it all the way through step 3. Get it ready to bake but don't add the liquid. Alternatively, you can cook the recipe all the way through and store tightly covered in the fridge/freezer. Thaw and reheat in the microwave or oven until warmed through and serve!
Sure does! Scroll up to the freezing and storage section for more info.
Autumn Chicken Wild Rice Casserole
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4 to 6 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
An easy, comforting, classic dish, this flavorful autumn chicken wild rice casserole recipe uses butternut squash, apples and cranberries for a fun fall twist. Plus, it's naturally gluten and dairy free!
Ingredients
- 1 lb cooked chicken breasts, shredded or roughly chopped into one inch pieces
- ½ yellow onion, diced
- 1 lb butternut squash, diced
- 1 cup carrots, quartered and thinly sliced
- 1 granny smith apple, cored and sliced
- 1 ½ cups uncooked wild rice
- 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
- 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, minced OR 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme, minced OR 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried sage, minced OR 1 teaspoon dried sage
- 2 cups chicken broth*
- 1 cup apple cider*
- 1 teaspoon coarse salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
Get Recipe Ingredients
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease or butter a 9X13 casserole dish.
- In a small bowl, whisk together chicken broth, apple cider, herbs, spices, salt, and pepper together.
- Distribute the chicken, rice, onion, squash, carrots, apples and cranberries evenly in the casserole dish.
- Pour liquid mixture over the top. Cover with foil and place in the preheated oven.
- Bake for 1 and half to 2 hours, until rice is tender and cooked through.
- Optional: Broil for 2 to 3 minutes for a crispy top!
- Remove from heat and let cool for 10 minutes. Garnish with parsley and fresh ground black pepper. Serve warm.
Notes
To shorten the cooking time you can heat the chicken broth and apple cider to steaming or even boiling before adding it to the dish.
You can substitute the apple cider with another cup of chicken broth.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Category: Casserole
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nicole M Krause says
This sounds so good can't wait to try this! All in one fall dish.
Aberdeen says
When you do I'd love to hear how it turned out 👍🏻
Dan Langholff says
Yummy shredded chicken! Aella also approved!
Betsy Mitchell says
Question: Seems like 400 for an hour and a half would suffice to cook raw chicken too. Doesn’t the pre-cooked shredded chicken get dried out, cooking that long? For ex, I would never leave cooked chicken in soup for an hour…even in liquid, it gets dry & stringy pretty quickly.
Love the combination of fruit/veg, herbs and cider…think I will try with partially cooked chicken….or add it later in cooking time.