Classic Swiss Chicken Casserole Recipe

The classic Swiss chicken casserole takes four basic components — chicken breasts, cream of mushroom soup, Swiss cheese, and stuffing — and turns them into a filling meal that's pure comfort. We've made a few tweaks to elevate this easy dish, including using fresh herbs, seasonings, and some other high-quality ingredients. The resulting Swiss chicken casserole recipe preserves the comforting spirit of the original, but makes it feel decidedly elegant.

According to Ksenia Prints of Thermocookery, there's something about a just-baked casserole that makes you feel right back in your grandmother's kitchen. You can smell the scent of her coffee in the machine, feel the formica countertops under your fingers, and just see the yellowish tone of the cabinets. In many ways, dishes like this Swiss chicken casserole take you straight to a place where you felt loved and protected.

We've taken the classic recipe, which relies on canned soup and likely came from the back of said soup can — we couldn't find any records of its "invention" — and added some fresh components to make the whole thing feel fancy enough to serve to friends. It could even make for an easy side dish for Thanksgiving with its use of stuffing.

For this chicken casserole, you'll need both pantry staples and some fresh ingredients to make a classic feel slightly more elevated. Start with unsalted butter, purple onion, celery stalks, and garlic cloves as your base. To make the homemade stuffing, grab day-old sourdough bread, fresh sage and thyme, chicken stock, and salt and white pepper. For the chicken layer, we're going old school with boneless chicken breasts, cream of mushroom soup, dry white wine, lemon juice, salt and pepper, thinly sliced Swiss cheese, and a touch of fresh thyme to make it feel fancy. 

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Butter a 9x13-inch baking dish.

To make the stuffing, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat.

Saute the onion and celery until translucent, about 5 minutes.

Add the garlic and cook 1 minute.

Add the bread cubes, sage, thyme, and chicken stock.

Season with salt and pepper.

Mix until the bread absorbs the liquid.

Layer the stuffing evenly in baking dish.

In a bowl, whisk together the mushroom soup, wine, lemon juice, and fresh thyme.

Season the chicken with salt and pepper.

Place the chicken in a single layer over the stuffing.

Pour the soup mixture over the chicken.

Arrange the Swiss cheese slices over the soup layer.

Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

Remove the foil and bake for an additional 20 minutes, until the chicken reaches 165 F and the top is golden.

Rest for 10 minutes.

Slice and serve the chicken casserole.

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Let's face it: Some nights, we want a stick-to-your-ribs kind of meal, and other nights, we just want something that feels a bit lighter. With a few modifications it's easy to make this hearty dish feel pleasantly lightened up.

First off, you can replace the full stick of butter in the stuffing with ¼ cup olive oil or ¼ cup butter, and mix either with ¼ cup chicken broth. Instead of white sourdough bread, you can use whole-grain sourdough, which offers more fiber and nutrients. The cream of mushroom soup, while an essential component in the original, can be substituted with a homemade cream of mushroom soup, or a quick version using 2 cups sauteed mushrooms and a roux made out of 2 tablespoons flour and 2 cups low-fat milk. You can also substitute about half the Swiss cheese for part-skim mozzarella, which melts well but has less fat, but watch the cooking time to prevent mistakes because it also browns more quickly.

Like most casseroles, a recipe designed to highlight convenience in the kitchen, this dish is perfect for making ahead. You can assemble the entire casserole up to 24 hours before baking, and store it covered in the refrigerator. Just add about 10 minutes to the covered baking time since you'll be starting with cold ingredients.

If you want to freeze the casserole, one approach is to assemble the dish and then freeze it, unbaked, with the whole casserole double-wrapped in plastic wrap and tinfoil. This means you would first cover the casserole tightly with a layer of plastic wrap, followed by aluminum foil to prevent freezer burn. It can then be frozen for up to 3 months. When ready to eat, thaw the casserole in the refrigerator overnight, then bake as directed, adding about 10 minutes to the covered baking time.

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