This keto cauliflower chicken casserole is a family favorite. It's a hearty, comforting dish loaded with flavor and perfect for a satisfying meal without the carbs. This recipe combines the goodness of cauliflower, chicken, cheese, and bacon. The basis of our keto cauliflower casserole was to feed everyone without making separate meals.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Low Carb & Keto-Friendly: With only 3.8 net carbs and 24 grams of protein per serving, this casserole fits perfectly into a ketogenic lifestyle.
- Family-Friendly: Even picky eaters will enjoy this cheesy casserole.
- Easy to Make: You can whip up this one-dish meal in as little as 30 minutes.
- Versatile: Customize it with your favorite cheeses, vegetables, and seasonings.
- Make-Ahead Friendly: Prepare it in advance and bake when ready, or freeze for future meals.
Ingredients
- Cauliflower: The base of the casserole, providing a pasta-like texture without the carbs. You can use fresh cauliflower and rice it yourself, use store-bought fresh cauliflower rice or a bag of frozen cauliflower rice. If using fresh cauliflower rice, you’ll need to cook it first before adding it to the casserole mixture.
- Chicken: Use leftover chicken, rotisserie chicken, chicken breast, or chicken thighs.
- Cheese: A combination of cheddar, mozzarella, brie, and cream cheese creates a rich, cheesy sauce. Freshly grated cheese has the best flavor.
- Bacon: Adds a crispy, smoky flavor. You can buy it already cooked or cook it yourself and crumble it.
- Ranch Seasoning: Provides a tangy, savory flavor.
- Heavy Cream: Creates a creamy sauce.
- Eggs: Help bind the casserole together.
- Spices: Garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper enhance the overall flavor.
- Optional Add-ins: Broccoli, green onions, bell peppers, spinach, salsa verde, cilantro.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Preheat the oven: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Prepare the cauliflower: Steam the cauliflower and broccoli until cooked through and tender. If using fresh cauliflower rice, cook it before adding it to the casserole mixture. You can rice your own cauliflower (or use store-bought fresh cauliflower rice) and use it in this recipe. If using fresh cauliflower rice, you’ll need to cook it first before adding it to the casserole mixture. Cover tightly with cling film and microwave for 4 minutes until soft. No, it cooks straight from frozen.
- Cook the bacon: Fry the bacon until crisp and crumble it into small pieces. Skip the bacon if you don’t have any cooked bacon on hand.
- Make the cheese sauce: In a saucepan over low heat, add 4 ounces of softened cream cheese and ⅓ cup of heavy whipping cream. Stir until the cream cheese is mostly melted. Add in the Mozzarella cheese and ½ cup of the cheddar cheese (reserving some cheddar for the topping). Stir until the cheese is smooth and melted. Whisk in the ranch seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, and chicken broth. Set aside.
- Combine ingredients: Add the steamed cauliflower rice and broccoli to a large bowl with the chicken, bacon, eggs, 2 1/2 cups cheddar, and spices.
- Assemble the casserole: Add shredded chicken and cauliflower rice to a 13x9 baking dish. Spoon into the prepared baking dish.
- Bake: Bake the keto cauliflower casserole in individual sized dishes to control serving size. Return to the oven for 10 more minutes (uncovered). Sprinkle with the remaining cup of cheese and return to the oven for 5-10 more minutes (uncovered). Cut into a piece of chicken to see if it's ready. Allow casserole to rest for 10 minutes (this helps the sauce thicken up). Bake for 20 minutes, until golden brown and very bubbly all over.
Tips and Variations
- Cheese Variations: Any type of cheese will work for this creamy chicken casserole so have fun with flavors.
- Add Vegetables: For extra color or nutrition, add 2 diced bell peppers and/or fresh/frozen spinach when roasting the cauliflower, if you want more color and more veggies.
- Make it Dairy-Free: I have not tried this with vegan cheese, but it may work.
- Spice it Up: Add a pinch of red pepper flakes or a dash of hot sauce for a kick.
- Use Ranch Dressing: Put ranch dressing on everything.
Serving Suggestions
- Serve this casserole as a main course for a satisfying and complete meal.
- Pair it with a side salad or a side dish of fresh fruit to stick to the ketogenic diet.
- It can also be served as a side dish.
Storing and Reheating
- Leftovers: Extra loaded keto cauliflower casserole can be kept in the fridge for 3 days or less. Be mindful of when the chicken was originally cooked.
- Freeze: Prepare the casserole as stated below, do not bake, simply wrap tightly and freeze until ready to bake. The casserole is ready to go from the freezer when you want it. You can also bake right from frozen for about 40 minutes, until hot, browned around the edges and bubbly.
- Reheating: Reheat leftovers in the microwave or oven until heated through.
Nutritional Information
(Note: Nutrition facts are auto calculated via an app and may not always be accurate. For best results, input your specific brand ingredients into a recipe calculator.)
- Calories: 713kcal
- Carbohydrates: 6g
- Protein: 23g
- Fat: 66g
- Saturated Fat: 34g
- Cholesterol: 181mg
- Sodium: 1646mg
- Potassium: 439mg
- Fiber: 1g
- Sugar: 1g
- Vitamin A: 1360IU
- Vitamin C: 35.4mg
- Calcium: 314mg
- Iron: 0.9mg
Read also: Easy Low-Carb Cheese Crackers
Read also: Keto Calorie Counting: A Detailed Guide
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tags: #keto #cauliflower #chicken #casserole #recipe