Chicken Spinach Casserole
My Chicken Spinach Casserole Recipe is great when you are pressed for time. With the bold flavors of garlic, parmesan, and bacon, this easy keto casserole will please the most reluctant low carb eater. It is easy, flavorful, and can be made ahead. You can even make it in a crockpot.
I’ve made this keto casserole countless times over the years, and amazingly, my kids still haven’t complained. But they still love it. This is the only way to get the little ones to eat spinach. When I’m craving a little rich and creamy comfort food, this is one of my go-to keto casserole recipes.
For more great casseroles, try my Chicken Tetrazzini Casserole or Keto Chicken Vegetable Casserole.
We eat a lot of chicken. It is very budget-friendly and easy to cook. You may remember me getting excited when my husband brought me home a two-pound bag of shrimp (which became this Thai Peanut Shrimp Recipe). I was slightly less excited when he brought home 12 pounds of chicken breast. The freezer was packed. So, I managed to squeeze one pack in somehow, and we cooked the rest, coming up with this creamy chicken spinach casserole in the process.
I originally published this post 10 years ago in March 2016 as ‘Chicken Bacon Caesar Casserole’. I’m resharing it now in June 2026 as ‘Chicken Spinach Casserole’ because it is so good and I want more people to find it. Same recipe, super delicious, new title.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Reader favorite with years of positive reviews
- Easy make-ahead meal
- Family-friendly keto casserole
- Great use for leftover chicken or rotisserie chicken
- Freezer friendly
Before You Get Started
- Drain frozen spinach very well to avoid a watery casserole.
- Let the cream cheese soften before mixing the sauce.
- Rotisserie chicken is the fastest option.
- Cook bacon until crisp since it softens slightly during baking.
Ingredients
- Chicken – You can use any type of cooked chicken. Rotisserie chicken, grilled chicken, baked chicken breasts, or tenderloins. You can chop it or shred it.
- Spinach – Frozen spinach that is well-drained or lightly sautéed fresh spinach both work. Raw fresh spinach can release too much liquid and make the casserole watery.
- Bacon – Freshly cooked and crumbled bacon or store-bought real bacon crumbles are both fine. One tip when using store-bought bacon pieces is to microwave them for a few seconds to bring out their flavor.
- Mozzarella cheese – Pre-shredded cheese saves time, but any shredded mozzarella will work.
- Parmesan cheese – Shelf-stable grated parmesan or refrigerated grated parmesan are fine.
- Cream cheese – I prefer full-fat cream cheese to make the creamiest sauce.
- Sour cream – Sour cream has a nice tang that balances the creaminess of the other sauce ingredients.
- Mayo – Any type will work. I prefer varieties with a milder flavor.
- Roasted garlic powder – Using roasted garlic powder instead of plain is a simple but very efficient flavor booster.
- Dried minced onion – Onion powder or minced fresh onion will also work.
- Salt & black pepper – Season to taste.
See quantities in the recipe card.
How to Make Chicken Spinach Casserole
1️⃣ Make the Sauce
Mix the sauce ingredients in a large bowl. Season to taste.
2️⃣ Add the Chicken
Stir the chicken, spinach, half the bacon, and the parmesan cheese into the sauce.
3️⃣ Put in Casserole Dish
Spray a casserole dish with olive oil cooking spray. Dump the filling into the baking dish. Spread evenly. Top with the remaining bacon and cheese.
4️⃣ Bake the Casserole
Bake until bubbly, hot, and golden brown on top.
Storage
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days. You can freeze this. Wrap tightly in plastic and freeze for 2-3 months. To reheat, thaw in the fridge overnight and reheat in the oven for the best results.
Variations
- Vegetables – Change out the spinach for cauliflower, broccoli, green beans, or your fave veggies. Kale can be subbed for the spinach.
- Tuscan – Swap in Tuscan seasoning and add sundried tomatoes for one of my favorite variations on this recipe. This is very similar to my Keto Tuscan Chicken Casserole.
- Pasta – If you don’t need this to be low carb or gluten-free, go ahead and mix in some al dente noodles. I would suggest doubling the sauce.
Make sure to try my Chicken Bacon Ranch Casserole, which uses cheddar and broccoli.
Common Questions
How can I make a casserole keto?
The simplest way to make any casserole keto-friendly is to leave out the starches. Most regular casseroles call for fillers like rice, pasta, or beans. In my low carb casseroles, I use proteins, vegetables, and fat. No starches.
How can I replace canned condensed soup in casseroles?
My typical sauce base for casseroles is cream cheese, mayo, sour cream, and seasoning. With this combo, you can get a smooth, rich sauce without using any cans of condensed soup.
What to Serve With Chicken Spinach Casserole
We usually serve this with a simple side salad, roasted broccoli, green beans, cauliflower rice, or garlic bread for the non-keto members of the family.
Can I use fresh spinach instead of frozen?
Yes. Lightly sauté fresh spinach first to remove excess moisture before adding it to the casserole. Raw spinach can release too much liquid while baking.
Can I make a casserole in a crockpot?
Yes! It isn’t hard to convert this to a slow cooker recipe. There are just three steps to making a chicken casserole in a crockpot instead of your oven.
- Cook the chicken in the crockpot. It is very important not to OVERCOOK the chicken, or you will have a dry casserole. Cook chicken breasts on low for 2.5 hours. Add a little chicken broth, butter or oil, and salt and pepper before cooking.
- DRAIN the cooking liquid. Cut up the chicken.
- Proceed with the rest of the casserole recipe. This time just cook it in the crockpot until it is hot.
The most important step is draining the cooking liquid. If you don’t do this, you will end up with soup instead of a casserole.
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Video
Chicken Spinach Casserole Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- 4 oz sour cream
- 4 oz mayo
- 2 tsp roasted garlic powder (this is worth the investment, the flavor is amazing!)
- 2 tsp dried minced onion
- 2-2.5 lb cooked chicken cubed
- 12 oz frozen spinach thawed and drained
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 4 slices crisp cooked bacon or 1/4 cup bacon crumbles
- 2 oz shredded mozzarella
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 if baking immediately. Or you can prep ahead and keep in the refrigerator for a day or two.
- Combine cream cheese, sour cream, mayo, and spices and mix thoroughly. I do this first in a big metal bowl.
- In the big bowl combine the cream cheese mixture you just made with the chicken, spinach, parmesan cheese, and 1/2 the bacon and mix well.
- Dump into a 9×13 baking dish sprayed with cooking spray. Sprinkle remaining cheese and bacon on top.
- Bake until hot about 35 minutes.
Nutrition
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Originally Published March 12, 2016. Revised and Republished June 1, 2026.
Where are the carbs coming from? I am on a no carb diet and this sounds amazing! Hoping I can make a simple change.
Dairy has some carbs, garlic powder has a little, as does the spinach.
What’s 4 oz of mayo?? 1/4 cup?
1/2 a cup
I made this recipe tonight using fresh spinach and cheddar cheese because that’s what I had. It came out wonderful, and my picky husband said it was a keeper! The fresh spinach did not make it runny at all. It was a perfect, creamy thick consistancy.
Made this last week – Delicious!! Making again tonight for company. Thank you!
Very tasty, thanks! Can it be frozen?
I have frozen this before in lunch-sized portions. It worked well.
I recommend you add about a tablespoon of dijon mustard, and about a tablespoon of fish sauce to get a more authentic Caesar flavor.
Hi Emily, thanks for those suggestions. I personally do not like when Caesar salad tastes fishy but that is definitely more authentic than my Americanized version. The mustard is a good idea though. I may try adding a little next time. We’d probably prefer a teaspoon to a tablespoon though.
Only change I made was to add artichokes. So delicious!
What is considered a serving? It sounds so good but I wanna know how much of it I can eat! Lol
A serving is 1/8th of the recipe. I normally just eye it up and scoop it onto plates.
So flavorful! Packs well in my lunch for work. Will definitely make again. Very creamy and spinach makes it more so rather than a chunky vegetable.
You mentioned having made this in a crockpot. What’s the cooking time in the crockpot, on high or low setting?
It really depends on your crock pot. I just cook it until the chicken is cooked through. Then I remove the chicken, drain the liquid, and proceed with the rest of the recipe. Add the casserole mixture back in, add the toppings, and cook for an additional 20 min or so to heat it and melt the cheese.
Pardon me if this was already asked and I just missed it, but could you use fat-free plain yogurt and low-fat cream cheese to cut out some of the fat? 70% daily value of saturated fat is a lot.
You can use low fat cream cheese but I’m afraid yogurt might separate. I do use cottage cheese in some of my other casseroles. I think that would be better than yogurt.
That’s bc it’s Keto..keto calls for high fat instead of carbs..
I tried this and the chicken was so tender it shredded. I wasn’t a fan of the texture so the next time, I cubed chicken breasts raw and made it and threw it in the oven till the top was golden (took 45 minutes or so. I liked it much better, which is to say I LOVED it and it is now a regular rotation (and sometimes spur of the moment) make ahead meal. If using raw chicken, I wouldn’t let it sit before baking. This freezes well after being cooked and separated out into individual servings or as a casserole for a family dinner. Thank you for a great recipe.
So you cubed the raw chicken and mixed it with the other ingredients to bake, not pre cooking the chicken at all?
I imagine cooking the whole batch for 45 minutes would cook the raw chicken. I myself would pre-cook the chicken. Much safer.
Love your blog.
My favorite recipe. We keep this on a regular rotation. I follow your recipe exactly. Perfect with a salad!
OMWord. I’ve been batch cooking all day long and I want this NOW!! It looks fabulous. Thank you so much for what I know will be a great recipe.
Can you make this ahead and freeze it?
Yes, I’ve done that successfully.