This Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole will knock your socks off. It is so much easier than a traditional rolled and breaded cordon bleu and has even more flavor. With chicken, ham, and swiss in a creamy dijon sauce, you won't miss the breading one bit. Since you aren't coating or stuffing the chicken it is quick and easy. This is pure comfort food and an easy main course dinner. This easy recipe is low carb, keto, gluten free, grain free, sugar free, and Trim Healthy Mama friendly.
I love chicken cordon bleu. But it's always breaded.
This has been on my to-do list since my husband and I went to a fundraiser back in May. They had the best chicken cordon bleu ever. I knew I could make the same flavors into a killer casserole.
My casserole version was a hit with my family. I wasn't sure if the kids would like the swiss cheese (honestly, I'm not a huge swiss cheese fan) but it worked so well with this flavor combination there were no complaints.
What is Chicken Cordon Bleu
Here is a little history on this iconic dish (thank you, Wikipedia):
A cordon bleu or schnitzel cordon bleu is a dish of meat wrapped around cheese (or with cheese filling), then breaded and pan-fried or deep-fried. (Veal) cordon bleu is made of veal pounded thin and wrapped around a slice of ham and a slice of cheese, breaded, and then pan fried or baked.[1] For chicken cordon bleu chicken breast is used instead of veal.[2]Ham cordon bleu is ham stuffed with mushrooms and cheese.[3]
The origins of cordon bleu as a schnitzel filled with cheese are in Switzerland, probably about the 1940s, first mentioned in a cookbook from 1949. The earliest reference to "chicken cordon bleu" in The New York Times is dated to 1967, while similar veal recipes are found from at least 1955.[6]
What to serve with Chicken Casserole
I suggest serving this with a green salad or green vegetables such as garlic broccoli or roasted asparagus. You can also serve with keto mashed cauliflower.
What kind of sauce goes with Chicken Cordon Bleu
We love this creamy lemon sauce on our Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole. It is rich with the butter and cream cheese and the lemon juice, mustard, and white wine really help the flavors to pop.
Sometimes I just make the sauce and drizzle on chicken tenders or vegetables.
How to Make Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole
First Step: Layer chicken and ham in a 9 x 13 baking dish.
Second Step: Make the sauce and spread it on top.
Third Step: Layer on the cheese.
Fourth Step: Bake until hot, bubbly, and golden.
What to serve with Keto Chicken Cordon Bleu
This is a very rich casserole. Butter. Cream Cheese. Swiss Cheese. You get the drift. So I serve this with lighter side dishes like a green salad, oven-roasted green beans, steamed cauliflower, or roasted asparagus.
Tips & Tweaks
I've had readers sub in other mild cheeses like provolone, mozzarella, or Havarti so feel free to tailor this to your family's tastes.
One of the most important things for this recipe to make sure the chicken is nice and juicy. If the chicken is moist this will be moist and flavorful. If you are started with dry chicken I recommend making 1.5 times the sauce to compensate. Or even doubling it.
You can even save a step by baking chicken tenderloins, draining the cooking liquid, and then proceeding with the recipe. No shredding required!
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Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole – Low Carb
Ingredients
- 6 cups shredded cooked chicken (from about 2 lb chicken)
- 6 oz ham cut into bite size pieces
- 4 oz butter melted
- 6 oz cream cheese softened
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon white wine (optional)
- 1 oz lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 5 oz swiss cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350. Put the chicken in the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish. Layer the pieces of ham on top.
- In a large bowl with an electric mixer combine the melted butter, softened cream cheese, white wine (if using), mustard, lemon juice, and salt. Blend until a thick sauce forms. Spread this sauce over the chicken and ham in the baking dish.
- Lay the slices of swiss cheese on top of the sauce. Bake for 30-40 minutes until hot.
- I broiled it for 2 minutes at the end so the cheese would get more golden and bubbly. If you decided to do that do not leave it unattended. It's very easy to burn the cheese topping.
Video
Notes
- If you have a bottle of dry white wine open it adds a nice flavor. But I wouldn't open a new bottle just for this recipe. Unless you are planning on having a glass while you cook.
- If your shredded chicken is on the dry side you may want to double the amount of sauce or add in ¼ cup of chicken broth and mix the sauce into the shredded chicken before adding the toppings.
- You can use chicken tenderloins instead of shredded chicken. Just cook, drain the cooking liquid, and then proceed with the rest of the recipe.
Nutrition
Originally Published August 31, 2016. Revised and Republished with a new video on May 6, 2019.
Tracy says
Very tasty...I doubled the sauce but will use less butter next time 😊
Jennifer says
Loved this recipe! So easy to make and tastes great!
Suzy says
This was tasty. I accidently added to much ham, so it was a bit salty. Kids did not care of it at all, ugh. Teens! lol. It's a pretty rich dish, so I think I"ll add a bit more chicken next time.
Barbara W says
This was absolutely wonderful. My husband is on a Keto diet and I found this jewel this afternoon, so just had to try it tonight. I can’t say enough positive things about the recipe. We both loved it. The flavor was perfect and such an easy recipe. We will have this again very soon. Next time my daughters and their families come over for dinner this will be on the menu. Thank you so much for sharing it.
Rachael says
My family loved it! I’m making it again tonight. I would recommend doubling the sauce and mixing it into the shredded chicken instead of spreading it over the top. Once it had baked, I found myself mixing the sauce into the shredded chicken so the flavor blended.
Carol says
Very good but I'd recommend doubling the sauce. It seemed to disappear in the oven, but the flavor was outstanding regardless!
Tamara says
Very good but will definitely cut back on the butter!
Whole family loved it 😊
Katy Price says
What kind of ham do you use? Is it deli sliced ham (like for sandwiches?) or is it cubed ham? Or a ham steak cut up?
Taryn says
I prefer to use cut up deli ham. But any of those will work. I prefer the deli ham because it adds that ham flavor without changing the texture like bigger pieces of ham do.
Samantha says
I made them into cups with carb balance street taco shells as the crust in a muffin pan!!
Delicious 😋.
Krystin A. Daniels says
Making this delicious recipe for the second time tonight. It's quickly becoming a fav. Thank you Taryn 😊
Alli says
It's always nice to find a recipe my carb-loving bf and 9 y/o will also eat! I cooked two chicken breasts in the instant pot, shredded them, and put them in a 8x8 pan. Covered with ham, about half of a (diced) zucchini, then sauce. Topped with Swiss. Cooked for 35 mins, with a few more under the broiler.
It turned out really great, and the 8x8 made more than enough for three of us. We each ate 1/4, and there's 1/4 leftover. I'll definitely make it again, but I'll use half as much butter and lemon juice next time. (I followed the recipe for the sauce, but it makes sense that you wouldn't need 'as much' sauce for the smaller pan.) The zucchini also added a little liquid when it cooked down.
Teri Tibbetts says
This was so good!! when I make it again, I will cut the butter in half. Maybe throw in a half bag of cauliflower rice to make it "firm up" a little. My husband and I loved it, thank you!
SMR says
Good idea...but had to punch it up a bit.
- cut butter in half
- increase cream cheese by 50%
- added chunks of gruyere which I mixed in with the chicken
- spiced up the sauce with smoked paprika, cayenne, onion powder and cumin
Might need a little heavy whipping cream as well, probably 1/3 cup.
Taryn says
Giving 4/5 stars when you completely change the recipe isn't helpful. The original recipe is great as is.
Psever says
Meh...I liked it ok and followed the recipe exactly. If I make it again, I would use shredded cheese instead of sliced. It got too tough to eat in the finished dish.
kit says
my college age boys request this casserole constantly! they are keto followers, work out and very fit (dont know who raised them) lol my husband even enjoys it too. super easy with rotisserie chicken and i always have to make a double batch. thanks for recipe
Kelsey says
I love this recipe! Do you know if this can be prepared ahead of time and frozen?
Taryn says
Yes, I’ve had readers freeze this successfully. I haven’t frozen it myself but I’d suggest freezing after you layer the ingredients (with cooked chicken) but before baking. Make sure your chicken isn’t dry.
Beth Ann Borth says
I am just starting out on a keto/weight loss journey. It has been hard to find a recipe both my son and I can eat with minimal adjustments for him. We have also been looking for a good, easy cordon bleu recipe for a while now. This one is also keto so it's a triple winner! There's only two of us so I halved the meat amounts but left the sauce alone and just covered the top with cheese. I did sprinkle on some herbs de provence after the first taste. That put the flavor over the top. My son is not a fan of mustard in any form but he loved it! I served it with some buttered noodles for him. I will be making this again!
Kylie P. says
Hi, was just wondering..why the use of melted butter in the sauce? Is it just for taste?
Taryn says
Taste and texture. It's delicious. Trust me. I could eat this sauce with a spoon. lol.
Laura says
I’m giving this 5 stars since it is so good. But I think it needs some adjustments. 1 ounce lemon!?! I just juiced 1/2 lemon. I added about 1/2 tsp smoked paprika and the same garlic powder. Those were the only changes. My sauce wasn’t thick. Probably because of the lemon. It was still very good and melded nice even with runnier sauce. But it was so so rich! Next time I’m not doing butter but adding a nut milk. There will be a next time though. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Deb says
Delicious recipe. My husband wanted it again the next night!
I followed your instructions and even patted my ham dry but the sauce was quite liquidy - definitely butter. You called for 4 ounces of butter which is 8 Tablespoons. Should it be 4 Tablespoons? As my dear hubby loves butter he had no complaints!
(I think it would have helped if we would have let it sit but 10 minutes but it just looked too good to wait!)
Taryn says
Yes, it does thicken as it cools. I use a full 8 tablespoons of butter but if you want to use 4 tablespoons that would be fine.