With the bold flavors of garlic, parmesan, and bacon this easy keto casserole will please the most reluctant low carb eater. My Chicken Bacon Spinach Casserole is great when you are pressed for time. It is easy, flavorful, and can be made ahead. You can even make it in a crockpot. This easy keto casserole recipe is low carb, keto, gluten-free, grain-free, sugar-free, and Trim Healthy Mama friendly.
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I've made this keto casserole so many times over the last few months it's amazing my kids haven't complained. But they still love it. This is the only way to get some of them, or all of them, to eat spinach. When I'm craving a little rich and creamy comfort food this is one of my go-to keto casserole recipes.
How to make a keto casserole
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 to make a casserole in a crockpot
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.
What ingredients are in the sauce?
My typical sauce base for casseroles is cream cheese, mayo, and sour cream. This is how I can get a smooth and rich sauce without using any cans of condensed soup.
Chicken, chicken, and more chicken
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 .
I was slightly less excited when he brought home 12 pounds of chicken breast because the freezer was packed after my Costco trip the day before. I managed to squeeze one pack in any way and we cooked the rest.
This casserole was invented about halfway through our chicken week when I just needed something that tasted less like chicken. So, in other words, it needed bacon. This Chicken Bacon Caesar Casserole has already gotten rave reviews from everyone who has tried it.
What else is in this keto chicken casserole?
This is very similar to my Chicken Bacon Ranch Casserole . If you've tried that one and liked it there is high probability you will like this one too. Instead of dried herbs, there is parmesan cheese and roasted garlic powder. Instead of cheddar, there is mozzarella. But there is always bacon .
More keto casserole recipes:
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Ingredients
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- 4 oz sour cream
- 4 oz mayo
- 2 teaspoon roasted garlic powder (this is worth the investment, the flavor is amazing!)
- 2 teaspoon dried minced onion
- 2-2.5 lb cooked chicken , cubed
- 12 oz bag frozen spinach , thawed and drained
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 4 slices crisp cooked bacon or ¼ 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 ½ the bacon and mix well.
-
Dump into a 9x13 baking dish sprayed with cooking spray. Sprinkle remaining cheese and bacon on top.
-
Bake until hot about 35 minutes.
Nutrition
Originally Published March 12, 2016. Revised and Republished January 18, 2020.
Candy says
Awesome recipe! Thank you!
Rita says
I made this for dinner. We thought it was a bit dry, not saucy at all, but thick. I added some melted butter as well. The flavor was delicious. I have leftovers and will reheat with either heavy cream or chicken stock.
Taryn says
Not all casseroles are 'saucy' but as long as the chicken isn't dry the casserole shouldn't be dry. You are always welcome to double the amount of sauce or add some chicken broth.
Cassie says
Can you freeze this afterwards?
Taryn says
Yes, it freezes well.
TamiJoy says
This looks outstanding! Can’t wait to try it!
Kathryn says
Thanks for another great recipe!! I made this with pre cooked frozen chicken and real bacon bits because I had a time crunch. The only change I made was I added one small bag of riced cauliflower. I always like to add extra veggies. I didn’t pre cook the cauliflower and it cooked perfectly when baking the dish. My family gobbled it up!! It’s really delicious. I served it with a side salad. Yum!!
Patrick says
This ingredient list is missing a lot of items that are referenced in the directions. Example: chicken and bacon. Would have loved to try this recipe, but there's just no way of knowing what is really in this.
Taryn says
Patrick, I don't think you are looking at the right section. You need to scroll down to the recipe card. That does have all the information needed.
Eva says
Does the chicken need to be cooked before putting in the mixture or can I just add the uncooked chicken and have it cooked in the oven?
Taryn says
If you add uncooked chicken it releases liquid while cooking and makes the sauce thin. It will end up soupy. That is why most casseroles call for pre-cooked meat.
Sue says
A great recipe thanks. I did a few changes to suit what I had. I didn't have sour cream, so I changed it for cream cheese eith juice of 1/2 a lemon, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika and some dried dill. I added 1 1/2 chopped capsicum and about a cup of fresh baby spinach. Thank you.
Granee says
Yummy. Always brings a chuckle when I read reviews stating how delicious a recipe is, then goes on to say ( I added this and this and that)
Karen Campanaro says
Delicious, easy and extremely low carb, which makes it the perfect keto recipe in my book. It’s a favorite I have made many times!
Marilyn says
The recipe was easy to make and delicious. What I like best was it didn't taste heavy. I love anything with spinach in it. Perfect dish for everyone.
Barbara J & Douglas L West says
You mention using a crockpot? This would work better for us (great-grandparents, very old).
How long would you set the timer for?
Thanks for all your wonderful recipes!
Taryn says
My suggestion for the crockpot is to cook the chicken first, then cut it up, dump the cooking liquid, and add it back with the other ingredients. Just turn it on again until it is hot. If you put everything in at once the cooking liquid from the chicken will make the sauce very thin.
Sarwar says
Looks Really Amazing.
Jamie Jennings says
Can you use dairy free options?
Taryn says
I am not familiar with using dairy-free cheeses. I do have a recipe for a dairy-free casserole using coconut cream and mayo: https://joyfilledeats.com/chicken-zucchini-casserole/ You could sub in that sauce with the rest of these ingredients.
Joshua says
Can you leave out the spinach for the picky eaters? Could you substitute store bought Caesar dressing?
Taryn says
Yes to leaving out the spinach. I do not recommend using bottled dressing. The flavor won't be nearly as good!
Paula says
Could you use fresh spinach?
Taryn says
Yes, but it may make the casserole watery if you don't saute it first.
Katie says
Do you recommend sautéing the spinach first or just thawing and draining as the recipe calls for?
Taryn says
For frozen spinach, you can just thaw it and drain it. For fresh spinach, it is best to saute first.
A Willis says
How much is 1 serving?
Taryn says
1/8th of the casserole.
Cathy P says
My family really likes this recipe. I doubled it for our family of 10 (3 are children at this stage). I added a little extra sour cream to make it creamer. Delicious!
Tina says
This turned out really great! I didn't have as much chicken as the recipe called for, and had other veggies I needed to use before they went bad, so I added 3 large portabella mushrooms and some leftover broccoli to round it out and it was fabulous! I'll definitely be making this again!