Whole30 + Keto Creamy Chicken Cauliflower Rice Casserole
Whole30 + Keto Creamy Chicken Cauliflower Rice Casserole Recipe + Video – cauliflower rice casserole with chicken, mushrooms + kale with a creamy dairy free sauce + crunchy low carb topping. Paleo, gluten free, grain free, sugar free, clean eating, real food.
Table of Contents
Whole30 + Keto Creamy Chicken Cauliflower Rice Casserole
This whole30 + keto creamy chicken cauliflower rice casserole is the ultimate in cozy, comforting meals. But couldn’t be healthier!
Only 9 carbs per serving, and dairy free!
Cauliflower Rice in a Keto Casserole
Rather than using grain rice for the casserole, I swapped in frozen cauliflower rice and it worked perfect!
You can use fresh cauliflower rice if that’s what you have, but I honestly prefer frozen the most. I find that it has the least cauliflower flavor, and is much less “farty” smelling, if you know what I mean, ha!
Creamy Sauce + Other Ingredients
The cream sauce is made from a combination of bone broth, soaked cashews + nutritional yeast. It makes a delicious, thick and creamy sauce that is completely dairy free! If you’re ok with dairy, you can substitute heavy cream instead of cashews. See recipe notes for substitution recommendations.
The keto casserole also has chicken, onions, mushrooms, kale + garlic. Perfect for winter. It is topped with the most genius crunchy topping: pork rind panko! Just ground up pork rinds. It gives it a great crunch. Do no skip this!
Make Ahead Keto Casserole
You can fully assemble this casserole earlier in the week, and then cook it the day you’re going to have it for dinner. You can even freeze it! I would just wait to add the pork rind panko until you’re going to put it in the oven. This way the pork rind panko will stay crispy!
This recipe makes a ton! Enough for 8 servings. Perfect for meal prep and to have leftovers for lunches and dinners!
Watch Cauliflower Rice Casserole Video Demo (3:37 minutes)
If you make this Whole30 + Keto Creamy Chicken + Kale Casserole be sure to leave a comment and give this recipe a rating! I love to hear from you all and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to share and tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Whole30 + Keto Creamy Chicken Cauliflower Rice Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 6-ounce chicken breasts
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 3 cloves of garlic, grated or finely minced
- 1 bunch of kale, stems removed, chopped (about 3 cups)
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup raw cashews, soaked overnight
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 3 teaspoons salt
- 3 12-ounce bags frozen cauliflower rice
- 1/3 cup pork rind panko, optional
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425ºF. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper for easy cleanup. Set in the wire baking rack. Place the chicken breasts on the wire rack, season with salt and pepper. Roast for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven, and chop into bite size pieces.
- Reduce your oven temperature to 350ºF.
- While the chicken is roasting, heat your cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil, onion and mushrooms. Season with 1 teaspoon salt + pepper. Sautee, stirring occasionally, until caramelized and golden brown. About 10 minutes.
- Add in the garlic, and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. Then add in the kale, and sautee until soft, about 5 minutes.
- To make the sauce, in your high speed blender combine the chicken stock, soaked cashews, nutritional yeast and salt. Blend on high for 60 seconds until completely smooth.
- When the kale is soft, stir in the frozen cauliflower rice and chopped chicken. Stir until completely combined. The cauliflower rice will still be frozen. The oven will do all the cooking of it!
- Pour the sauce all over the top of the casserole. Use a spatula to gently nudge it to be completely absorbed.
- Top the casserole with crushed pork rind panko.
- Bake in the 350ºF oven for 20-25 minutes, until bubbling and golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and let rest for 5-10 minutes. Serve warm.
- Leftovers will keep in an airtight container refrigerated for at least 5 days, or frozen for at least 6 months.
- As always, lots of tips, FAQs and substitution info in the Recipe Notes!
Notes
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68 Comments on “Whole30 + Keto Creamy Chicken Cauliflower Rice Casserole”
So disappointed. I had such high hopes. The flavor was good, but it was … I wouldn’t say it was soupy, but way too saucy. My husband described it as eating already chewed food. I was so disappointed. We ended up throwing it all out. Such a waste of food, time and money. 😩
I’m in the middle of cooking this and I think I messed up! I roasted the chicken breasts (they were 2 large ones) and they took about 35 minutes, not 25, to get to 165 degrees.
Are they supposed to be FULLY cooked (i.e., 165) – or do we just cook them for 25 and then they’ll continue to be cooked when the whole casserole is cooking?
I’m about to OVERCOOK my chicken, aren’t I? (p.s. i love your recipes! Thanks for them!)
That’s fine! Larger chicken breasts can take longer to cook. Always best to go off the internal temperature to get to 165ºF.
Hope you loved it!
I just made this & it was really soupy too, I had to bake it about an extra 30 min which I’m hoping is fine? I’m wondering if it’s because I don’t have a cast-iron skillet so I used a baking dish…the baking dish wouldn’t be hot going into the oven since everything wasn’t cooked in it on the stove so maybe that’s why some people are also getting a soupy outcome? either way, excited to have this prepped for the upcoming week’s dinners!
Darn! Maybe because of the cast iron skillet? Maybe it gets hotter and evaporates the liquid more? One thing that you can do is thaw the rice and squeeze out all the water using a dish towel!
For the many, many comments about this recipe being “soupy” I think it’s the water from frozen cauliflower. Together with the liquid mushrooms release, that’s a LOT. I used fresh cauliflower bits, coconut cream because I had no cashews, chicken thighs because I like them better, and no pork rinds, which aren’t W30 compliant. DELICIOUS!
Thanks for your input on why some commenters have had soupy results Jessica. It has always stumped me. I use frozen cauliflower and haven’t had that issue, but I know it is somehow the source. Making it with coconut cream sounds so delicious! Thank you so much for your feedback, it really means a lot to me.
Made this for dinner tonight and absolutely loved it. Perfect for a cold winter night!
I am so glad you loved it and it was perfect for a cold winter’s night Jen! Yeah!
I was super excited about this recipe but mine turned out really runny. I’m wondering what I did wrong.
Well shoot! Sorry the casserole turned out runny for you Noriko. Did you let it rest for about 10 minutes before serving it? That’s the only thing I can think of. If you serve it too quickly out of the oven, it won’t have time to properly set up. I sure hope it turns out better for you next time. I make it all the time and have never had it be runny so I apologize that I am stumped.
Ok, I made this recipe a week ago, but I have to leave a 5 star review because I can’t stop thinking about it! This definitely has the best “comfort food” feel and tastes better than any casserole I’ve ever made. I love that it made so much too so that I’ve had delicious, healthy lunches on hand all week. Thank you Natalie!
I just love that you made it a week ago and can’t stop thinking about it Chelsie. I am so glad it was your favorite casserole and delicious comfort food.
I have loved your recipes that I have tried, and this one is going on my list to make soon, for sure! I don’t eat pork, so I am wondering if you have any Whole 30 crunchy topping alternatives?
Since you don’t eat pork you could top the casserole with ground toasted nuts or seeds Amanda. That would be delicious! I sure hope you like the casserole!
Hi Natalie, do you think I could skip the yeast in the sauce?
Yes you can omit the nutritional yeast Courtney. The yeast gives it a ‘cheesy’ flavor, but I think the recipe would still be delicious without it.
So yummy! This is definitely a repeated recipe in our house :)
So glad you like it Lindsey!
This is just the casserole I needed! I made it today with canned and frozen mushrooms and it makes me so happy! These last couple days of Whole30 have been rough but this casserole is a lifesaver. Thank you so much for posting!
I am so happy you liked my casserole Shannon! Sometimes there is nothing better than a casserole to satisfy that craving for a delicious comfort meal. I am so glad this one hit the spot for you!
This is absolutely delicious – and it’s forgiving – I often add extra chicken and whatever amounts of cauli rice or kale I have – it still turns out perfect every time! It freezes so well (which is great since no one in my house will eat it) So I portion it into single serving containers and pull out of the freezer whenever I don’t feel like cooking!
I am so happy you liked my casserole Carolanne! I agree, it freezes beautifully. Storing it in individual servings is a fantastic idea! Thank you so much for sharing that.
Can I use walnuts in place of cashews? I do not have any at the moment.
I don’t think walnuts would work well, they won’t create the creamy sauce Drake. Do you have coconut cream, coconut milk or any nut based milk? That might work better. You could also try heavy cream and parmesan. I hope you have something on hand that works well.
I hope you enjoy this recipe!