This Chicken Zucchini Casserole may become your favorite zucchini recipe. Learn how to make this quick, easy, and budget-friendly casserole for busy weeknight dinners.
We love easy casserole recipes like Easy Breakfast Casserole with Bacon, Creamy Chicken Enchilada Casserole, Butternut Squash Broccoli Casserole. And this Chicken Zucchini Casserole does not disappoint!

Why you’ll love this
- Incredibly tender and creamy - ground chicken in combination with soft baked zucchini under layers of sour cream and cheese - a total crowd-pleaser!
- Budget-friendly - a few simple, economical ingredients make this chicken zucchini casserole just from scratch without canned ingredients or cream soup needed!
- Easy to reheat - this chicken and vegetable casserole also re-heats super well - either in the oven at about 390 F (200 C) for approximately 10 minutes or simply pop in microwave.
- Easily Customizable - use ground beef or ground turkey with zucchini to make this casserole, but so far, chicken zucchini is my favorite.
If you like creamy chicken recipes be sure to check out these dishes: Creamy Chicken Pasta In White Wine Sauce, Creamy Chicken Taquitos (Baked Taquitos), Creamy Chicken With Spinach, Bacon And Sundried Tomatoes, Creamy Chicken Cheddar Cheese Sauce, Creamy Chicken Tacos, or simply type word ''chicken'' into the search bar.
Ingredients
- Zucchini - also called courgettes, is the main star ingredient that in my opinion is the best veggie to pair with chicken. It has soft, delicate texture and is best to use in stuffings, patties, fritters, cakes and breads. If you haven’t yet tried my 4 ingredient Chicken Zucchini fritters then they're about to become a hit in your family too. We make these often. Easy and very much kid-friendly and kid-APPROVED too! Ask my picky-eater 2 year old!
- Garlic powder and onion - the essential combo you can’t forget in almost every savory dish. I used both garlic and onion powder in case I am short on time or want to achieve more ''softer'' and not overpowering garlic/onion flavor which is simply delicious in my opinion (BUT powders are a great alternative when serving to kids).
- Carrot - isn’t essential, but it does add a little pop of color and taste which in combination with chicken zucchini tastes superb.
- Ground Chicken - can be substituted with rotisserie chicken or diced chicken instead. But I prefer ground chicken as it is so tender and perfect for this type of chicken casserole recipe. Your next options are ground turkey, ground beef/pork.
- Italian herbs - another needed ingredient for chicken zucchini casserole. These herbs enhance any simple casserole! But not essential, if you don't have it on hand it will still taste very good.
- Cheese - make sure to cover the top generously so you’ll have a thicker layer of cheese once done. But it’s personal preference, you can also add the only ¾ of a cup or less depending on the baking dish. Cheese lovers will appreciate!
Instructions
Need a different visual? This recipe is also available as a story!
In a medium bowl grate the zucchini and add 1 teaspoon of salt, set aside for 10-15 min to drain off the excess water.
Remove the excess water using a strainer and spoon or wrap the zucchini in a thin kitchen towel (or a special fabric is also available on amazon) and squeeze tight to get rid of the water.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C).
Once done, gather all the ingredients (except cheese and sour cream) in a large mixing bowl and stir with a spatula or hands until combined.
Prepare a 9x13 or slightly smaller baking dish, spray with cooking oil, and transfer the mixture into the dish. Even out the top with a spatula and layer the sour cream on top.
Bake the chicken zucchini casserole for 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and add the cheese, bake again for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.
Your Chicken Zucchini Casserole is ready! Garnish with parsley or scallions, cracked black pepper. Enjoy!
Serving suggestions
Being loaded with plenty of zucchini and chicken, this dish doesn’t necessarily need a vegetable side dish or salad of some sort. But if you do wish to add a little fresh salad (I highly recommend this easy Marinated Cucumber, Tomato and Onion Salad - this goes with anything!) or even Mashed Potatoes.
Tips
- Sour Cream - depending on your casserole dish size, add more sour cream as needed to cover the entire area as instructed in the recipe. Sour cream used here is mainly to add a little flavor without creating a thick sauce. But feel free to add even more if you prefer this way.
- Onion - brown or yellow onion is preferred and you can feel the flavor in the dish. If not so much of an onion fan, use a smaller onion or reduce the quantity in half.
- I used a smaller oval casserole dish for this, and if using the standard 9 x 13 inch you'll need to adjust the quantities slightly to fill up the space.
FAQ
Gluten Free Zucchini Recipes
Easy One Pot Recipes
- Healthy Vegetable Breakfast Frittata
- Creamy Chicken Bacon And Spinach Pasta
- Ground Beef and Cabbage
- Creamy Chicken Taquitos (Baked Taquitos)
I hope you'll enjoy this chicken zucchini casserole recipe and if you make it, please let me know about it in the comments or by tagging @theyummy_bowl under your picture on Instagram.
Thank you for reading,
Love,
Julia
Chicken Zucchini Casserole
INGREDIENTS
- 11-12 oz (300 g)Ground chicken
- 1 egg
- 1 carrot medium (grated)
- 1 large zucchini (grated)
- 1 medium brown/yellow onion (chopped)
- 3-4 tablespoon sour cream (or more as needed)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon cracked black pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste + for zucchini
- 1 ½ cup Cheddar or Colby Jack Cheese
- 1 teaspoon of Italian herb spice (or a mix of dried oregano, garlic, thyme)
INSTRUCTIONS
- In a medium bowl grate the zucchini and add 1 teaspoon of salt, set aside for 10-15 min to drain the excess water out.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C).
- Remove the excess water using a strainer and spoon or wrap the zucchini in a thin kitchen towel and squeeze thightly.
- Once done, gather all the ingredients except cheese and sour cream in a large mixing bowl and stir with a spatula or hands until combined.
- Prepare a 9x13 or slightly smaller baking dish (I used a smaller oval shaped dish), spray with cooking oil, and transfer the mixture into the dish. Even the top with a spatula and layer the sour cream on top.
- Bake for 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and add the cheese, bake again for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.
- Garnish with parsley or scallions, cracked black pepper.
PRIVATE NOTES
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)
Margo
Made this yesterday night for dinner and surprisingly very creamy and delicious. Thank you for the zucchini idea!
Julia
thank you so much, zucchini and chicken is the best combo we love!
Patty
This recipe is excellent! Even my daughter ate it. We added mushrooms to the recipe. I actually sauteed the onions and the mushrooms before adding everything together. I precooked the ground chicken a little bit also. Ground chicken usually comes in a package of 16 oz so our casserole just had a little bit of extra chicken in it. We put extra cheese on top because we are a cheese family. Make sure you wait the 10 to 15 minutes for all of the water to come out of the zucchini. It was amazing how much water came out of the zucchini when we waited.
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
That's so true! Zucchini needs some prep work for sure! And if you do it, it gives the best results!! Mushrooms sounds great, never thought about adding them here, and I am a huge fan of them! Which mushrooms did you use Patty?
Christa Herrera
Do I cook the meat first or is it like a meatloaf type of thing?
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
There is no reason to cook ground chicken before, it cooks in the casserole with the rest of the ingredients and juices. Hope it helps Christa!
Amber
Really enjoyed this recipe. I also sauteed the onions, but otherwise followed the directions. I do wish that the ingredients were in order of appearance.... Almost forgot the Italian seasonings.
Mary
Looks good!
I might make it with rotisserie chicken too.
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
yes, you sure can! Thank you Mary!
Linda
Made this yesterday following directions exactly. This was not a creamy casserole dish. It was a meatloaf with a lot of veggies in it. The layer of sour cream replaced the ketsup on many meat loaves. The onions were overwhelming and too raw to blend in the mix. Maybe some instructions were left out? Might have been better if ground chicken and chopped onions were sautéed then mixed with remaining veggies and a larger amount of sour cream to make a more casserole like and creamy dish. Won’t make this again.
Julia
Hi Linda, thank you for the feedback, and so sorry this casserole was not to your liking. For me personally, the casserole is more of a one-pot, super easy to make without extra separate cooking. You can fill the casserole dish with anything you like, right? Maybe you were expecting something else from this recipe, sorry for the dissapointment! If you decide on trying this one more time, here are my suggestions:
- Onion. You can use both, white or yellow/brown onion for this recipe, and each time they will vary in taste, this is normal. The casserole is in the oven for 35 minutes and if you cut the onion thin enough or small diced this is more than enough for the onion to soften and give flavor to other ingredients. Maybe use half less?
Another alternative is to saute the onion first separately on the stovetop, but this will change the whole purpose of an easy casserole dish and is not necessary as the onion will be cooked through if following the instructions. Also depends on the oven.
- Ground chicken is tender and soft enough to place in the casserole and will cook very quickly unlike ground beef for example. I do not recommend cooking the chicken twice like you are suggestions, there will be way less or no nutrients left in it anymore.
- Sour cream. Yes, I agree, you can add more, this is personal taste. Feel free to add an extra 2-3 tbsp if you feel like it. But there is plenty of cheese already in the dish that is even more than I usually add to casseroles. The sour cream is added a little bit for the flavor, not to make it look and taste like a cream sauce.
I hope you still try this again and feel free to let me know how it will go with the changes you've made.
Thank you!
Marilyn
I made this last night and everyone loved it. I added a little extra sour cream on top and a bell pepper to the mix. I will definitely make this again. Thank you for sharing it.
Julia
Thank you Marilyn, glad you liked it, thank you for leaving a comment!
Patty
Crimini/baby portabella! Yum!
Just made this again today! Back by popular request!
Georgene
I made this last night for dinner and was very good. I did have to drain the watery juice off when I took it out of oven to put cheese on top. I think my veggies could have cooked awhile longer also. Otherwise it was great! We will make it again real soon.
Julia
Thank you Georgene, I am very glad you liked it!
Tavo
Lovely casserole! Thanks for such a delicious recipe.The family loved it.
Julia
Thank you so much Tavo, glad you liked it!
Kirsten
This recipe looks great. However, my husband is not a fan of sour cream. Is it completely necessary or could we use something else as a substitute?
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
I think you could, any vegan substitute would work. However, without that, the flavor is not the same, sour cream (yogurt or cream cheese) adds the necessary moisture and creaminess. Maybe you could add this: https://theyummybowl.com/homemade-condensed-cream-of-chicken-soup/ or canned version , ofcourse. But this won't be that healthy anymore. If you try this Kirsten, please let me know how it tasted 🙂 Thank you so much! Julia
Lynne Bitten
Gonna use this to use the zucchini I have frozen. Will definitely thaw the zucchini and let set before adding to the recipe.
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
thank you Lynne, I think it should work, let me know!
Jacqueline Meldrum
I love the creamy dressing. It is so so tasty!
Julia
Thank you so much Jacqueline!
Andrea
This is such a great way to use up zucchini! I love how it incorporates chicken and lots of veggies while the cheesy goodness makes it comfort food.
Julia
I agree, A true comfort meal in one dish, thank you Andrea!
Alejandra
Oh my gosh this looks so creamy and delicious!! I love the chicken and zucchini combo, I’ve never tried that in a casserole before but now I am craving this!
Julia
Thank you Alejandra, we loved it too!
sue
I love this idea, I'm going to give it a try tonight!
Julia
Thank you, hope you'll enjoy!
Divi
I think I can precook it in the stove as one post suggested then top it with the sour cream and cheese and finish it in the oven till the cheese melts? Zucchini hardly takes much time to cook as the yellow one.
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
Hi Divi, I haven't tried it this way and not sure why would you need those steps. If you drain the zucchini well as I mentioned, there shouldn't be a lot of ''watery juice'' and zucchini bakes well in the oven at the temperature mentioned.
Cecile Mattei
Made this tonight. It was delicious and will be added to our dinner rotation! Ty
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
Thank you Cecile, glad you liked the Casserole! Enjoy!!!
Annette Starnes
LOVE, LOVE, LOVED this recipe. It came out perfect. WAS NOT LIKE A MEATLOAF.
We have friends coming over for Super Bowl and this will be our dinner and they will love it.
Thank you for creating amazing healthy recipes.
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
Annette, thank you so much! Your lovely comment made my day! I'm so glad it turned out great!
LDahl
This was absolutely delicious! I added 2 frozen blocks of “caramelized” onions and chopped garlic instead of the raw onions. We used a large cup to cut it into circles and had it on garlic bread buns. I would make it again and not add the cheese at the end, but instead a slice of cheese to the bun. It would also be delicious chopped a bit and added to mashed potatoes or noodles for a great cook summer supper.
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
Hi LDahl! That sound very different and interesting! Thank you so much for sharing!
Sharon Henson
I made this for supper and it was delishes
I did not change a thing.
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
Thank you Sharon, so glad you liked it!
Patty
Crimini/baby portabella! Yum!
Just made this again today! Back by popular request!
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
wohoo thanks so much Patty! This is our very much requested recipe too 🙂