This Easy Broccoli Cheese Casserole comes together quickly with a few flavorful ingredients to make a creamy and cheesy casserole with a crunchy topping.
Why are vegetables just a little bit better with cheese on top? I guess that begs the question – what isn’t better with cheese on top? You know, I’m not really sure. All I know is, this Easy Broccoli and Cheese Casserole is a cinch to make, and it’s loaded with cheese, creamy broccoli goodness, and a crunchy topping.
Are you drooling yet? I am.
What Ingredients Do I Need?
This is really simple to make. All it takes is some butter, onion, flour, cream of chicken soup, and milk for the creamy base. If you want to make this totally from scratch, try my homemade condensed cream of chicken soup. But, the store-bought stuff will do, too.
The rest of the casserole comes together with fresh broccoli, Cheddar cheese (grate your own, don’t use the bagged stuff), and some panko breadcrumbs. They’re the best for adding crunch. If you love a classic Ritz cracker topping, you could substitute crushed crackers, but I like the light crunch of the panko for this broccoli casserole.
How To Make Broccoli Cheese Casserole
First, if you’re going to be baking it right away, get your oven preheated to 350°F.
Next, you’ll melt butter in a large skillet and cook your diced onion until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the salt, pepper, and flour and cook for 3 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste.
Add the milk and cream of chicken soup (homemade or canned) and stir well. Turn the heat to low. Remove the florets from the fresh head of broccoli and give them a chop into bite-sized pieces and grate the Cheddar cheese.
Stir the chopped broccoli florets and about 2/3 of the cheese into the pan and stir until everything is coated. The rest of the cheese is for the topping.
Pour your broccoli mixture into a 9×13 inch baking dish. Top with the panko breadcrumbs and the remaining cheese. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the casserole is bubbling and golden.
Want to prep the casserole earlier in the day or the day before you’ll be eating it? Let it cool, cover, and refrigerate. You’ll also want to wait to add the topping until it’s ready to go in the oven.
This is one of those side dishes that you will see people coming up for seconds, thirds… and I won’t even tell if you have a fourth helping.
Want more recipes that have that amazing flavor combination of broccoli and cheese? Try my Broccoli Cheese Soup and Broccoli and Rice Casserole. They both use frozen broccoli to make things even easier for you!
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Easy Broccoli Cheese Casserole
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
DESCRIPTION
This Easy Broccoli Cheese Casserole comes together quickly with a few flavorful ingredients to make a creamy and cheesy casserole with a crunchy topping.
Ingredients
- 3 Tbsp. butter
- 1 onion, diced
- ½ tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. pepper
- 2 Tbsp. flour
- 1 + ½ cups milk (I used 2%)
- 2 (10.5 oz.) cans cream of chicken soup, or try my homemade recipe
- 1 head broccoli
- 8 oz grated cheddar cheese
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Dice the onion while you heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the butter to the skillet and melt.
- When the butter is melted, add the diced onion and cook for 5 minutes until translucent.
- Add the salt, pepper, and flour. Cook for 3 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste.
- Add the milk and cream of chicken soup and stir well. Turn the heat to low.
- Remove the florets from the broccoli and give them a chop into bite-sized pieces. Grate the cheese.
- Stir the chopped broccoli florets and about 2/3 of the cheese into the pan until everything is coated.
- Pour everything into a 9×13 inch casserole dish.
- Top with the panko breadcrumbs and the remaining cheese.
- Place into the oven for 25-30 minutes, or until the casserole is bubbling and golden.
This post originally appeared in October 2018 and was revised and republished in August 2022.
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