Chicken Bacon Ranch Potato Casserole
Chicken Bacon Ranch Potato Casserole is a whole dinner in one! All topped with melty cheese and bacon. Picky eater approved!
A DELICIOUS DINNER ALL IN ONE PAN
I am really excited to share this recipe for Chicken Bacon Ranch Potato Casserole with you today. It turned out so, so good! I mean you really just can’t go wrong with potatoes, chicken, melty cheese and bacon, right? This is definitely one of those all-in-one meals that I really think your whole entire family will love. It is easily customizable to suit your family’s tastes!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
Yes, you can. If you forgot to pick up a bottle of ranch dressing, you can just season the potatoes and chicken with some ranch seasoning mix.
Yes. You can peel and dice russet potatoes instead of using baby gold potatoes.
Yes. Chicken thighs are a wonderful substitute as they are usually less expensive than chicken breasts. Just make sure to grab the boneless, skinless chicken thighs.
With this recipe, we are using ranch dressing to really give this chicken some flavor. In addition to the dressing, it is very important to also salt and pepper the chicken. You could also add a little garlic powder and/or paprika to the mix. This will all really infuse the chicken with a lot of flavor and save it from being too bland.
It is actually safe to put raw meat into casseroles. Once the chicken reaches the cooked temperature of 165F degrees, all the bacteria that might have been there will have been killed once the dish reaches that temperature.
This really is a whole meal in one. However, if you want to add some more vegetables to your plate, I suggest some steamed carrots or broccoli. Or serve with a delicious side salad (with ranch dressing, of course!)
Leftovers can be stored in a covered container, in the refrigerator, for 2 days. It can also be frozen in a freezer safe container for up to 2 months. Allow to come to room temperature, then microwave to reheat.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (FULL RECIPE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST)
- gold baby potatoes
- boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- Ranch dressing
- salt and pepper
- Mexican Cheese Blend
- bacon
- green onion
HOW TO MAKE LOADED BACON RANCH CHICKEN CASSEROLE:
Preheat oven to 450f. Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Dice potatoes into 1-inch cubes.
In a large bowl mix together the diced potatoes, salt & pepper and 1/4 cup ranch dressing. Note: It’s really important you add a bit of salt & pepper along with the ranch dressing. It makes a difference in the flavor.
Scoop the potatoes into prepared baking dish (save that bowl, we’re going to use it again for the chicken.
Bake the potatoes for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until almost thoroughly cooked (they won’t be fork tender quite yet.)
While the potatoes are cooking, start cutting up the chicken breasts.
Add the cutup chicken to the bowl you used to the potatoes and add salt and pepper and the remaining 1/4 cup ranch dressing.
Once the potatoes have cooked 30 minutes, remove baking dish from the oven and lower the oven temperature to 400F. Top the cooked potatoes with the raw marinated chicken. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil (Warning: Baking dish will be VERY hot so use oven mitts to do this.)
Place baking dish back in the oven and cook for an additional 20 minutes (or until chicken is fully cooked.)
Take baking dish out of the oven and top with shredded cheese, bacon and green onion.
Place back in oven for 8-10 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly.
CRAVING MORE RECIPES?
Chicken Bacon Ranch Potato Casserole (+Video)
Ingredients
- 1.5 pounds baby gold potatoes
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1/2 cup prepared ranch dressing, divided use
- 2 cups Mexican Cheese blend
- 1 cup cooked and crumbled bacon
- 1/2 cup diced green onion
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450F degrees. Spray a 9"x 13" baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- Dice the potatoes into 1-inch cubes.
- In a large bowl mix together the diced potatoes, salt & pepper and 1/4 cup ranch dressing.
- Pour the potatoes into prepared baking dish and spread out evenly (save that bowl, we're going to use it again for the chicken.)
- Bake the potatoes for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until almost thoroughly cooked (they won’t be fork tender quite yet.).
- While the potatoes are cooking, add the cubed chicken to the bowl you used for the potatoes and add salt and pepper and the remaining 1/4 cup ranch dressing (see my notes below about additional seasoning ideas).
- Once the potatoes have cooked 30 minutes, remove baking dish from the oven and lower the oven temperature to 400F degrees.
- Top the cooked potatoes evenly with the raw marinated chicken.
- Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil (Warning: Baking dish will be VERY hot so use oven mitts to do this.)
- Place baking dish back in the oven and cook for an additional 20 minutes (or until chicken is fully cooked and has reached 165F degrees internal temperature).
- Take baking dish out of the oven and top with shredded cheese, bacon and green onion.
- Place back in oven for 8-10 minutes (or until cheese is melted and bubbly).
Video
Notes
- Leftovers can be stored in a covered container, in the refrigerator, for 2 days. It can also be frozen in a freezer safe container for up to 2 months. Allow to come to room temperature, then microwave to reheat.
- Chicken thighs can be used instead of chicken breasts.
- Don’t forget to also season the chicken and the potatoes with salt and pepper. In addition, try adding some garlic powder and/or paprika to your seasonings.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Originally published: February 2016
Updated and republished: December 2021
very easy to make and it was delicious!
This recipe was the best I have tried!!! It tastes just like a baked potato with all of the fixings! One thing I did was prep the chicken, potato and onion in advance before I started making the recipe. I can’t wait to make this for other family members!!!
This makes me so happy to read Jessica! Thank you SO very much for taking the time to come back and leave a comment!
Trying new recipes is not something I normally do, however, this looked good and the family LOVED it. This one I can see making MONTHLY if not more often! YUM
This turned out really good. I used red skin potatoes and the dry ranch mix. I also added a little of my own chicken seasoning to the chicken. It was SO good & easy to make!!
Thanks so very much Janet! So happy this was a hit!
can I make this with already cooked shredded chicken?
Yes, you’ll have to play the cook time by ear because you don’t want the chicken to dry out from cooking too long since it’s already cooked.
This casserole looks delicious! However, we are a family of only two people. So do you think I could cut all the ingredients in half to make a smaller casserole. Sometimes, even when you love the dish, you get tired of it. I read your notes on saving it in a freezer but I wanted to ask you about halving the casserole. Thank you.
Hi Susan, I don’t see any reason why you couldn’t cut this recipe in half. I totally understand!
I made this recipe tonight and it’s 101°. So to keep from using my oven for too long I cooked my potatoes halfway in the air fryer. Tossed them an oil and seasonings got them a little golden brown and then place them in the 9×13 and continue the rest of the recipe. It turned out perfect, I also used pepper jack cheese along with colby jack.
That’s wonderful Jessica – I know we don’t want the oven on too long when it is that hot out!!