Creamy Chicken and Asparagus Bake is an easy and very tasty casserole dinner! With tender chicken and asparagus in a cheesy dijon and lemon cream sauce - you are gonna love.
This chicken and asparagus casserole recipe is low carb, keto-friendly, gluten-free, and sugar-free. Perfect!
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Why You Will Love This Chicken and Asparagus Casserole
It's A Delicious Casserole Recipe
This casserole was a HUGE hit in my house. Who doesn't love melted cheese and cream? Add chicken and asparagus and it's a tasty combination. Add a little dijon and some lemon and it becomes drool-worthy! 🙂
It's An Easy Casserole
Saute your ingredients in a pan, toss into a casserole dish, make your sauce, bake and you're done!
Technically you can make this a one-pan casserole by using an ovenproof skillet then adding the chicken and asparagus back into the pan. Work the sauce over the chicken then sprinkle with cheese and then bake!
It's Low Carb and Keto
With 26 g fat and only 6 grams net carbs, this creamy skillet dinner is a perfect low carb and keto chicken recipe.
How to Serve
Here are a few ideas for what to serve with your chicken and asparagus bake casserole. I've provided some low carb keto option as well as non-low carb options since so many families have mixed dietary needs.
Low Carb and Keto Options:
- Roasted or steamed cauliflower Cauliflower. Florets or riced.
- Steamed broccoli. Florets or riced.
- A side salad with a keto-friendly dressing such as blue cheese or thousand island.
Non Low Carb Options:
- Mashed potatoes
- Roasted potatoes
- Pasta
- Rice
Ingredients and Tools
Ingredients
- Butter
- Chicken breast, boneless skinless
- Asparagus, cut into 1" to 2" pieces then steamed
- Onion, diced
- Mushrooms, sliced
- Chicken broth
- Heavy cream
- Kosher salt
- Pepper
- Thyme
- Mayonnaise (I used a keto-friendly avocado oil mayonnaise)
- Dijon mustard
- Lemon juice
- Gouda, shredded (swiss is great too). Set aside 1/4 cup.
- Parmesan cheese. Set aside 1/8 cup.
- Optional thickener: 1 tbsp cornstarch or 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
Tools
- 12" skillet (cast iron is my favorite)
- casserole dish
- chef's knife
- cutting board
- measuring spoons
- dry measuring cups
- liquid measuring cups (the best!)
How To Make Creamy Chicken and Asparagus Bake
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a 12" skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat. (See image 1 below)
Add chicken to the pan and cook for 6 minutes. Turn chicken after 3 to 4 minutes or when it begins to brown. (See image 2)
Remove chicken and place in a casserole dish. Top with the steamed asparagus. Cover and keep warm. (See image 3)
Add onions and mushrooms to skillet. Sautee until tender. (See image 4)
Reduce heat to medium and add chicken broth, cream, salt, pepper, thyme, dijon, mayonnaise, and lemon juice. Whisk together and bring to a simmer. (See image 5 below)
Cook until sauce reduces and starts to thicken about 8 to 10 minutes. Stir frequently. (See image 6). (Optional) stir in xanthan gum mixed with 1 tsp olive oil to further thicken sauce if needed, stir.
Add cheeses then stir until melted. Pour the mixture over the casserole). (See image 7)
Sprinkle with remaining cheeses. (See image 8) Bake for 30 minutes until bubbly and chicken is done.
Expert Tips
- The chicken can be cut into bite-size pieces and then cooked in the skillet.
- Make this a one-pan casserole by using an ovenproof skillet. Finish the sauce then add the chicken and asparagus back to the pan. Stir, making sure sauce is covering the chicken. Top with cheese and then bake.
- You can add 1/2 cup sour cream if you want more creaminess too! You will have to adjust your salt and pepper to taste.
- When adding xanthan gum to a dish, dissolve it in a little olive oil (1 tsp) before adding so it won't clump. Use xanthan gum sparingly as A little goes a long way! I turned a dish into a gummy mess once, so I know first hand! In this recipe, start with 1/2 tsp only.
📋 Recipe
Creamy Chicken and Asparagus Bake
Creamy Chicken and Asparagus Bake is an easy and very tasty casserole dinner! With tender chicken and asparagus in a cheesy dijon and lemon cream sauce - you are gonna love. This chicken and asparagus casserole recipe is low carb, keto-friendly, gluten-free, and sugar-free. Perfect!
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp butter
- 1 1/2 lb chicken breast, boneless skinless
- 1 lb asparagus, cut into 1" to 2" pieces then steamed
- 1/4 cup onion, diced
- 8 oz mushrooms, sliced
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise (I used an avocado oil mayonnaise)
- 1 tbsp dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp xanthan gum or 2 Tbsp flour (option thickener; xanthan gum is the low carb option)
- 1 1/2 cup gouda or swiss, shredded (reserve 1/4 cup parmesan for the top)
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese (reserve 1/4 cup parmesan for the top)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a 12" skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat.
- Add chicken to the pan and cook for 6 minutes. Turn chicken after 3 to 4 minutes or when it begins to brown.
- Remove chicken and place in a casserole dish. Top with the steamed asparagus. Cover and keep warm.
- Add onions and mushrooms to the skillet. Sautee until tender.
- Reduce heat to medium and add chicken broth, cream, salt, pepper, thyme, dijon, mayonnaise, and lemon juice.
- Whisk together and bring to a simmer. Cook until sauce is reduced and starts to thicken about 8 to 10 minutes. Stir frequently. (Optional) stir in xanthan gum to further thicken sauce if needed, stir.
- Pour the mixture over the casserole. Stir in cheese.
- Sprinkle the top with the remaining cheeses. Bake for 30 minutes until bubbly and chicken is done.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 543Total Fat: 34gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 173mgSodium: 1026mgCarbohydrates: 12gNet Carbohydrates: 9gFiber: 3gSugar: 4gProtein: 49g
DISCLAIMER: Any changes to this recipe could change the nutrition facts. Nutrition facts are provided as a reference only and are calculated to the best of our ability using Nutritionix. If you are concerned, always calculate your own nutritional analysis. The information provided on Seeking Good Eats is for informational use only and we are not liable for how that information is used. The information provided by Seeking Good Eats is not a substitute for professional medical advice or treatment for specific medical conditions. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat a health problem without consulting a qualified healthcare provider.
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This creamy chicken and asparagus bake is so delish! Tender chicken, sauteed asparagus in a cheesy dijon and lemon cream sauce make this recipe oh so good! Yum! Simple steps and easy to make, this casserole is a perfect keto dinner recipe. Make it an oven proof skillet for a perfect one-pan dinner that is also a low carb and keto recipe. #casserole #chicken #keto #lowcarb #ketogenic #ketodinnerrecipe #easyrecipe #ketogenic #healthydinnerrecipe #asparagus #seekinggoodeats
Sherri says
Wow... this is amazing!!! This will become a staple recipe in my house.
seekinggoodeats says
Thank you!! 🙂 So happy you loved it. You've inspired me to add it to my menu this week again LOL!
Kristen says
Any suggestions if I’m not a mushroom fan?
seekinggoodeats says
You can just take them out and I think it will still be yummy. Do you like zucchini? A little sauteed diced zucchini would be good too.
Erica says
Made this in my ninja foodi and it is amazing.
seekinggoodeats says
Oh yay! So happy to liked the recipe. GREAT idea!! I have a Ninja Foodi too and I LOVE it!! I am going to give that a try for sure
Tamara says
Smells and taste delicious
Kori says
Great! Enjoy 🙂
Julie says
I know I can do some tweaks like no salt added butter and broth but how else can I lower the sodium content since this list has sodium over 1k mg
Kori says
I would use unsalted butter, a lower-salt chicken broth and then reduce the amount of cheese. Try using 1 cup gouda instead of 1 1/2 cups. Maybe use 1/4 cup parmesan instead of 1/2 cup. These things will alter the flavor and consistancy, however. If you lower the cheese, lower the amount of chicken broth. The cheese acts as a binder in the end. When I ran the recipe through the calculator I am finding that the cheese is adding quite a bit of the sodium - almost half in this recipe. It's hard because each cheese brand is different so it's quite difficult to get this exact. Let me know how it turns out! 🙂
Linda says
Anyone try making it ahead and baking the next day? I Do a lot of meal prep on Sundays for later in the week.
Kori says
Yes, me! I meal prep on Sundays A LOT 🙂 Prep and assemble it all, store in the fridge until you're ready to bake.
Gabriela Day says
Can you do this with drumsticks and thighs?
Kori says
I think that would be quite good! If it were me I would use bone-in drumsticks and thighs. If you use skin-on I would brown the skin for a few minutes first. From there I would place the chicken in the casserole dish, then pour the sauce + veggie mix over the top. It will need to bake longer, maybe 45 to 55 minutes (?) or until chicken is done.
Michele says
I made this tonight and it was outstanding. I had to substitute half and half for the heavy cream and I used Swiss cheese, otherwise I followed the recipe. My son had his over buttered noodles and we ate ours over rice.
Kori says
Great! Thank you so much! I'm so glad you enjoyed the Chicken and Asparagus Bake! Swiss cheese would be so delicious 🙂
Lola says
Would it be alright to fully cook the chicken before assembling in the baking dish? Then broiling to get cheese on top melted?
Kori says
Yes, absolutely that would work. The sauce is already warm and the chicken will be cooked so it's just a matter of melting the cheese and double-checking that the inside is warm enough to your liking. I hope you enjoy this recipe!