King Ranch Chicken is a Southern favorite that’s usually loaded with carbs. Trust Chef Jenn to take a Southern casserole recipe like this and ketoize it! Read on to see all my chef tips and tricks to make this keto casserole perfect every single time!
Roll up your sleeves and dig into this totally keto and totally tasty keto King Ranch Chicken Casserole. This is another Southern favorite, just like my Southern Green Beans, Tex-Mex Beef Casserole, and Al Pastor Pork Carnitas.
Full of flavor, and with none of the carbs, this recipe is a true keeper.
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Before you go freaking out at the length of the ingredient list, remember that there are as many variations of this dish as there are BBQs in the South, and it is usually made with a can of cream of mushroom soup (not keto), a can of cream of chicken soup (not keto) and a bunch of other shortcuts.
I’ve taken all the flavors in this hearty dish and made it from scratch, doing all the work in figuring things out, so that you can make it, eat it, and feel great about your keto dinner!
How to Make Keto King Ranch Chicken Casserole
If you’ve got a Dutch-oven or oven-safe stovetop-to-oven dish, this can be a one-pot keto recipe. You make the sauce in the pot, load in the chicken, and then bake it all in the oven until it is hot, bubbly, and ooey-gooey cheesy goodness. That’s it!
Save yourself some time by using a rotisserie chicken, or use leftover baked chicken breasts, thighs, or whatever you’ve got.
You need a fair bit of chicken (4-5 cups), or you can easily halve this recipe to make a smaller amount. As it is, my family of four got two whole meals out of this. So, it’s a winner for keto meal prep, too!
You can thicken this dish with a 1/2 tsp of xanthan gum if you like, or leave it as-is. Don’t worry if it is a bit runny right out of the oven – it thickens up a bit as it sets.
Chef’s Tips
- Grab a whole rotisserie chicken from the supermarket to make this dish easy-peasy
- Add a chopped jalapeno if you want to add a bit more kick
- To cut down on the number of spices in this recipe, I used three heaping tablespoons of my Taco Seasoning, or use your own blend
- This dish can be prepped right up to baking and can be made a few days ahead of time
What To Serve with Keto King Ranch Casserole
This is such a hearty meal that you really don’t need much with it, except for maybe a salad, and if you want something crunchy, try these Cheesy Keto Crackers. And, if you’re craving something sweet for dessert, check out Kasey’s Low Carb Chocolate Mousse!
Like This? Also Try:
- Chicken Taco Casserole
- Instant Pot Beef Stroganoff
- Keto Shrimp Scampi
- and be sure to check out my cookbook page!
King Ranch Casserole (Keto, Low-Carb)
Ingredients
- 5 cups cooked chicken cubed
- 8 ounces mushrooms sliced
- 1 tbsp cooking oil
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 14 ounce Rotel tomatoes with Chilies
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 3 tbsp taco seasoning
- 1/2 cup red bell pepper diced
- 1 cup green bell pepper diced
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 cup monterey jack cheese shredded
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp cilantro. chopped
Instructions
- In a large oven-safe Dutch oven or skillet, heat the 2 tbsp of oil over medium-high heat and sautee the mushrooms and onions until just tender. About 6 minutes.
- Add the chicken stock and cream cheese. Lower the heat and combine well until the cream cheese has dissolved. Add the can of Rotel tomatoes with chilies.
- Add the 3 tbsp of taco spice, diced red bell peppers, diced green peppers, and chicken. Remove from the heat and add the 1 1/2 cup cheddar cheese. Season with the 1 tsp of salt or to taste.
- Mix in the 1 cup of sour cream and 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream.
- If you need to move the mixture to an oven-safe casserole dish, do that now. If it is already in an oven-safe dish, continue to step 6.
- Top with remaining Monterey Jack cheese and bake in a pre-heated 375-F oven until hot and bubbly (about 20 minutes but could be more or less depending on the size of your casserole dish.
- Garnish with some chopped cilantro, and dig in!
Notes
Nutrition
A Note on Nutritional Information
Nutritional information for this recipe is provided as a courtesy and is calculated based on available online ingredient information. It is only an approximate value. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site cannot be guaranteed. Erythritol carbs (sugar substitutes) are not included in the carbohydrate counts as they have been shown not to impact blood sugar, and they have zero calories and zero carbs. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber.
I have never heard of this before, but it looks like a delicious protein packed meal.
I’ve never heard of King Ranch Casserole before reading your recipe. It sounds delicious! All of my favorite ingredients all rolled into one comforting casserole. Thanks for enlightening me on something new today!
What a great casserole for busy weeknights! Definitely adding this to my dinner line up for the week!
It’s creamy, it’s cheesy, it has tomatoes. In short, good stuff. We love this and will make this often. 🙂
Under ingredients you show 1/2 cup onion and under directions it’s 1/2 cup green onion, can I use both?
Oh! That’s a typo! I should have said “diced green peppers”. You certainly could add green onions, too, but I’d save them for a garnish sprinkled on top. Sorry for the confusion! ~Jenn
Such a hearty dinner and so easy to make!
Made this tonight! Delicious. The entire family loved it. So easy to put together.
So glad you liked it! It’s a fav in my house, too!
This is so delicious. I use a Rotisserie chicken, which works out perfectly.
Thank you so much for doing all of the work to make this dish keto! Love that I don’t have to miss out on one of my favorite dishes anymore.
I love a one-pan meal that calls for chicken. My family will love this!
Love casseroles! I am always looking for some new and low carb recipe. Can’t wait to make it this week and.yum
Found some one carb tortillas ffrom Mr. Tortilla. I think that I will try to layer them in this. Miss my King Ranch casserole. We used to make it after Thanksgiving and use left over turkey.
Great idea! I think I’ll try it, too!
Chef Jenn,
Do you have any recommendations to replace the cilantro? I cannot tolerated the taste and usually avoid dishes that include it in the recipe. Thank you.
Hi, sure! You can swap out the cilantro and add parsley. It benefits from a fresh, herbal pop. Or, give it a bit of extra lime and just omit the cilatnro.
Can I used milk instead of whipping cream
Absolutely! It’s going to bump up your carb count a bit and the sauce may be a bit thinner, but yes, that’s a fine swap! ~Jenn