Looking for comfort food with a dairy-free twist? This dairy-free chicken alfredo casserole is the perfect weeknight meal. Filled with creamy alfredo sauce, and protein-packed with chicken, and silky sundried tomatoes throughout it, this gluten-free chicken casserole is one you’ll want to have on hand!
Busy weeknights mean that dinner either has to be made in under 30 minutes or sitting in the fridge ready to cook.
There is no other option.
Thankfully, this dairy-free chicken alfredo casserole is one that can be made ahead of time and simply cooked when you need it!
Made with a homemade, dairy-free alfredo sauce, this chicken casserole comes out with all the comfort of pasta but is made into a busy weeknight dinner.
As a Certified Nutrition Coach, I love this casserole because it’s:
- A great meal prep recipe
- 23 grams of protein per serving
- A great dose of veggies
- Easy to heat up on a weeknight
Ingredients You’ll Need
Outside of the dairy-free coconut milk alfredo sauce, you only need six more ingredients for this chicken casserole!
And because this is the casserole version, you don't need to spend time heating olive oil or chopping garlic. Though it's not a traditional dairy-free fettuccine alfredo (different noodle choice), it's just as comforting.
Gluten-free noodles: I find that the rice & quinoa blended noodles work best for casserole as they cook well but don’t become mush. Make sure to break up the spaghetti though so that they cook quickly.
Cooked chicken: cook once, eat twice is a cardinal rule. When you cook a Dutch Oven Roasted Chicken, make two so that you have one for Sunday night dinner and the other to whip up something like this chicken casserole.
Fresh broccoli: chop the broccoli into very fine pieces so that it cooks well. Larger chunks will stay hard. Cauliflower works here too.
Sundried tomatoes: use the ones from the jar in oil and chop them finely so that they’re evenly distributed through the chicken casserole.
Dairy-free shredded cheese: Not all dairy-free cheese melts nicely. I like to use Violife vegan cheese for the casserole but if you have one you like, rock it.
Bone broth: in a pinch almond or cashew milk will work here as you don’t need much. However, chicken broth gives it a better flavor.
How To Make Dairy-Free Alfredo Casserole From Scratch
- Whip up a batch of dairy-free alfredo sauce.
- Layer your casserole with broth, noodles, broccoli, chicken, sundried tomatoes, alfredo sauce, and finally the cheese.
- Cover and bake in the oven for one hour.
- Remove the cover and broil for 2 minutes or until the cheese turns a slight golden color.
- Let sit for five minutes and enjoy!
Step By Step Photos
Important Teaching Tips
If you’re using vegan alfredo sauce from the fridge, make sure to heat it up before pouring it onto the casserole. Otherwise, it won’t distribute evenly. Learn everything you need to know about coconut milk to make this work.
Cauliflower works just as well as broccoli and any leftover chicken will work.
Reap the benefits of homemade bone broth but skip the time in the kitche. Bone broth powder gives you the best of both worlds and makes healing, homemade broth in just 2 minutes.
There are two ways to meal prep this dairy-free alfredo casserole:
The first is to prep the entire casserole and then cook it the next day. To do this, follow the recipe exactly but let the dish sit on the counter for ten minutes before popping it into the oven.
The second way is to fully cook the casserole then let it sit and pop it in the fridge. When you need to reheat it, add ⅓ cup of water to the dish, recover, and heat it at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 20-30 minutes.
You can use any style of noodles you wish (macaroni, penne, etc) for the casserole. Just make sure they’re on the bottom.
Know that how your cooked chicken is seasoned, will affect the flavor of the dish. We've used slow cooker chicken teriyaki before in this dairy-free chicken alfredo and it came out amazing.
Coconut milk is the base of the vegan alfredo sauce. If you don't have any on hand you can use almond milk but the sauce won't be as thick.
Frequently Asked Questions About Chicken Alfredo Casserole
Of course, all you need to do is use fettuccine noodles in place of spaghetti ones. You'll still want to break them up though so that they cook better.
Once cooked, it will last 2-3 days in the fridge. You'll want to add a bit of extra water or almond milk to it before heating so that it comes out with a creamy sauce and not dried out.
Other Dairy & Gluten-Free Dinner Recipes You'll Love
- Gluten-free Thanksgiving dinner (made in just one hour!!!)
- Chicken and potato casserole
- One pot chicken alfredo pasta
- Slow cooker chicken alfredo
- Sheel pan steak fajitas
- 33 Dairy and gluten-free dinner ideas
- Slow cooker Tuscan Chicken
- Baked teriyaki chicken thighs
- 30 minute teriyaki meatballs
- One pot sausage and tomato pasta
- 45 dinner ideas for busy nights
- 30 minute chicken fajita bowl
- 30 minute dinner ideas
- Easy, healthy dinners
Dairy-Free Chicken Alfredo
Video
Equipment
- 1 8x8 Casserole Dish
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups Coconut milk alfredo sauce
- 2.5 cups Quinoa rice spaghetti noodles uncooked
- 2 cups Cooked chicken chopped
- 3 cups Broccoli finely chopped
- ½ cup Sundried tomatoes in oil
- ¼ cup Dairy-free shredded mozzarella
- ¼ cup Bone broth
- ¼ cup Green onions optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- In an 8x8 casserole dish, add the broth to the bottom.
- Break up the noodles if using spaghetti and layer them onto the bottom of the dish followed by the broccoli, cooked chicken, and sundried tomatoes.
- Warm the alfredo sauce if you need to.
- our it over top of the casserole followed by green onions (if using), and the shredded cheese.
- Cover the top with tinfoil and bake for 1 hour.
- Remove the tinfoil and put the oven on broil for 1-2 minutes watching closely.
- Remove from the oven, let sit for 5 minutes and serve
Notes
Disclaimer:
Nutrition values are estimates only, using online calculators. Please verify using your own data"
Nutrition
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Allyssa says
This is my new favorite dairy free chicken alfredo casserole recipe! Turned out really delicious and super tasty! Perfect for any gatherings! Will surely have this again! Thanks a bunch for sharing!
fitasamamabear says
So glad you loved it! It's a great one that doesn't take too much effort!
Jenn says
Dairy-free alfredo?!?! I'm in love! I thought I'd never be able to enjoy Alfredo sauce but this is deelish!
fitasamamabear says
Haha I have alfredo obsessions so it was CRUCIAL I find a dairy free way to make it!
Greta says
I love this alfredo casserole. And I love coconut milk in the dish. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
fitasamamabear says
Coconut milk makes everything better 😀
Lisa says
So good! No one even knew it was dairy-free.
fitasamamabear says
That's the best compliment!
Emily says
My sister is dairy free and gluten free so when we had her over I tried this recipe. We all loved it and she asked for it. Thanks
fitasamamabear says
Ah that's awesome (and you're awesome for whipping something allergy-friendly up for her!!).
Kristy says
My first time trying this dairy-free alfredo so I followed the recipe exactly, and my family loved it. This did not disappoint. It was delicious!
fitasamamabear says
Yay!
Chloe says
Another gluten-free and dairy-free recipe added to my list! Thank you for sharing as I'm really running out of variations on what to do with chicken!
I tried making this yesterday as my dinner post-work out meal, it's really delicious and guilt-free! Shared it my work out buddy and she loved it so much that she'll make her own. I shared your recipe to her! ☺️
fitasamamabear says
Thanks so much for passing it along! It's a nice comfort food for sure.
Sam says
BLOWN AWAY! My husband praised me for this when I cooked it for dinner this weekend. Love how flavorful this is topped with the sun-dried tomatoes
fitasamamabear says
Haha total life win!!
Jay says
The alfredo sauce was creamy plus the tomatoes added a slightly sweet/citrusy flavor. This recipe is so easy to prepare and is perfect for my pasta cravings!
fitasamamabear says
I love the tomatoes too! Happy you enjoyed the meal.