This savory creamy chicken potato casserole is the perfect healthy comfort food for cold winter nights! Hearty roasted potatoes are baked with chicken, bacon, and a creamy sauce that you won’t believe is dairy free. It’s kid approved, easy to make and the leftovers are perfect for a filling lunch the next day. It’s Whole30 compliant and paleo friendly.
Winter is all about soups and casseroles for me. Oh, and maybe a good one-skillet dinner like this Creamy Tuscan Chicken or Beef Stroganoff.
I decided to gather some inspo from my Chicken Broccoli Bacon “Rice” Casserole for today’s recipe.
I made the sauce a little creamier, kept the bacon and chicken and swapped out the veggies for roasted potatoes. Needless to say I was totally thrilled with the result!
It definitely satisfies your craving for cozy, filling comfort food while still leaving out all the dairy that’s usually a staple in casseroles. Plus, it’s Whole30 compliant in case you’re planning a January Whole30!
What You Need to Make this Chicken Potato Casserole
This casserole is filled with clean ingredients, good fats, carbs and protein.
You’ll see that many of the ingredients are my staples that show up again and again, nothing fancy and no surprises. Here’s what you’ll need to prepare the casserole:
- russet potatoes
- avocado oil or olive oil
- Sea salt and black pepper
- garlic powder
- onion powder
- nitrate free bacon
- ghee or rendered bacon fat
- onion
- garlic
- fresh thyme leaves
- arrowroot flour, or tapioca
- chicken bone broth
- coconut milk full fat
- mustard
- nutritional yeast (optional)
- cooked shredded chicken (rotisserie chicken is fine)
- chives or green onions for garnish
How to Make this Creamy Potato Chicken Casserole
Preheat your oven to 425° F and toss the potatoes with the oil, sea salt and pepper, garlic and onion powder. Spread the potatoes on the bottom of a 9 x 13” baking dish and bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes, until soft. Once done, lower the oven temperature to 375° F.
While the potatoes cook, prepare the bacon and sauce. Heat a large deep skillet over medium high heat and cook the bacon until crisp. Drain on paper towels and set aside. Keep 3 Tbsp of the rendered bacon fat to use for the sauce, or discard and use ghee instead.
Wipe out the skillet of burnt bits if necessary and heat over medium heat, then add either the ghee or bacon fat.
Add the onions and cook until translucent and fragrant, about 3 minutes, then add the garlic and thyme and continue to cook until soft, about 1 minute, adjusting the heat if necessary to avoid burning.
Whisk the tapioca flour into the onion garlic mixture and cook for about 30 seconds. Add in the broth, coconut milk, mustard and nutritional yeast, (if using), while whisking. Raise the heat and bring a gently simmer stirring and cook for another minute, until the sauce thickens. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.
Add the shredded chicken to the casserole dish with the potatoes and mix, then pour the sauce over the top and gently mix to coat. Crumble the bacon and stir half of it into the chicken and potatoes, then sprinkle the rest over the top. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes or just long enough to heat through.
Garnish with the chives or scallions and serve hot. Store leftovers tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Are White Potatoes Paleo?
I get this question every time I post something involving white potatoes. The answer depends on who you ask, but for the most part (at this point in time), most will say that white potatoes can absolutely fit into a paleo diet!
White potatoes were added into the Whole30 program several years back (as long as we’re not talking restaurant fries!). And yes, they are high in carbs, but the Paleo diet isn’t about limiting carbs – it’s about eating real food.
That said, not every “real food” is for everyone of course – so it’s best for you to decide what works for you and what doesn’t. Labels aren’t as important as nourishing your body based on what makes it healthier! And that will be different for each person. For more info on the white potatoes on a paleo diet, click here.
To sum up, many people who live grain free and paleo are totally fine with some white potatoes here and there. I’m guessing if you’ve reached this point in the post, you may just be one of those people 🙂
I hope you’re ready for a hearty, creamy, flavor-packed casserole that’s bound to become a staple in your house!
Grab your favorite casserole dish and all your ingredients because it’s time to cook – let’s go!
Creamy Chicken Potato Casserole {Paleo, Whole30}
Creamy Chicken Potato Casserole {Paleo, Whole30}
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs russet potatoes peeled and chopped into 1” cubes
- 1 Tbsp avocado oil or olive oil
- Sea salt and black pepper
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 8 slices nitrate free bacon
- 3 Tbsp ghee or rendered bacon fat
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
- 3 Tbsp arrowroot flour
- 1 1/2 cups chicken bone broth
- 1 cup coconut milk full fat
- 1 Tbsp mustard any kind
- 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast optional
- Sea salt and black pepper to taste
- 3 cups cooked shredded chicken rotisserie chicken is fine (just check ingredients for Whole30, if needed)
- Sliced chives or green onions for garnish
Instructions
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Preheat your oven to 425° F and toss the potatoes with the oil, sea salt and pepper, garlic and onion powder. Spread the potatoes on the bottom of a 9 x 13” baking dish and bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes, until soft. Once done, lower the oven temperature to 375° F.
-
While the potatoes cook, prepare the bacon and sauce. Heat a large deep skillet over medium high heat and cook the bacon until crisp. Drain on paper towels and set aside. Keep 3 Tbsp of the rendered bacon fat to use for the sauce, or discard and use ghee instead.
-
Wipe out the skillet of burnt bits if necessary and heat over medium heat, then add either the ghee or bacon fat.
-
Add the onions and cook until translucent and fragrant, about 3 minutes, then add the garlic and thyme and continue to cook until soft, about 1 minute, adjusting the heat if necessary to avoid burning.
-
Whisk the tapioca flour into the onion garlic mixture and cook for about 30 seconds. Add in the broth, coconut milk, mustard and nutritional yeast, (if using), while whisking. Raise the heat and bring a gently simmer stirring and cook for another minute, until the sauce thickens. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.
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Add the shredded chicken to the casserole dish with the potatoes and mix, then pour the sauce over the top and gently mix to coat. Crumble the bacon and stir half of it into the chicken and potatoes, then sprinkle the rest over the top. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes or just long enough to heat through.
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Garnish with the chives or scallions and serve hot. Store leftovers tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Enjoy!
Recipe Video
Nutrition
Want More Paleo Casserole Recipes? Try One of These!
Chicken Broccoli and “Rice” Casserole
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This is really good! Highly recommend.
I had to leave a review, because this is damn delicious! I made a few modifications that I think made it even more exceptional. First, I doubled the amount of mustard (I used stone ground) to balance out the coconut-y taste. I also added frozen peas and mushrooms into the cream sauce at the end, and heated them through prior to adding to the casserole. Lastly, I sprinkled shredded parm on top of the casserole. I initially baked the potatoes 30 min instead of 35, and they weren’t mushy at all at the end. The sauce wasn’t runny for me either. My boyfriend just devoured two helpings – this will definitely be in our rotation!
Can this be made ahead of time and baked later?
I’ve made this recipe before with good success. It’s a lovely cold weather “comfort food” dish. Today I doubled the recipe and added mushrooms and broccoli – so delicious. Thank you so much!
Delicious. I added thawed frozen broccoli to it and used Dijon mustard. My only criticism is the recipe says this is eight servings. As a smaller female, you’d have to have a very small appetite to get eight servings out of this. I’d say it’s four servings, maybe six at best.
So delicious and comforting. Made this for my senior Mom who struggles with loss of taste after chemotherapy, and she really enjoyed it! The flavours are great. I will certainly make again.
This will be on my dinner rotation for sure. Easy to make and very good.
I am allergic to coconut, any suggestions on a substitution?
I think I’m not a fan of Nutritional Yeast. I’ve had it in another recipe and I didn’t like it, but chalked it up to that recipe. When making new recipes I like to follow as much as I can to the list. It’s fine. It’s good if you like that weird cheesy flavor nutritional yeast gives, then it’s for you. The flavors of this are good (with that exception) I would probably make it again without it. The harvest casserole recipe, YUM!
Absolutely delicious! Probably one of the best meals I’ve made. Thank you!