This is a recipe I grew up enjoying as my step-mom, affectionately nicknamed “Coco,” made every year for us and I still make it at pretty much every holiday meal, it’s just SO, so good and only needs 6 ingredients! Fresh broccoli, the creamiest soup, cheese, and butter will have mouths watering the second it hits the table. Plus, this recipe can be made ahead of time, leaving you ample time to concentrate on your other holiday side dishes .
Looking for More Side Dish Recipes?
If you love those classic holiday sides as much as we do, you definitely need to check out our easy green bean casserole.
Key Ingredients & Substitutions
- Broccoli: I’ve found fresh broccoli to yield the best casserole, but you can use frozen. Just be sure to thaw it and drain as much of the access liquid out as possible.
- Cream of Mushroom Soup: To make this dairy-free, swap this out for our dairy-free cream of mushroom soup
- Mayo: Store-bought will work great, but we also have a basic whole30 mayo recipe on the site.
- Cheddar Cheese: This is our favorite, but swap with your preferred variety or a dairy-free option. Whatever you choose, take the extra effort to shred it yourself for the most cheesy bites!
- Ritz Crackers: The finishing touch that you really shouldn’t skip. Swap with a gluten-free option if need-be.
How To Make Broccoli Casserole
Steam the broccoli until it’s very tender
Add the broccoli, mayo, cream of mushroom soup, and cheese to a casserole dish.
Top with crushed Ritz crackers.
Finally, drizzle with melted butter to get the crunchiest, golden brown topping.
Let it bake for 30 minute and enjoy!
Prep Ahead of Time
Make this broccoli casserole ahead of time by assembling all of the ingredients together as mentioned in the recipe card, saving the ritz cracker topping for when you’re ready to bake. Once assembled, cover and place your casserole in the fridge for a day or two in advance. When you’re ready to bake, let it come to room temperature for about 30 minutes on a countertop, add the Ritz topping, and cook as directed.
Recipe FAQs and Tips
- Do I need to cook the broccoli before baking the casserole? Yes! The baking process helps to warm-up all of the ingredients but it won’t fully cook your broccoli. Steaming is our preferred method as it yields very tender broccoli bites.
- Can I add chicken or rice to the casserole? Yes! We actually have a cheesy chicken rice broccoli casserole recipe on the site!
- Can I make broccoli casserole ahead of time? Absolutely. Assemble the whole casserole except for the ritz cracker topping. Cover the mixture and store in the fridge for 1-2 days prior to cooking.
- What to serve with broccoli casserole? Seeing as how this is a classic holiday dish, it goes great with other holiday favorites like grilled turkey, ham, etc.
Other Classic Side Dish Recipes You Might Like
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Broccoli Casserole Recipe with Ritz Crackers
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 10 servings 1x
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Stove Top + Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
Our Broccoli Casserole recipe is a delicious and easy side dish for any meal (perfect for the Holidays)! Definitely a family favorite recipe!
Ingredients
- 6–8 cups fresh broccoli florets
- 1 (10oz) can cream of mushroom soup (or homemade – see Notes)
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, freshly grated & divided (more if desired)
- 1 cup Ritz crackers, roughly crushed
- 1/4 cup butter, melted
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Steam Broccoli: Add a steaming basket to a large saucepan and fill the bottom with water (to just below the basket). Add broccoli to the steamer basket. Cover and bring to a boil. Steam until broccoli is very tender/soft – they should almost be falling apart. Drain.
- Combine: Add cooked broccoli to an 11-inch oval dish (or comparable square baking pan) along with cream of mushroom soup, mayo and cheddar cheese. Stir to combine.
- Topping: Cover with crushed crackers and drizzle melted butter on top.
- Bake: Place in preheated oven, middle rack and uncovered, for approx. 30-40 minutes or until nice and bubbly.
- Serve: Remove and let cool slightly before serving.
Notes
- Cream of Mushroom Soup: if using a store-bought version, we recommend Pacific Foods Organic Cream of Mushroom Soup!
- Dairy-Free Cream of Mushroom Soup: we have a tried-and-true recipe for Dairy-Free Cream of Mushroom Soup if you want to sub that in.
- Dairy-Free: to make this dairy-free use a dairy-free cream of mushroom soup (like the one linked above), dairy-free cheese and vegan butter.
- Gluten-Free: to make this gluten-free use a gluten-free version of Ritz crackers (or something similar).
- Make Ahead: this is a great holiday recipe because it is perfect for making the day before! Follow through Step 3 and then cover and refrigerate. Take out of the refrigerator the day of serving and let come to room temp if you can. The proceed with Step 4 and pop in the oven (you may need to cook a bit longer since it will get cold in the fridge).
- Storage: store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6oz
- Calories: 316
- Sugar: 2.7 g
- Sodium: 501.5 mg
- Fat: 25.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 17.9 g
- Protein: 4.5 g
- Cholesterol: 23.3 mg
Published on 10/29/22, Updated on 8/7/25
Whitney Morris says
Made this broccoli casserole as a side dish for Thanksgiving and it was a winner! Many comments on how yummy it was! Will definitely be in our holiday side dish list for the future! I added French fried onions ( like you would put on a green bean casserole) along with the ritz crackers on top and it was delicious!
Erin says
Love to hear that, Whitney! And thank you so much for taking the time to come back and leave a review – I really appreciate it!
Kim says
Loved this casserole. We had it with our ham and mashed potatoes for Christmas. I’ve already been asked to make it again and shared the recipe. There are so many different recipes for broccoli casserole but this will be the one we make from now.
Erin says
That is so awesome to hear, Kim!!
Tom says
This broccoli casserole recipe was a huge success at our Christmas dinner yesterday. How can a recipe so easy to make be so darn good? We will definitely add this recipe to our holiday meal planning. Thank you Erin!!
Erin says
So happy to hear that!!
Debbie says
Can this be frozen before and after cooking
Shannon says
How early can I prep this dish before having to put it in the oven?
Erin says
Hi Shannon – you could prep in the morning/night before and then just wait and add the crackers + butter right before you put it in the oven!