Easy Baked Broccoli Cheese Casserole

This quick and easy broccoli cheese casserole comes together with just a handful of simple ingredients including frozen broccoli and takes only 40 minutes from start to finish. Every nook and cranny of the tender-crisp broccoli is coated in the perfect simple cheese sauce, then topped with crispy potato chips for a salty crunch!

 

You Will Love This

• This cheesy broccoli bake is one of our family’s favorite side dishes around the holidays but it’s also hearty enough to be a weeknight main course! If you have vegetarians joining you for the holidays, they’ll be delighted to find this meatless side dish on your holiday table!
• If you enjoyed this broccoli cheese casserole recipe, be sure to check out my Roasted Herb and Garlic Potatoes, my Cheesy Corn Casserole, or my Bacon Green Bean Casserole.

Ingredients and Substitutions

• Butter – Butter is going to give you a better flavor and texture compared to olive oil. Stick with unsalted so that you can season this broccoli cheese bake yourself.
• Frozen Broccoli – You could use frozen or fresh broccoli for this recipe but I prefer the ease of frozen broccoli florets. They end up perfectly tender and delicious.
• Onion – I like to use yellow onion for this casserole recipe but white onion will work just fine as well.
• Garlic – I prefer freshly sliced garlic for this recipe. If you don’t have any on hand, you can add a 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder or more to taste in its place.
• Flour – Stick with all-purpose flour for this broccoli casserole recipe. It will give your cheese sauce the best texture.
• Whole Milk – Whole milk gives the cheese sauce in this recipe the perfect consistency. You could sub half and half if that’s all you’ve got, but your sauce will likely be a bit thicker so you may need to add a bit more.
• Sharp Cheddar – You can use your favorite melty cheese for the cheese sauce in this recipe. I like to use sharp cheddar but I’ve also tried with white sharp cheddar, fontina, and havarti and all were delicious!
• Potato Chips – Classic Ruffles are my favorite chip for this dish, but switch it up to suit your family’s taste! Try cheddar sour cream or even jalapeno cheddar chips for a different flavor combo. You can also use Ritz crackers in place of the potato chips.

Instructions

Saute onion and garlic in butter. Add flour.

Cook, stirring frequently for 1 minute.

Add milk and cook for a few minutes. Stir in shredded cheese.

Mix until cheese melts.

Add frozen broccoli along with a few large pinches of salt and pepper.

Mix until well combined and broccoli is coated in cheese sauce.

Cover with shredded cheese and bake. If you’re using this type of large saute pan, you can put it straight into the oven.

Top casserole with potato chips and bake for another 5 minutes.

Let cool just a few minutes and then dig in and enjoy!

Making the Perfect Cheese Sauce

This broccoli cheese casserole has a deliciously creamy cheese sauce and while it’s super simple to make, if you step away from the stove while you’re cooking – even just for a minute – you may need to troubleshoot a bit. Here are my tips for making sure that cheese sauce is perfectly creamy and dreamy every single time!

• You’re looking for a cheese sauce that’s similar to a creamy queso dip. It should coat the back of a spoon and cling to it. It shouldn’t be dripping off the spoon immediately – it should be thick and creamy.
• If the cheese sauce isn’t getting creamy, warm it over low heat, stirring frequently, for a couple minutes until it thickens a bit more. But be sure that the sauce doesn’t come to a simmer because if it gets too warm, the cheese will separate from the sauce and you’ll end up with a grainy texture.
• If the cheese sauce is too thick, trying adding a splash or two of milk to loosen it up.

Tip

• Once the frozen broccoli comes in contact with the warm cheese sauce, it’s going to cause the cheese sauce to thicken and seize up a bit. This is normal. Just combine the broccoli with the cheese sauce very well so that each piece of broccoli is well coated. When the casserole bakes in the oven, the cheese sauce will loosen up and get perfectly creamy again.

FAQ

Easy Side Dishes

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