Chicken Crescent Bake

Chicken Crescent Bake is the ultimate weeknight dinner shortcut that tastes like you spent hours in the kitchen! This easy, delicious casserole wraps creamy chicken filling in buttery crescent rolls, then bathes everything in a rich, savory sauce. It’s comfort food at its finest, using simple pantry staples and leftover rotisserie chicken to create something your family will absolutely love.

Love More Chicken Recipes? Try My One Pan Chicken with Buttered Noodles or this Loaded Potato Ranch Chicken Casserole next.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

This Chicken Crescent Bake hits all the right notes for busy home cooks. It transforms everyday ingredients into something special without requiring fancy techniques or hard-to-find items. The crescent rolls create individual portions that feel fun and different from typical casseroles, plus they bake up beautifully golden and flaky.

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Ingredient List

For the Filling:

• 1 tube (8 count) regular-sized crescent rolls
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken
• 4 oz (≈ 115 g) softened cream cheese
• 1 teaspoon instant minced onion
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• Pinch black pepper
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

For the Topping:

• ¼ cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

For the Sauce:

• 1 can (10.75 oz) cream of chicken soup
• 1 “soup can” of milk (use the empty soup can to measure)

Serves: 4 people

Why These Ingredients Work

Those crescent rolls do basically all the work here. They’re already buttery, they puff up nice, and you don’t have to do anything except unroll them. I got ambitious once and tried making dough from scratch for this and spent an extra hour in the kitchen. My family couldn’t tell the difference. Never again.

Cream cheese is the secret to making everything taste rich and creamy without much effort. But listen, if it’s straight from the fridge it’s like trying to mix concrete. I learned this the hard way standing at my counter for what felt like twenty minutes trying to mash frozen cream cheese into chicken. Just take it out when you start thinking about dinner and let it sit there.

Mozzarella melts really nice and doesn’t overpower everything else. Though between you and me, I’ve used whatever random cheese was hanging out in my fridge—last week it was some pepper jack that needed using up and nobody complained. That Parmesan you sprinkle on top gets a little crispy and salty, which is basically the best part.

The soup and milk thing is very much giving “mom cooking in 1975” vibes, and I’m here for it. My mom used to make casseroles exactly like this. The trick my neighbor taught me is pouring the sauce around the rolls instead of on top, which sounds weird but keeps the tops from getting all soggy and gross-looking.

Essential Tools and Equipment

• 11 × 7-inch rectangular baking dish (or similar size)
• Two medium mixing bowls
• Mixing spoon or spatula
• Whisk (for sauce)
• Nonstick cooking spray
• Measuring cups and spoons

How To Make Chicken Crescent Bake

Step 1: Preheat Your Oven and Prep the Pan

Turn your oven on to 350°F. Spray your baking dish with cooking spray or you’re gonna regret it later when you’re scrubbing burnt cheese at 9pm. I speak from experience here—forgot this step once and had to basically chisel the pan clean while my dog laughed at me. Or maybe that was my husband. Either way, not fun.

Step 2: Make the Creamy Chicken Filling

Grab a bowl and dump in your chicken, cream cheese, instant onion, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and mozzarella. Mix everything together until it looks combined. If the cream cheese is being stubborn, just attack it with a fork first and mash it up. Nobody’s grading you on technique here. As long as it’s mixed, you’re good.

Step 3: Prepare the Sauce

Pour your soup in another bowl. Use the empty can to measure milk and dump that in too. This is why I love old-school recipes—less dishes to wash. Mix it together with a whisk or a fork, whatever’s clean. Sometimes I don’t even whisk it super well and it still turns out fine.

Step 4: Separate and Fill the Crescents

Pop open the crescent tube—you know that satisfying whack on the counter moment? Yeah, that’s the best part. Peel the triangles apart. Put about a quarter cup of filling on the wide part of each one. First time I made this I way overfilled them and chicken guts were leaking everywhere in the oven. Not cute. Keep it to a quarter cup.

Step 5: Roll Up the Crescents

Roll them up starting from the fat end, just like you’re making regular crescents. Really press down on the edges as you go to seal them shut. I usually go over the seams one more time at the end and give them an extra squeeze. My mom always said “pinch it like you mean it” and she was right—half-hearted sealing leads to filling escaping everywhere.

Step 6: Arrange in the Baking Dish

Put your rolls in the dish—I do two rows of four but honestly just fit them in however works. Leave a little space between each one so the sauce can get in there. They’re gonna puff up anyway so don’t stress about making them look Instagram-perfect.

Step 7: Add the Sauce

Okay this is important so listen up. Pour that soup mixture AROUND the crescents, like in the spaces between them. Do NOT pour it on top of them. My first attempt I just dumped it all over and they came out looking pale and kinda gummy. Learned from a neighbor that pouring it around keeps the tops golden while everything else stays moist. Game changer.

Step 8: Add the Cheese Topping

Sprinkle Parmesan over the tops of your rolls. This is what makes them turn that pretty golden color and gives you those crispy cheesy bits that everyone fights over.

Step 9: Bake to Golden Perfection

Stick it in the oven for 30-35 minutes. You’re looking for golden tops and bubbling sauce. Around minute 28 my kids start circling the kitchen like sharks because it smells ridiculously good. Sometimes I have to physically block them from opening the oven door every thirty seconds to check on it.

You Must Know

Take the cream cheese out early. Like way earlier than you think you need to. Room temp cream cheese mixes in about five seconds. Cold cream cheese will make you contemplate throwing the whole bowl out the window. If you totally space and forget, microwave it for like 8-10 seconds but watch it because you want soft not melted.

Sauce around, not over. I’m gonna keep harping on this because it matters. Dumping sauce on the tops = soggy sad crescents that don’t brown right. Pouring it around = golden beautiful crescents that actually look good.

Seal those edges like you’re trying to keep state secrets inside. Really mash them closed. Filling leaking out mid-bake is annoying and you lose all the good stuff from inside the rolls.

Personal Secret: I throw in maybe 2 or 3 tablespoons of heavy cream with my sauce. It’s not in any version of this recipe I’ve seen online, but it makes the sauce taste way richer without being heavy or weird. My sister made this at her house using my recipe and kept texting me asking why hers didn’t taste the same. Finally told her about the cream and she was legitimately annoyed I’d kept it secret for months.

Pro Tips & Cooking Hacks

Just buy a rotisserie chicken from wherever you shop. One of those $5-7 birds gives you exactly what you need and you don’t have to cook anything. I grab one every week from Sam’s Club anyway for lunches and stuff, so this is perfect for using up whatever’s left by Thursday.

Stick to a quarter cup of filling per triangle. I know you want to stuff them full because more filling seems better, but trust me it’s not. Overstuffed rolls won’t seal and you’ll have a mess.

Check it at the 30 minute mark. My oven’s kinda hot so mine’s usually done right at 30, but my mom’s oven is slower and hers needs the full 35. If your tops are browning too much but the middles aren’t done, just lay some foil over them loosely.

Let it sit for like 5 minutes after it comes out. I know waiting sucks when it smells that good, but if you dig in immediately everything’s like lava temperature and the filling will be all runny. Also you won’t burn your entire mouth, which I’ve absolutely done more than once because I have zero patience.

Flavor Variations & Suggestions

My daughter’s obsessed with buffalo everything lately (she’s been on this kick for literally two years now), so I’ve made buffalo chicken versions where I mix buffalo sauce into the filling and use pepper jack instead of mozzarella. Then I drizzle ranch on top when it comes out. She thinks it’s the greatest thing that’s ever happened to her.

You can do an Italian thing too. Throw in Italian seasoning and chop up some sun-dried tomatoes if you’ve got them lying around. I’ve also squeezed out frozen spinach and mixed that in when I’m pretending to care about vegetables.

My friend Jen does a broccoli cheddar version with cheddar cheese and tiny broccoli pieces. She swaps to cream of mushroom soup and says it’s the only way her kids will eat broccoli. Sounds like witchcraft to me but apparently it works.

Really though, mess around with whatever you want. Different cheese, different soup, throw in random vegetables you need to use before they go bad. This recipe’s pretty chill about changes. I’ve made some truly weird combinations when I’m cleaning out the fridge before trash day and they’ve all been at least edible.

Make-Ahead Options

This is clutch for meal prep if you’re one of those organized people. I’ll make it Sunday evening and leave it in the fridge until Monday or Tuesday night. Just put everything together up to the sauce-pouring part, wrap it tight with foil, stick it in the fridge. When you’re ready to bake, let it hang out on the counter for 15-20 minutes first so it’s not freezing, add the Parmesan, then bake. Might need an extra 5-10 minutes since it’s cold but not much more.

You can freeze it if you’re really fancy with your meal planning. I’ve done this maybe three times total because I’m usually not that organized, but when I do, I wrap it in plastic wrap first and then foil over that. Thaw it in the fridge overnight before baking. Don’t freeze it after baking though because the texture gets weird and kind of rubbery when you reheat it.

Recipe Notes & Baker’s Tips

Don’t have instant minced onion? Chop up some regular onion really tiny and cook it in butter for a minute or two first, or just shake in some onion powder. Or honestly skip it entirely if you don’t feel like dealing with onion. The recipe won’t implode without it.

Any cooked chicken works. Leftover grilled chicken from yesterday, plain roasted chicken from whenever, even canned chicken if that’s all you’ve got. I mean rotisserie tastes better obviously, but sometimes you’re working with pantry stuff and that’s fine.

Different crescent roll brands are sized differently and it’s annoying. The Aldi ones near me are huge and I only get 6 or 7 rolls instead of 8. When that happens I just use slightly more filling per roll. Not worth stressing over.

That sauce looks really thin when you pour it in and it’s supposed to. Don’t panic and try to thicken it or add flour or anything. It cooks down as everything bakes. First time I made this I almost stirred in cornstarch because I was convinced something was wrong, but my husband was like “just trust the recipe” and he was right. Shocking, I know.

Serving Suggestions

This is heavy enough that you probably want something light on the side. I usually throw together a quick salad with bagged lettuce and whatever dressing sounds good. The vinaigrette ones are nice because they cut through all that cream and cheese.

Green beans are my go-to vegetable side. Either roast them with some garlic and olive oil or just microwave frozen ones with butter. My kids will actually eat green beans without complaining, which is basically a miracle around here.

Sometimes I’ll throw frozen garlic bread in the oven during the last 10 minutes of baking. It’s completely unnecessary but everyone gets excited about garlic bread so why not.

If my mother-in-law’s coming over or something, I’ll chop up some fresh parsley and sprinkle it on top before serving. Makes it look like I actually tried instead of just throwing dinner together in 15 minutes.

How to Store Your Chicken Crescent Bake

Leftovers go in whatever container fits them and into the fridge. They’ll last 3-4 days in there. The crescents definitely won’t be as crispy after a day in the fridge, but they still taste good. My husband grabs them for lunch and just microwaves them at work for a minute or two.

If you want to reheat the whole thing at once, cover it with foil and stick it in a 325°F oven for 15-20 minutes. Pull the foil off for the last 5 minutes if you want the tops to get a little crispy again.

I don’t usually freeze leftovers because honestly the texture isn’t great after that, but if you really need to you can wrap individual portions and freeze them for a month tops. Thaw in the fridge overnight and reheat carefully. They’re not gonna be as good as fresh though, just being real with you.

Allergy Information

This has wheat, dairy, and soy (probably in the crescent rolls). So if allergies are an issue, you’ll need to swap stuff.

Gluten-free would need different dough—maybe gluten-free puff pastry or gluten-free biscuits instead of the crescents. I haven’t tried it myself so I can’t promise it’ll work the same, but theoretically it should be fine.

Dairy-free is gonna be tough because this whole thing is basically a dairy explosion. You could try dairy-free cream cheese and cheese alternatives plus dairy-free soup and milk, but I’ve never done it so I have no idea how it’ll taste. Probably different.

At least there’s no nuts so that’s one thing you don’t have to worry about.

Questions I Get Asked A Lot

Can I use cream of mushroom soup instead of cream of chicken?

Yeah absolutely. I actually think mushroom tastes better most of the time because it’s got more flavor. Cream of celery works too if that’s what’s in your pantry. Just make sure you get the condensed kind that needs milk, not the ready-to-eat soup in the bigger cans.

My filling leaked out during baking—what did I do wrong?

Either you didn’t seal the edges well enough or you overstuffed them. Probably both if we’re being honest. Next time really press those seams together hard, and don’t go over a quarter cup of filling. I know it’s tempting to stuff them full but it backfires every time.

Can I make this with raw chicken instead of cooked?

Nope, hard no. Thirty minutes isn’t nearly long enough to cook raw chicken through, especially when it’s wrapped up in dough. You need fully cooked chicken for this. That’s the whole point of using rotisserie—it’s already done and you’re just heating everything up and melting the cheese.

The tops of my crescents didn’t brown—why?

Did sauce get on them? Because that’ll stop them from browning and they’ll look pale and sad. Gotta pour that sauce in the gaps, not over the tops. Also your oven might be running cool—cheap ovens are notorious for being off by like 25 degrees or more. Get an oven thermometer if you don’t have one.

What if I don’t have instant minced onion?

Chop fresh onion and cook it in butter first, or use onion powder, or just skip it. The onion adds flavor but it’s not critical. I’ve forgotten it before and nobody said anything about it tasting different.

💬 Made this? Tell me how it went! Did you change anything? Did your kids eat it or pick at it for twenty minutes? Drop a comment below because I love hearing what people do with this recipe!