10 Weeknight-Friendly Casseroles You Can Make in Less than an Hour

Sheela Prakash
Sheela PrakashSenior Contributing Food Editor
Sheela is the Senior Contributing Food Editor at Kitchn and the author of Mediterranean Every Day: Simple, Inspired Recipes for Feel-Good Food. She received her master's degree from the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Italy and is also a Registered Dietitian.
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updated Jun 8, 2019
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(Image credit: Lauren Volo)

A casserole for dinner always sounds like a good idea given its throw-together construction and its ability to feed many mouths, but it often takes much longer to bake — not so helpful on those busy weeknights. Cooking it for well over an hour sort of negates the convenience factor a little, no? Luckily, these 10 casseroles cook up in much less than an hour — some in under 30 minutes — making them the ultimate choice for a quick meal that feeds the whole family on your schedule.

(Image credit: Lauren Volo)

1. Chicken and Biscuit Casserole

Even with the homemade biscuits, this extra-comforting casserole still clocks in at less than an hour to make. Serve it alongside a simple green salad to contrast the richness.

(Image credit: Maria Siriano)

2. Cheesy Lentil, Mushroom & Rice Bake

Make this vegetarian casserole, which relies on pre-cooked lentils to speed up the process, on Monday and then continue to dig into it all week for lunches and fast dinners.

(Image credit: Laura Volo)

3. Smoky Mozzarella and Pasta Meatball Bake

A couple of bags of frozen meatballs allow for this gooey pasta bake to come together in next to no time.

(Image credit: Lauren Volo)

4. One-Pot Creamy Chicken and Rice Casserole

To make this stovetop casserole even faster, you can forgo cooking the chicken and swap in leftover rotisserie chicken or even deli turkey or ham instead.

(Image credit: Christine Han)

5. Loaded Baked Potato Casserole

Bake a handful of extra potatoes when you’re making dinner tonight, then use them to make this flavor-packed, bacon-flecked casserole tomorrow. It will get even your pickiest eaters to the table fast.

(Image credit: Melissa Ryan)

6. Stovetop Tuna Orzo Casserole with Broccoli

This lightened-up version of a classic tuna casserole is really a one-bowl dinner, thanks to the addition of broccoli.

(Image credit: Kelli Foster)

7. 6-Ingredient Vegan Enchilada Casserole

Not every casserole has to be loaded with cheese to make it satisfying. This one gets topped with plenty of diced avocado to add the creamy element to the mix.

(Image credit: Laura Volo)

8. Cheesy Ravioli Pasta Bake

This dish is basically like lazy lasagna. Using store-bought cheese ravioli means that you get the biggest boost of cheesy goodness in this casserole without even trying.

(Image credit: Faith Durand)

9. Double Spinach Pasta Casserole with Pesto & Asiago

This extra-green pasta bake not only feels wholesome because of the slew of baby spinach in the mix, but Greek yogurt also takes the place of some of the heavy cream in the recipe to lighten it up.

(Image credit: Nealey Dozier)

10. Poppy Seed Chicken Casserole

This traditional chicken casserole is made even more homey with a Ritz cracker crumble that’s sprinkled over the top before baking.

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Casserole
dinner
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Recipe Roundup