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This shredded chicken and gravy recipe is a budget-friendly and ridiculously comforting homestyle meal! It’s a family favorite with just 3 ingredients.
If you want to make a similar recipe in the Instant Pot, try my Instant Pot Chicken and Gravy next.
Why you’ll love it
Busy mamas and dads out there, this one is for you. All you need is chicken breasts, cream of chicken soup, and a packet of chicken gravy mix to make this soul-warming chicken dinner with very little prep. That’s it! No shame in using shortcuts. Together they’re transformed into tender and perfectly seasoned shredded chicken.
You can make this irresistible 3-ingredient dump and go chicken recipe in the oven or as Crockpot chicken and gravy, making it super versatile. Let’s talk about all that gravy, though. There’s absolutely no need to add anything else like a thickener or extra seasoning. So good yet so simple to make for an incredibly convenient supper.
What you’ll need
- Chicken – we’re using boneless skinless chicken breasts for easy shredding
- Cream of chicken soup – the tried and true kitchen shortcut of a can of condensed soup is one that busy families have been using for decades, but if you aren’t feeling it, try my Crockpot Chicken and Gravy as an alternative with no canned soup!
- Chicken gravy mix – use a packet of your favorite brand
Helpful tips
- I do not add any extra water/liquid to the recipe. This ensures the gravy ends up fairly thick. The chicken will release some water as it cooks.
- Tightly seal it up before putting it in the oven! I use foil, but if your casserole dish came with an oven-safe lid, use that.
- Ovens, casserole dishes, and the size of chicken breasts tend to vary, so keep in mind cook time is a guideline and may need to be adjusted, especially if using particularly large or small chicken breasts.
- You can leave the chicken breasts whole instead of shredding them if you prefer.
- Prefer to do this in your slow cooker? Crockpot instructions are included in the recipe card below!
How to make shredded chicken and gravy
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Preheat the oven to 400F. Add the chicken breasts to a 9×13 baking dish. In a bowl, mix together the cream of chicken soup and gravy mix until smooth with a whisk or spoon.
Pour the gravy mixture over the chicken. Tightly seal the casserole dish, and bake for 45 minutes or until cooked through. Shred with two forks, season with extra salt & pepper if needed, and enjoy.
Tools for this recipe
- One of my most used kitchen tools is an instant read thermometer. It’s inexpensive and makes cooking chicken foolproof. It’s safe to eat when the internal temperature reaches 165F.
- This casserole dish is one of my favorites.
- For the slow cooker cooking option in this recipe I used my trusty 7-quart Crockpot.
Substitutions and variations
- Try swapping one of the cans of cream of chicken soup with cream of mushroom soup.
- You can sub the chicken breasts with boneless skinless chicken thighs. If you plan on using the low heat (7-8 hours cook time) Crockpot method, that may be the best idea as chicken breasts tend to dry out.
- Try a packet of turkey gravy mix if you can’t find chicken.
Leftovers and storage
- Leftovers of chicken and gravy will last for 3-4 days in an airtight container in the fridge.
- Warm over a low heat on the stove or in the microwave.
- Leftovers can be frozen for up to 3 months, but keep in mind that the texture of the gravy may change and the chicken may dry out a bit.
What to serve with chicken and gravy
- There’s a generous amount of gravy that’s perfect over a mountain of Mashed Potatoes, rice, or pasta. A dinner roll or fresh crusty bread is great too. Go all out with my popular Cheesy Garlic Bread for a memorable meal!
- For a fresh pairing, try a side salad with my Homemade Italian Dressing.
- Steamed veggies, Easy Creamed Corn, or my Easy Asparagus Recipe all work as well.
If the blog post didn’t answer your questions about this glorious chicken and gravy, talk to me in the comments below! I’d love it if you left me a review, or tag me #saltandlavender on Instagram.
Easy 3-Ingredient Shredded Chicken and Gravy
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts boneless skinless
- 2 (10.5 ounce) cans condensed cream of chicken soup
- 1 (1 ounce) packet chicken gravy mix
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
Oven Instructions:
- Preheat your oven to 400F and move the rack to the middle position.
- Place the chicken breasts side-by-side in a 9×13 casserole dish.
- Add the cream of chicken soup and chicken gravy mix to a bowl and stir together until smooth.
- Pour the cream of chicken soup mixture over the chicken breasts and fully cover them with it.
- Tightly seal the casserole dish with foil (or use the oven-safe lid it came with if it came with one) and bake for 45 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and shreds easily with two forks. As every oven, casserole dish, and the size of the chicken breasts may vary, keep in mind cook time is a guideline and may need to be adjusted.
- Take the casserole dish out of the oven, uncover, and shred the chicken with two forks (do this right in the casserole dish). Season with salt & pepper if needed, and serve immediately.
Crockpot Instructions:
- Place the chicken breasts side-by-side in the Crockpot. Add the cream of chicken soup and chicken gravy mix to a bowl and stir together until smooth, then pour it over the chicken. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 7-8 hours.
- Shred chicken with two forks (do this in the slow cooker) then season with salt & pepper if needed.
Notes
- Gravy packets typically weigh around 1 ounce – you don’t need to be exact as brands vary.
- You can skip shredding the chicken if you prefer!
- Serves up to 6 people depending on portion size/how big the chicken breasts are.
- Chicken is safe to eat when it reaches a 165F internal temperature.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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This was both easy and yummy! Two thumbs up from my 5 year old.
Fantastic!! 😀 Thank you, Brenda!
I was super excited to try this recipe but I was disappointed when it just came out like cream of chicken soup with chicken. I was hoping for more of gravy flavor. What did I do wrong?
Hi Adabelle! Hmmm I’m sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy it. I don’t think you did anything wrong. Perhaps you would prefer a from-scratch gravy? You may want to try this recipe instead: https://bit.ly/46rz8Pl
I used 1 can cream of chicken, 1 can cream of mushroom, 1 packet beef gravy and added 1 tbsp minced garlic, 2 tsp onion powder, 1/4 tsp cayenne, 1/4 tsp celery salt, and 1 tsp black pepper. That resulted in more of a gravy flavor!
I used 3 smaller breasts, a single can of cream of chicken and mushroom and a packet of turkey gravy. Cooked for 30 minutes then shredded the chicken and mixed in a bag of frozen mixed veggies. Cooked another 10 then added fried onions and let them crisp up. Served over egg noodles. Still too much for just my husband and I, but we’ll eat the leftovers! Very good!
Excellent!
I tend to meal prep all of my shredded or diced chicken by itself. I then pull out the portion of cooked shedded chicken to use as needed. How would you suggest making this dish with the shredded chicken pre-cooked? Thank you!
Hi! Maybe just heat it through on the stovetop? Since the chicken is already cooked, you don’t want to overcook it in the oven. Let me know if you try. 🙂
Sent my husband to the store to get skinless chicken breast & he came back with skinless chicken breast THIN SLICED. Do you know how long I should put it in the over for & what temp I should use? They are really thin breast but I still used the right amount & they’re overlapping each other. I just hope the gravy part makes out right. Please if you have idea what I should do let me know. Thank you so much!!
Hmmm it’s really tough to guess, but maybe check after 20 minutes and if they’re very raw I’d probably go up to the 40-45 minute mark. Let me know!! 🙂
Nevermind! I found the Instant pot version!
Thank you for this quick and delicious recipe!❤️
Do you have directions for cooking this in an instant pot?
This looks really good. Can you use leftover cooked, shredded chicken or even turkey in this recipe? Thanks!
Hi! I suppose you could, but in that case I’d just heat everything through on the stovetop since there’s no point in baking already cooked chicken… it’ll end up really dry and overcooked.
What do you recommend to have extra gravy/sauce because my family likes it over rice. You said not to add any liquid so how would I stretch the chicken sauce to have more with the rice? Add like 4 cans of cream of chicken🙄
Hi! I mean I think there’s quite a lot of sauce already. It’s hard for me to just suggest something without testing it in case it doesn’t end up as you hope. I suppose adding an extra can could be one solution. A bit of liquid like water/broth would water it down more, but you could try. Maybe half a cup?
Chicken in instant pot is 20 minutes, and 30 from frozen and 2 cups of liquid to come to pressure. I put a can of cream if broccoli soup and 1 cup of salt free broth or milk. To mix it up really well, I put the liquids in my NutriBullet mixer, give it a zip to blend thoroughly. I put liquid on bottom. Then 1cup of broccoli florets, 1 chopped onion. Put on lid, close the vent and let it cook. Vent after proper time. Sometimes I add a cup of white rice. It goes on bottom and must be covered in liquid to cook right.
Do you use the gravy mix dry and mix into the soups?
That’s right. See the step-by-step photos in the post that shows this exact step. Hope you enjoy the recipe, Cora!
Very easy comfort food. I used 3 breasts weighing about 1.5 lbs, and they cooked through in about 25 minutes. I recommend using a thermometer so they don’t overcook.
So glad you enjoyed it, Julie!