Let’s bring back that old Broccoli Cheez Whiz Rice Casserole …. Rice, Broccoli, Cheez Whiz, Cream of Mushroom Soup, Onion and Celery make this Classic Old Fashioned Side Dish. A pot luck or holiday dinner wouldn’t be complete without it.
Cheez Whiz, It’s As Old As Me!
Did you know they still make Cheez Whiz? It may be one of those things you’ve not had since you were a kid. Can you believe it made it’s debut on grocery shelves in 1953???
As part of the processed food revolution, it brought us a whole new level of convenience, along with a slew of recipe developers who made sure we had hundreds of ways to use this unnatural wonder. When I was growing up it’s favorite targets were hot dogs, sandwiches and taco chips.
And purchasing the pressurized can version, one was able to make pretty little orange squiggles on crackers… or shoot it right into your mouth.
What is Cheez Whiz?
I’ve spent some time reading about Cheez Whiz and the “weird science” involved in creating processed cheese. The articles read like science fiction.
But with that said, in my convenience aisle bliss, I bet I made this casserole at least once a week when I was first married in the 70’s.
Made with Minute Rice, Cream of Mushroom Soup and Cheez Whiz, it was one of the darling recipes of the convenience food industry. And it was delicious. (Affiliate links have been added for your convenience)
No Reason To Try and Fix Something That’s Not Broken
I thought about taking the time to make it without processed food, but decided to take a walk down memory lane and prepare it in all of it’s original glory.
It seemed a little sweeter than it used to. I’m afraid to look at the labels but I wonder if corn syrup is now involved? And don’t get me started on corn syrup, that opens up a whole new glow in the dark can of worms.
Who Invented Cheez Whiz?
Interesting: Edwin Traisman, died at the age of 91. He was a food scientist who, as director of research at Kraft, led the invention of Cheez Whiz. He went on to own five McDonald's franchises during the 1950s to 1960s.
His wife said that he broke ground by being the first to hire women, even though it violated company rules at the time.
He risked his franchises in order to give equal employment opportunities to women. He also helped to invent a process of freeze-drying which enabled McDonald's to serve fresh, crispy, high quality Idaho potatoes year-round.
In the 1970s, he returned to his first passion, research, and became a manager at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Food Research Institute.
When hemorrhagic E.coli foodborne illness became a serious health problem across this country, he initiated research to learn how to kill the pathogen and help keep food safe.
He and his team were the first to discover that cooking meats to certain temperatures killed the bacteria.
In Conclusion
This old fashioned minute rice broccoli cheese casserole recipe is just as delicious as I remember it.
And I also remember adding cubes of chicken breast to this every once in a while to make it a meal. I remember one time my mom got a wild hair and added diced water chestnuts. A nice addition of crunch.
This recipe is perfect for a comfort food side dish. A perfect combo of textures and cheesy flavor.
Don’t forget to drag out your vintage Corning Casserole dish for this one.
Recipe for Broccoli Cheez Whiz Rice Casserole
I hope you give this classic broccoli rice and cheese casserole recipe a try. And if you do, please come back and let me know how you liked it and give the recipe a star rating. Your feedback is valuable to me for developing future recipes.
And if you have a favorite holiday casserole recipe, let me know, I'd love to give it a try.
More Old Fashioned Casserole Recipe Ideas:
And if you’re looking for more side dish recipe ideas, don’t miss my Side Dish Category. Lots of supporting actor ideas. Including this very popular recipe for Best Pasta Salad Ever, made with frozen cheese tortellini.
Broccoli, Minute Rice, Cheez Whiz Casserole
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup onion chopped
- ⅓ cup celery chopped
- ¼ cup oleo oleo is an old name for margarine. Butter will work for this recipe.
- 1 cup Minute Rice Uncooked. Do not use regular rice. Minute Rice is a brand name freeze dried product that quick cooks.
- 10.5 ounces Cream of Mushroom Soup or Cream of Chicken, canned
- 1 cup water or milk or chicken broth
- 8 ounce Cheez Whiz
- 10 ounce box frozen broccoli Use broccoli florets, or broccoli pieces. A 12 ounce bag of broccoli works fine for this recipe.
- Pam non-stick spray
Instructions
- Let the package of frozen broccoli partially thaw. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a fry pan, saute the onion and celery in the oleo (butter or margarine) until soft.
- In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and stir together.
- Turn into a 2-quart casserole pan which has been coated with Pam. Bake uncovered for 30 – 40 minutes.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Old Fashioned Broccoli Cheez Whiz Minute Rice Casserole …It’s what’s for Dinner
Why Trust My Recipes? I am a Culinary School Graduate and a lifelong student of home cooking. I hope to inspire you try to cook as often as you can. I’ve been cooking for 50 years, and my recipes are tried and true tested and tested and then tested again before published. To read more take a look at my About Page.
Can you use instant brown rice?
I’ve never used it, but I’m sure it would work just fine. Minute white rice cooks in 5 minutes, and the brown rice in 10 minutes. You may have to add a little bit more liquid and cook a little longer.
How many ounces should the cream of mushroom soup be? We got a brand that seems larger (18 oz) and I don’t want our proportions to be off! Thanks
10.5 ounces.
Can I assemble this a day ahead, keep it in the refrigerator, and bake it the next day?
Hi Margie. I would feel very comfortable doing that. Let me know if it works out.
Do you think I could use quinoa instead of rice? I
I have to admit, I hardly ever cook with Quinoa. It’s such a different texture than rice … I’m not sure how it would turn out. Let me know.
This is the recipe my grandmother made for decades, and I started making it in the early 2000s. I was an absolute classic favorite in our family for literally as long as I can remember. I’d never deviated from the recipe, but 2 years ago I started making the cream of mushroom soup from scratch (can NOT go back to the can after that), and it made a huge difference. This year I want to add chicken broth in place of the water, which I think will step it up another notch. It’s so good!!!
I would love your cream of mushroom soup recipe, if you are willing to share!
I have been making this every year for holidays since the 70’s. I am having trouble finding cheez whiz this year. Is there anything I can substitute for the cheez whiz? Thank you.
Yikes, no Cheez Whiz? I would think Velveeta would work. Just use an equal amount and cube the velveeta.
There is a shortage of Cheez Whis so I am going to cube Velveeta cheese and add a little milk and melt it down bit.
In our stores it has been moved to the Hispanic Foods area near the nacho cheese and salsa. No clue why it is no longer with the Velveeta but that is where I found it this year.
Yesterday I found cheese whiz in the refrigerated section by the cheese next to the velveeta.
Good to know. Usually it’s on an end cap of the freezer section. It’s always a “hunt” to find it.
I love this recipe. Do you think it could be cooked in a crockpot? I am trying to free up space in the oven for Thanksgiving.
Great idea to make this in the crockpot. We all need extra space during the Holidays.
Take a look at this conversion chart I found. It’s a guide to taking oven casseroles to the slow cooker:
https://www.justapinch.com/recipes/non-edible/other-non-edible/oven-to-crockpot-cooking-info.html
My mother added diced water chestnuts and celery! 😀 For comparison, I was born in ’85 and my mother is ’53. Makes sense she would have been part of the water chestnut era! For this year’s version though I have someone who reels at the taste of celery and water chestnuts so it must be left out sadly. I adore them and as a kid would always sneak a tiny crunchy slice.
Hi Stephanie
And thanks for your note. My mom made this the traditional way and same way you describe. By adding a crunch of water chestnut. And sometimes she’d add chicken to make it a main course meal.
And speaking of water chestnuts, one year she added them to Thanksgiving dressing (chopped) which added a welcome texture.
Again, thanks for writing, I always love to hear from my readers and their memories.
Could I use fresh broccoli instead of frozen?
You can use fresh broccoli to make this recipe. Purchase broccoli heads and trim them into florets to equal about 10 – 12 ounces. Blanch the broccoli by placing it in a pan of rolling boiling water. Cook for about 1 – 2 minutes. Drain in a colander and rinse with cold water. Proceed with the recipe.
I’ve made this recipe for over 40 years, but forgot about it until recently, I needed a pot luck dish. Glad to find it again on line. Everyone always enjoyed it..
My first love’s mom had to FORCE me to try her broccoli & rice casserole back in 1980 and I LOVED it. I ended up getting the recipe and making it for years for every work function that required me to bring a dish. I’ve long since lost the recipe and sadly both my first love and his mother have passed away. Yesterday I wrote to his sister and asked if she had the recipe. Amazingly she was feeding it to her patient at that exact moment! She didn’t have the hand written recipe from their mom but sent me yours, which as far as I can remember is exactly the same! I’m so excited to go shopping and make it again! I’m kinda sad to hear they don’t sell broccoli in frozen boxes anymore. I liked that because it was chopped. 😊 Thank you SO MUCH for sharing this AWESOME & DELICIOUS recipe!
I made this at home last night, and it was incredible. Adding broccoli to the vegetables will help the flavors blend.
Can I substitute cauliflower rice?
I’ve only cooked with cauliflower rice once and it seemed a little watery. The minute rice product is a dried product that soaks up some of the liquid to rehydrate itself when it bakes. I’d reduce the water by 1/2 cup. You still need a little water to thin the condensed soup. Let me know if it works please.
Could I not cook the celery, onion and the Broccoli together so they can get a acquainted ?
Absolutely yes. And I have also done that. Adding the broccoli to the veggies will help marry flavor. Thanks for your note.
I’m making this tomorrow for Christmas dinner. How long should it cook if I’m decreasing oven temperature to 325 and cooking along side the ham? Thanks!
I would think it would be done in almost the same amount of time. The recipe indicates 30 – 40 minutes. So in my oven, I would think it would be done in 40 minutes. Or 45 minutes at the most.
Have a wonderful holiday meal.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
Do you cook the frozen broccoli and the instant rice before adding it all together???
Hi Marie. No. The frozen broccoli is partially thawed and will finish cooking in the oven. The instant rice does not need to be cooked. It cooks in a jiff and will also soften in the oven. Let me know if you have any more questions.
Just found your blog, and when I saw this recipe I had to read it. It has been part of a Christmas Day meal for who knows how long from my husband’s family, and I have been married twenty years! The only difference is the addition of green chiles, and my mother-in-laws recipe actually calls for the jalapeño cheese whiz… I usually make it a bit healthier with homemade soup mix, real cheddar or colby-jack cheese, and sometimes even brown rice. But the original version is the best comfort food. And my Mother-in-law always makes hers at least a day ahead, I have never noticed the rice being too mushy- but that is how she has always made it that I know of, so…
Have you ever frozen this prior to baking? Wondering if that would keep the rice from getting mushy.
I have never frozen this casserole before baking. Are you asking because you think the rice is mushy after cooking? Nor have I frozen after baking.
When making this yourself, do you use water or milk for the liquid? Is this the original recipe from the back of the soup cans years ago?
Hi Martha: I always use milk. I yes, I do believe this came from a soup can —- years and years ago. 🙂
This has got to be the original recipe, tastes just like it should. Thanks for posting this classic recipe.